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A fun-filled cracker of a show
Clara and Knickerbocker Glory, in a rather elaborate wig, dance the calories away in Sweetieland Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker Birmingham Hippodrome ***** IT takes a brave man to bring Nutcracker
to the stage of the Hippodrome, spiritual home of Birmingham Royal
Ballet's masterpiece, but Matthew Bourne manages it with aplomb . . .
sugar aplomb if you like. But this is not really a comparison between two
competing ballets, BRB have a magnificent, traditional, classical
interpretation of Tcbut a fun filled interpretation of the
glorious music of Tchaikovsky. As Bourne said at a Q&A session at the end of the
opening night, the 101st performance of Nutcracker on this
tour, his New Adventures company is not a ballet company but a dance
theatre company and that is what he gives you – theatre with a story
told in dance. This was the first of his full length dance
pieces, dating back 20 years, the next Tchaikovsky ballet was Swan
Lake and he is currently working on the third great ballet by the
Russian master, Sleeping Beauty which is expected to premiere in Autumn. He said: “I always feel an affinity with
Tchaikovsky's music. It tells a story and that is what I do, narrative.” And that is what his Nutcracker does, it tells a
story. Unlike the BRB version the story opens not at a Christmas party
in a wealthy household but in a scene from Dickens, a poor orphanage
with children in threadbare uniforms expected to perform for the
governors by Dr Dross (Neil Westmoreland), a sort of educational Herr
Flick without the limp, and his wife (Etta Murfitt).
Assisting him in his cruelty to the waifs and
strays are his spoilt brats Sugar (Ashley Shaw) and Fritz (Dominic
North). To impress the governors the scruffy children, who could be
straight out of Oliver Twist, are given meagre Christmas presents -
which are then taken away as soon as the dignitaries go, leaving Clara
(Hannah Vassallo) distraught at losing her Nutcracker doll. As the children sleep Clara looks for her doll
and the Nutcracker comes to life and takes Clara off to a dreamland
where he changes into a bare chested handsome youth (Chris Trenfield)
and amid all the fun, humour and great entertainment their pas de deux
is truly a thing of rare beauty, a wonderfully expressive dance. We have a snowstorm and skaters where Sugar and
Fritz have become Princess Suagr and Prince Bon-Bon before Clara
heads off to Sweetieland helped by the pyjama clad cupids (Sophia
Hurdley and Liam Mower) where Dr Dross and his wife have been
transformed to King and Queen Candy. Defending the entrance is the humbug bouncer
(Leon Moran) while guests include Liquorice All Sorts, Kickerbocker
Glory, (Adam Maskell) the Marshmallow Girls and the Gobstoppers, the
bovver boys in motorcycle helmets, played by Daniel Collins, Luke Murphy
amd Danny Reubens. The Allsorts are a remarkably cheesy latino trio
with a dance to match their garish costumes, slicked down hair and
pencil moustaches – the men that is - played by Tom Jackson Greaves,
Katrina Lyndon and Leon Moran. In contrast the marshmallow girls, Carrie
Johnson, Mari Kamata, Daisy May Kemp, Kate Lyons and Chloe Wilkinson)
look like fluffy extras from a 1930's Busby Berkeley musical and you
half expect them to form a line and break into a high-kicking tap
routine at any moment.
The Nutcracker is seduced by the charms of
Princess Sugar but as in all good dreams he finally comes back to Clara
and as fantasy and reality become intertwined the pair escape from the
orphanage, Colditz style, down a rope of bedsheets, to begin a life anew
to cheers all around. The infectious enthusiasm and enjoyment of the
cast shines through and the production is full of little visual asides
such as the orphan and then the marshmallow girls sneaking a peek up
Sugar's dress – what does she keep up there, ferrets? - there are
pushes and shoves, little looks and reactions so no one stands and
watches awaiting their turn. The whole, excellent and talented cast is
always alive, always acting, always embellishing and polishing the
narrative. A note as well about the set by Anthony Ward with
its nightmare walls, windows and furniture at strange angles in the
orphanage – how the asymmetrical window managed to open straight up is
still a mystery – which break open to reveal the fluffy scenes of frozen
lake with its giant pillow and floating feather. Then comes Sweetieland where the giant birthday
cake with its 10 huge candles even managed a round of applause. In his Q&A session Bourne admitted he did not
really fit in in the artistic establishment, as he was neither a
classical ballet or dance company nor real theatre, a sort of in
between. In a way that is true but equally in 20 years he has created
his own niche, his own genre, dance theatre, stories without words and
with Nutcracker it is a delight and great fun to watch. Roger Clarke
THIS is a vastly different ballet to the
traditional version performed so often as a welcome Christmas treat by
the Birmingham Royal Ballet. But Matthew Bourne has created a
masterpiece of its own, almost guaranteed to be a success since it is
built round the same wonderful Tchaikovsky music that audiences love. Here the story doesn't open in the opulent home
of a wealthy family, with well-heeled guests arriving in their finery to
be entertained on Christmas Eve. Instead the curtain opens to reveal a rather
stark set representing a grim orphanage for waifs and strays, and the
dancers are the young, grey-clad ‘inmates', ill treated and quickly
relieved of the somewhat meagre seasonal gifts given to them by the
governors, Dr and Mrs Dross (Neil Westmoreland and Etta Murfitt), to
impress important visitors. There's a touch of Annie the orphan and Oliver
about the start, but the colour and spectacular dancing soon arrives as
one of the orphans, Clara, beautifully danced by Hannah Vassallo, slips
into the dream world of Sweetieland with the nutcracker toy, transformed
into a handsome young man. Chris Trenfield is superb as the
Nutcracker, lured away by the beautiful Princess Sugar (Ashley Shaw),
but there is a happy ending with Clara waking from her dream back in the
orphanage before escaping with her true love through a window down a
knotted sheet. There are some fascinating new characters
in this ballet, including a trio of Gobstoppers, bully boys in bullseye
shirts and crash helmets (Daniel Collins, Luke Murphy and Danny Reubens),
a Humbug bouncer and Marshmallow Girls. A group of bare-chested male dancers no doubt
provide a thrill for the ladies in the audience, too, during a memorable
ballet bursting with humour and innovation. Cheering greeted the finale of a ballet,
‘Bourne-freed' and a sheer delight. To 11.02.12 Paul Marston
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