Coppélia, Varna International Ballet, New Theatre, Oxford. Monday 30 January 2023 – Maggie Watson reviews

The Varna International Ballet dancers are youthful, energetic and engaging. On Monday, they danced Coppélia, one of the three great nineteenth century ballets that they brought on a three-day touring visit to Oxford (the others being Giselle and The Nutcracker; they are also presenting Swan Lake at some venues). This is a very hard working company and orchestra delivering performances to a terribly demanding schedule: they were in Darlington the previous week, and opened in Ipswich immediately after Oxford, in a tour that takes in 23 theatres in about ten weeks.

Monday evening’s show was an opportunity to see a version of Coppélia with choreography credited to Alexander Gorsky and Gergana Karaivanova that is markedly different from the more familiar English productions. Gone were most of the mime sequences, the traditional national dances and some of the corps de ballet set pieces. Other changes included the introduction of a tricky pointe solo for the dancer playing the doll, and the substitution of a more visibly virtuosic repertoire for the variations in the third act; there were a great many fouetté turns! These choices distanced the ballet from its origins at the end of the French romantic era, and gave it a very different flavour.

I did not feel that the production was true to the style of the original ballet, but it was bright and cheerful, fully costumed (the women in gauzy romantic tutu skirts lit with bright colours), and staged with a projected background, but otherwise a full set. The illustrated programme included an article about the composer Léo Delibes by Philip Ashworth, and brief biographies with photographs of the soloists, who had trained in a range of schools and styles. It is unsurprising, given the rigours of touring, that overall the quality of the dancing was somewhat variable, but there was lovely upper body movement to be seen in some of the corps de ballet dancers’ ports de bras, and the best of the soloists delivered buoyant grand allegro, strong pointe work and dynamic pirouettes.

The company played to a good house and the enthusiastic applause demonstrated that, post-pandemic, there is an audience eager for full-length classical ballets in Oxford.

Maggie Watson

5th February 2023

 

Varna International Ballet, New Theatre Oxford, 30th January – 1st February 2023

Founded in 1947 and currently celebrating their 75^th anniversary, the critically acclaimed Varna International Ballet comes to the UK for the very first time. Renowned for its award-winning soloists and magnificent corps de ballet, the company has been delighting audiences for decades at home in Bulgaria and abroad with its performances of the highest quality. At Oxford’s New Theatre the company will present its productions of three well-loved classics, Coppélia, Giselle and The Nutcracker.

Daniela Dimova Artistic Director

Peter Tuleshkov Music Director and Chief Conductor

‘We are thrilled to be bringing our highly talented company of dancers and musicians to the UK for the very first time. We can’t wait to perform for British audiences and to bring these magical ballets to life on stage.’  Daniela Dimova

Monday 30th January 7.30pm: Coppélia

Every toy has a story, especially in this charming comedy of errors, a witty combination of antics and abracadabra, set in a doll maker’s workshop. This light-hearted tale of mistaken identity and confused lovers follows mischievous Swanilda, her impetuous suitor Franz and the eccentric toymaker Dr.Coppelius as they are brought to life by sparkling choreography and the animated score of Delibes. Coppélia is perfect for first-time ballet goers, families and everyone in between.

Tuesday 31st January 7.30pm: Giselle

The most poignant of all classical ballets is filled with dramatic passion in a chilling and heart-rending tale of love, treachery and forgiveness from beyond the grave. The moving story of delicate Giselle and her aristocratic but duplicitous lover Albrecht is set to a glorious score by Adolphe Adam. From the visual splendour of the rustic villagers happily gathering the harvest at the start of the story to the eerie moonlit forest haunted by beautifully drifting spirits, this production is unforgettable.

Wednesday 1st February 2.30pm and 7.30pm: The Nutcracker

This most famous of fantasy ballets for all the family, set to Tchaikovsky’s magical score, begins as night falls on Christmas Eve. As snowflakes fall outside, the warm glow of the open fire sends flickering shadows across the boughs of the Christmas tree and all the presents beneath. When midnight strikes we are swept away to a fairy-tale world where nothing is quite as it seems, toy dolls spring to life, the Mouse-king and his mouse-army battle with the Nutcracker Prince and we travel through the Land of Snow to an enchanted place where the magic really begins…

Venue: New Theatre, 24-26 George St, Oxford OX1 2AG

Tickets: From £24.15 to £61.65 plus transaction fee of £3.80 Book online here

 

Yuka Kodama Ballet Group Annual Show, Wychwood School Oxford, 3rd-4th June 2022

The Yuka Kodama Ballet Group is an informal group which brings together people of all ages who enjoy dancing classical ballet, studying technique and performing. The group began its life in Japan, and is now based in Oxford, offering a range of ballet classes mainly for adults (including pointe work, pas de deux and men’s classes) to ballet enthusiasts from all over the world. All our dancing is very much in the classical tradition, with a strong bias towards Russian technique. This long established and ever popular group presents its annual show over the Jubilee weekend. The family friendly show entitled Gala Concert and Songs From My Childhood comprises a selection of classical ballet repertoire highlights and newly made choreography.

