Dancing in hell
No need to look back with Ballet B.C.’s Orpheus
PREVIEW
ORPHEUS
Ballet British Columbia
September 20 & 21
Jubilee Auditorium
The Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is a jewel for creative interpretation. Christophe von Gluck’s 1762 opera became world-renowned, Jean Cocteau made a film version in 1949, and everyone from Tennessee Williams to Sidney Lumet has taken a stab at it.
Orpheus is the perfect tragedy: Eurydice dies on her wedding day, and Orpheus, the world’s greatest musician, travels to Hades’s underworld to win her back. His wish is granted providing that, as he exits the underworld with Eurydice in tow, he never looks back at her. If he does, he will lose her forever.
As interpretations go, Ballet B.C.’s Orpheus promises to make an exciting and unusual stretch. Adapted by playwright John Murrell, director John Alleyne tossed another mythical figure into the love story: Persephone, Hades’s stolen bride, doomed hostess of the underworld. Here, Persephone’s own obsession with Eurydice becomes the main obstacle in Orpheus’ quest.
Orpheus first previewed in Banff this past spring, and returns as part of Alberta Ballet’s new season. The ballet follows the success of Alleyne and Murrell’s first narrative collaboration, Faerie Queen, which adapted another interpretive gemstone, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night's Dream. That production brought the six-year-old, Vancouver-based ensemble out of its own underworld, all under Alleyne’s watchful eye and rare blend of classical and contemporary movement.
"I’m proud the company is such a Canadian achievement," says Brent Belsatr, manager of artistic operations. "John’s vocabulary is really trying to bring Canadians along with him in creating these works, and dancers are drawn to the blend of styles."
Alleyne intends to breathe new life into Canadian ballet, and the company appears to have the right formula for reaching weary audiences. Don’t expect a barrage of five-foot-nine dancers in Swan Lake form. The international troupe of only 14 comes in all sizes, classically trained elsewhere and assembled for their various strengths. In the title role is Leduc, Alberta native Edmond Kilpatrick.
"I think the size of the company is great," says Kilpatrick. "Everyone is a lot more integral and involved. And physically, the difference in bodies reflects people today. It gives you more options onstage, and we’re able to create more images."
Many of Faerie Queen’s creators return for Orpheus. Music composers Owen Underhill and Michael Bushnell pay tribute to von Gluck’s opera, while Kim Nielsen has created the production’s dreamy set and costume elements. Dancer Emily Molnar, who played a female Puck in Faerie Queen, plays Persephone, once again opposite Kilpatrick. The pair has the right chemistry.
"Emily has a lot of power and passion onstage and, physically and energetically, we just fit," says Kilpatrick. "Persephone really drives the plot, so for me it’s about the relationship with Eurydice. As I’m experiencing this tragic love story, the character is really pulling out the rug on Persephone."
The result is a powerful duet between Orpheus and Persephone, whose myths of lost love walk a fine line. Kilpatrick explains that as dancers, conveying the story is the biggest challenge.
"Because you are storytelling, you need to be conscience of that first and foremost," notes Kilpatrick. "You can’t really indulge in your own moments. What’s so intriguing about John’s ballets is that they are real time, like contemporary theatre, and you have to know what you are doing."
"John is an intense individual and that journey of life is important to him," adds Belsatr. "Faerie Queen was the watershed that said we can do it, and Orpheus has taken it to another level."
Kilpatrick agrees. The dancer-choreographer, once a young actor in Edmonton, is taken with his role as Orpheus.
"Orpheus loves this woman so much, and is pure in so many ways," Kilpatrick says. "When he loses her, he goes on this incredible journey, with obviously huge distractions – yet his mind is on getting his love back. For me, what a love story." |
