As part of their 2015 world tour which heads to Brighton in November, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, New York’s internationally renowned, comedy ballet, took the town by storm with a sparkling, hilarious and fabulously entertaining programme at London’s Peacock Theatre.
The Trocks were in dazzling form, bringing technical prowess, bravura and wonderful comic method to the stage, thrilling their audience on the night,
In the company’s take on Les Sylphides, romantic reverie met narcolepsy as Gianni Goffredo’s vain, airhead of a leading man, Sergey Legupski, slept-walked his way through the dance, totally indifferent to his long suffering ballerina, Lariska Dumbchenko, played with assurance, grace and much comic patience by Raffaele Morra.
Both were admirably supported by Alberto Pretto and Carlos Hopuy’s sylphs. Pretto was poised, elegant and reminiscent of a Kirov ballerina until stepping out of character to hilarious effect, while Hopuy’s dancing was marked by speed and attack and was packed with fleet jumps. Around them cavorted a corps of sleepy sylphs, one moment floating with airiness and grace, the next bored and distracted by each other and taking up wrong positions on stage. It was a very funny start to the evening.
The middle part of the programme contained three short pieces. Patterns in Space, a wickedly funny parody of Merce Cunningham style dance, was set to a ridiculous, avant-garde score improvised on stage by two dead pan musicians played by company dancers. As their sonic improvisations became more absurd, they became increasingly funny and inevitably ended up stealing the show from the hapless dancers.
Go for Barocco was a brilliant parody of the genius of George Balanchine. Led by Matthew Poppe and Joshua Thake, the Trocks were all long legs and neo-classic poses, sometimes beautifully lyrical, sometimes deliberately jarring, but always very Balanchine. It’s often the extent of exaggeration which determines how funny and informing a parody is, and in this piece artistic director Tory Dobrin and his company tread the line beautifully, still allowing the audience to see the genius of the original choreography and staging. Even some of the more slapstick moments are beautifully judged, as when two dancers meet centre stage and begin gracefully resting one hand on top of the other, until it eventually becomes a battle, literally, for the upper hand. It’s very funny on a purely comic level but also refers back to Balanchine and his sublime use of gesture.
Part two closed with the Dying Swan, with Maria Paranova (Carlos Renedo) switching effortlessly between beautiful swan like lines reminiscent of Pavlova, and high camp drollery, bringing her swan queen to a comical demise surrounded by a stage full of disintegrating plumage.
The final part of the programme was given over to the company’s new working of Don Qixote, an action packed snapshot of the full length classic ballet. Again there was much hilarity, in part driven by the traditional comic plot, here given a Trocks’ twist. But it was the dazzling technique of Chase Johnsey and Paolo Cervellera as Kitri and Basil which stole the show. Stepping back from the drag comedy for a moment, this was a classy, classic performance full of fireworks and éclat which went beyond comedy ballet and would have graced any stage. And this is one of the great qualities of this company. For all the parody and humour, the Trocks are also passionate about sharing their love of dance and the repertoire. In lovingly parodying the geniuses and tradition of dance, they are showcasing and preserving its legacy while at the same time keeping their audiences thoroughly entertained. This show works on every level and really is a must see at the Dome in November.
Event: Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
Where: Brighton Dome Concert Hall
When: Tuesday November 3 & Wednesday 4, 2015
Tickets: 7.30pm, £12.50 / £18.50 / £22.50 / £27.50
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