Performances: Friday 3rd June 7.30pm, Saturday 4th June 2.00 and 6.30pm

Venue: Wychwood School, 74 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6JR

Tickets: £11.00-£14.00 bookable online here

Find out more about Yuka Kodama Ballet Group here or on Facebook here

 

Mark Franko: The Fascist Turn in The Dance of Serge Lifar: Interwar French Ballet and the German Occupation – Sue Ash reviews

During the fascinating discussion between Professor Susan Jones and Professor Mark Franko, in celebration of the publication of this book, held for DANSOX members via Zoom in November 2020,[1] Franko says: “I worry that the Occupation chapter is overpowering the book”, because the critical responses received thus far, had only written about that chapter. I will attempt to review more of Franko’s tour de force than this chapter, although it is rich with new archival material which uncovers much about the relationship between Serge Lifar at the Paris Opera and the Nazi Occupation.

Franko runs the major theme of the baroque in neoclassicism in ballet, through the body of Serge Lifar, throughout his book. He dissects the French baroque of the seventeenth century and the German baroque of the eighteenth century, their similarities and differences, their nationalist links and how they are reflected in Lifar’s ballets at different stages of Lifar’s career in Paris (1929-1958).

 

Swan Lake: Bolshoi Ballet live transmission at Phoenix Picturehouse Sunday 25th January

An opportunity to see a live transmission at Oxford’s Phoenix Picturehouse of one of the great 19th century ballets, Swan Lake,  performed by the Bolshoi Ballet.

At the palace, the royal family and their guests are gathered for Prince Siegfried’s birthday celebrations. In a majestic ceremony, Siegfried is made a knight; young girls try to attract his attention, as he must choose a wife during the ball. Overcome by the sudden awareness of his future responsibilities, he escapes into the night and meets a strange flock of swans by a magical lake.  White swan by day, human by night, the beautiful Odette awaits an oath of true love to break the curse. The great legend of the enigmatic woman/swan is one of the most romantic of classical ballets, appropriately set in an era of courtly romance and characterised by elegance, style and harmony.  With Tchaikovsky’s famous, lyrical score, Swan Lake depicts the tragic love between Princess Odette and Prince Siegfried, and will no doubt be performed to perfection by the unparalleled virtuosity of Russia’s great Bolshoi Ballet lead by Anna Nikulina and Alexander Volchkov. This universal and enchanting masterpiece of love, deception and drama is a must.

Date:  Sunday 25th January 2015, 3.00pm

Venue:  Phoenix Picturehouse, 57 Walton Street, Oxford OX2 6AE

Book online here or call 0871 902 5736

Running time: 135 minutes

 

Bolshoi Ballet in Balanchine’s Jewels transmission at Phoenix Picturehouse 19th January

Phoenix Picturehouse begins this year’s programme of ballet transmissions with a chance to see the Bolshoi Ballet literally sparkling in Jewels on Sunday 19th January.  Inspired by the famous jewellers of New York’s Fifth Avenue, this triptych is a tribute to women, and to the cities of Paris, New York and St Petersburg.  Choreographed in 1967 for New York City Ballet, this full evening work, with its jewel-like costumes, celebrates the three cities and three dance schools that forged the elegance, aesthetic and style of choreographer George Balanchine. Emeralds was conceived as a poetic tribute to the French romantic school and Rubies to the American tradition of Broadway musicals, while Diamonds honours the virtuosity of Russian classical dancers.

 

The Nutcracker: live transmission by The Royal Ballet, Odeon George Street 12th December 2013

The ultimate Christmas ballet treat coming up this week as Odeon Plus Culture programmes a live transmission by The Royal Ballet from the Royal Opera House.  From the very first notes of Tchaikovsky’s overture to The Nutcracker, a sense of mystery and magic pervades the theatre as Herr Drosselmeyer sets in train the events that will see his beloved nephew, Hans Peter, freed from the enchantment of the evil Mouse King by the resourceful Clara.  Peter Wright‘s classic production, first seen at Covent Garden in 1984, is an essential part of Christmas for audiences of all ages.

 

The Sleeping Beauty Bolshoi Ballet transmission at Phoenix Picturehouse Sunday 22nd December 2013

A Christmas treat for ballet-lovers – and in the wake of the recent court case convicting the attackers of director Sergei Filin, a welcome chance to be reminded of the on-stage presence of one of the world’s great ballet companies.  Oxford’s Phoenix Picturehouse will be retransmitting a 2011 performance by the Bolshoi Ballet of the  The Sleeping Beauty.

Cursed at birth by the evil fairy Carabosse, Princess Aurora descends into a deep slumber on the day of her 16th birthday. Only the kiss of a prince will awaken her.  Based on Charles Perrault’s classic fairy tale, The Sleeping Beauty has been hugely successful since its premiere in 1890. Marius Petipa’s masterpiece set to Tchaikovsky’s majestic score is one of the most popular and accomplished choreographic works in the classical repertoire. This recent version by veteran choreographer Yuri Grigorovich will captivate fairy-tale lovers and the whole family during the Christmas season, and features two of the company’s top principal dancers.

 

The Sleeping Beauty – English National Ballet at the New Theatre 19th-23rd February

Following the huge success of The Sleeping Beauty revival in 2005, and again in 2008 when it was seen by over 150,000 people, English National Ballet is once again performing Kenneth MacMillan’s sumptuous production of Petipa’s 19th century classic and bringing it to Oxford’s New Theatre in February.  Combining grand sets and costumes, Tchaikovsky’s glorious score and virtuosic dancing, The Sleeping Beauty is a dazzling showcase of classical ballet.