Well, did you see it? 'Didja'? 'Didja'?

I mean, of course, the 'cinecast' at a cinema near you - where-ever you are in the world - of Romeo and Juliet by The Royal Ballet.  I stress the global nature of it because during the interval they ran on screen some 'Tweets' (I think they are called) from viewers from Prague to Buenes Aires, all watching simultaneously.  If you failed to see it you can take a hundred lines instantly!

I have heard the expression 'fusion art' several times but never quite understood what it meant but now I think I know because this ballet is the perfect form in which several distinct art forms are required to fuse together so that the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.  Last night, Shakespeare's version of the tale joined hands with Prokofiev's exciting and beautiful music which in turn linked to the genius (I use the word advisedly) of Kenneth MacMillan's choreography, all of which were expressed with almost unbelievable skill and passion by the dancers of  The Royal Ballet to produce, for me, an evening of sublime happiness despite the tragic nature of the story.  The whole thing was - and here I use a word I try to avoid over-using in theatrical events - excellent! 

I have confessed before to my ignorance of all thing balletic but to my untutored ears and eyes there were two revolutionary choreographic creations in the 20th century.  The first was Nijinsky's creation for The Rite of Spring which, along with Stravinsky's music, actually caused a riot at its premiere in 1913.  The second was MacMillan's superb work on this ballet.  Here, the dance serves the story and the characters not the other way round, which is the impression I gain from watching more classical ballets.  Everybody is left gasping by the choreographed (and highly dangerous) sword fights but it is in the intimate dancing that MacMillan's dancing design reaches the heights of emotional drama.  No-one, surely, can watch the balcony pas de deux between Romeo and Juliet without being profoundly moved; and when, in the final scene in the tomb, the dance is reprised but this time with Romeo carrying the supposedly 'dead' body of his young love . . . well, I for one was blinking back the tears.

I cannot, for the reasons stated above, offer any useful critique on the specific abilities of the dancers' techniques except to say that it looked terrific to me, but I can say something useful about their acting skills, and the word that springs to mind is - superb!  I am running out of superlatives so let me just re-use one word in relation to the two principals, Lauren Cuthbertson and Federico Bonelli, again, quite simply - excellent!  In the course of three hours, Ms. Cuthbertson moved, apparently effortlessly, from young girl to womanhood, to married bliss and then to tragic widowhood and suicide.  She was so sublime that you almost wanted to get up and shout , "STOP - please don't go any further!"  Bonelli, apart from his acting and dancing skills had one great advantage as a Romeo - he looked the part.  Tall, handsome, youthful but manly!  Both of them were supported by a terrific company of dancers and musicians.

Just an excellent evening and an experience not to be missed - so if you did miss it, despite my advanced notice of it, then a little peice of your life will forever remain dry and sterile and it serve you right!  Now, if you have children or grand-children to amuse let me tell you that Cineworld are offering La Fille Mal Guarde on May 16th and from the trailer it looks like being terrific fun for all the family.

One last thing, keep an eye on The Royal Ballet website because they must - surely they must - offer a DVD of last night's show and I do urge you all to buy it - but try and watch it on as big a TV screen as you can beg, borrow or steal!

 

Comments

[dearieme]

Was it the Prokofiev R & J? We saw a wonderful version by the San Francisco ballet decades ago at the Edinburgh Festival. We were in the front row so got the added advantage of hearing the singalong performance by the conductor, a tiny wee black chap who obviously had the band eating out of his hand. It was a composite band - part SF, mainly BBC Scottish Symphony. On stage there was the best coup de theatre I've ever seen. A marvellous evening: roars of applause.

But I've been to the ballet only twice because I know I don't like it. By some astounding fluke the other performance I saw was pretty damn good too - the Offenbach Tales of Hoffmann. Now that our available supply of Opera and Ballet is all in London it's beyond our pocket. We still think fondly of our Scottish Opera years.

[David Duff]

Yes, it was Prokovief with MacMillan's choreography - don't watch any other!
" the best coup de theatre I've ever seen. You can't leave it there - what happened?
I take your point concerning the cost these days but here's a tip. Some time ago we went to see this very ballet at Covent Garden but we went to the matinee on a Bank Holiday at a fraction of the normal charges. However, and I cannot stress this strongly enough, these cinecast versions at your local Cineworld which, remember, are shot live, are the very best way to see plays, opera or the ballet. Better even than the front row of the stalls, I promise you! Check the schedules and try it. Only £12 a ticket last night!

[dearieme]

C de T: Juliet danced in front of a mirror, quite beautifully. Then the other girl - for it was no mirror, just an empty frame - danced off: breathtakingly well done.

[David Duff]

That sort of thing makes me spit because I know as a (very amateurish) diector I'd never think of it in a million years!