Arts > Theatre
Sleeping Beauty @ Norwich Theatre Royal
09/03/16
Once upon a time there was a fairy tale called Sleeping Beauty. A timeless classic, Disney did a sweet job of it, and Tchaikovsky created the mightiest, boldest score ever to go alongside it. Then Matthew Bourne got his mitts on it and made it ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I'VE EVER SEEN ON STAGE EVER.
Yeah I said it.
Matthew Bourne is a kind of god amongst ballet choreographers, and an absolute visionary in my eyes. His imagination is a rampant beast, as are yours and mine of course, but the difference is that he can make what's in his head appear like magic in front of our very eyes. A master of creating what look like impossible sets and incredible costumes, he forces his audiences to see ballet in a totally fresh light. I somehow can't really believe what I saw last night was real. In fact, it feels like a dream, or a movie that I once saw late at night by accident that has stuck with me. That sort of thing.
To set the scene then, there's an enormous crack of thunder and a terrifying moving silhouette of what can only be a baddie holding a baby over his/her head against the moon. It's suddenly freezing cold in the theatre and I have full body goosebumps. Here we go. Moving from the late Victorian period through to modern day, we see the dancers in amazing costumes, looking like the Romanovs in pale gowns, diamonds and moustaches through to jeans, trainers and t shirts. It's not jarring in the least though, such is the genius way that we trust and believe entirely in what is shown before us.
The sets for this production are mindblowing. From a twilight, lamplit forest dotted with what look like real silver birch tree trunks to the grandeur of a tea party on the mansion's lawns and finally to a futuristic nightclub, the lighting and music and atmospherics are just incredible. I am wowed every second by something new.
The chemistry between leading lady Aurora (Cordelia Braithwaite) and her secret sweetheart, Leo (Dominic North) is absolutely solid; I don't think I have ever seen such playful, joyful, natural duets before. It's a absolute pleasure to watch, and I want to jump up and run and hug them, they are so good together. That's the magic right there that holds everything else together, and in particular I enjoy watching Dominic dance with such elegance and presence in jeans, hoodie and trainers. What a talent he is.
I love the henchmen, with their black wings, hoodies and masks, whose movements are so threatening, a little like the Flying Monkeys in the Wizard of Oz. I love Adam Maskell as Caradoc, a suave motherlover of a baddie who's probably in a death metal band on the weekends, when he's not in red velvet or a cream linen suit. Charming and charismatic as hell of course, as all baddies are, of course he comes to a bad end, bare chested, with REVENGE etched on his belly and a knife in his heart. Sorry. Spoiler.
There's some excellent sleight of hand, with characters appearing and disappearing from the stage without me even realising, and of course, some superb puppetry for the baby Aurora, expertly handled and completely believable. The cheeky fairies are magnificent in their raggle taggle outfits with lots of naughty toes rather than good toes action, and dancing that is so individual it almost blows every other ballet I've seen out of the water. Count Lilac, King of the Fairies and part time vampire, is dressed in an embellished denim jacket and pleather leggings, with just a touch of Adam Ant about him. It's all so cleverly thought out and new and bold. I bloody love it all.
I laugh. I swoon. I get goosebumps over and over again. I sing along to the music in my head. I can't stop smiling the whole way through.
I could talk about this show for approx another 5 sheets of A4 but I'll stop there and encourage you to watch the trailer right here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRAH8T4aHXI. See what I mean?
Go see this show. Go see all Matthew Bourne's shows. He is a genius.