Choreographer
and Director
David Nixon
Co-director
Patricia Doyle
Set and Lighting
Design
Duncan Hayler
Music
Mendelssohn
Brahms and
Prokofiev
Costume Design
David Nixon
Music
Arrangement
John Longstaff
Conductor
John Pryce-Jones
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A Midsummer
Night's Dream
by William Shakespeare
Sadler's wells
17 - 27 March 2004
The Northern Ballet Theatre's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream is a playful and adventurous ballet based on Shakespeare's play. Set in the late 1940's, it takes us to the chaotic world of the post-war dance troupe on tour with all the plays intrigue and humour thrown in. In terms of concept and design, if you imagine Some like it Hot with a bit of The Red Shoes youll be about right. Although loaded with every stereotype you can think of, from the irascible Artistic Director to the camp Wardrobe Master, the production does exactly what a regional company should do; it entertains in a bold, if slightly self-conscious, way.
Act One sees the company finish class and rehearse Romeo & Juliet; a rehearsal pianist plays Prokofiev's score on stage. Theseus is the Artistic Director, Puck the Ballet Master, Hippolyta; Juliet and Lysander; Romeo. You get the idea. There are plenty of humorous deliberate mistakes during the rehearsal and these are hit and miss. On the one hand they flatter the audience by including them but on the other they can destroy the through line of a scene if done badly. Jerome Robbin's The Concert is the reference work par excellence and this isnt even close. I'm afraid there were moments that were not far off panto. That said, the comic timing of Pippa Moore (Helena) was stunning throughout the performance; she has a wonderful mixture of grace and mischievous energy which the audience responded to wholeheartedly. Later we are taken to King's Cross Station to see the company depart and then onto the Flying Scotsman. Duncan Hayler's set designs were rapturously received; the departure of the train being a real coup de theatre; its a long time since I heard an audience say "Oooo.." in a ballet.
Act Two takes us to Fairyland; we are in Theseus dream as he sleeps on the train. In it he becomes Oberon, King of Fairyland, and so the blissful Shakespearean plot of confused lovers plays out. The program helpfully refers to the magic potion used to intoxicate the lovers as love juice which in some ways chimes with the outrageous shagging going on in Titania's bower. The donkey sound effects and coital groaning raise a few titters but seriously gets in the way of everything going on on stage and in the pit. It all ends up happily ever after, ofcourse, but the acts final duet between Oberon (Hironao Takahashi) and Titania (Desiree Samaai) had a passion and grace that gave rare weight to the performance.
At the top of Act three we arrive at Edinburgh Waverley Station and later witness the enthusiastic applause of the audience at the end of the performance of Romeo and Juliet; a nice touch. The backstage party commences and the three couples announce their engagement. Right through the ballet David Nixon has made us feel like privileged observers of the intimate goings-on behind the scenes of a vivacious company. As a result we end up really caring that the right couples get it together; a real achievement.
David Nixon, the Artistic Director of the company and choreographer of the piece, is in his third season in charge. He has built a strong group of dancers who are punching well above their weight. His choreographic language is traditional and a little unadventurous but he has made a ballet which exudes self-confidence and fun. Whilst most national companies seek to suppress individual characters within the corps, David Nixon lets them flourish. He has been wise to underline the comedic skill of many members of the company as it would have been unwise for him to rely on standard skills when we are now so used to seeing international dancers of a very high standard. In particular, his handling of small groups of dancers is very exciting.
John Longstaff, the Music Arranger, was handed the poison chalice and charged with providing enough music for a three act ballet from Mendelssohns incidental music for the play. This body of music and the suite based upon it gives us barely an hour and so Longstaff has had to be resourceful, not with absolute success. Frederick Ashton commissioned John Lanchbery to give him a score for his The Dream but he wisely stuck to the short one act form. Longstaff's score contains nine different pieces by Mendelssohn, three by Brahm's and bits and pieces from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Although its difficult to see what else he could have done, it doesnt half end up a dog's breakfast. For example, at the top of act three we arrive at the station to the music of the 1st movement of Brahms 4th Symphony shortly followed by Mendelssohn's Wedding March. As a result the score has no sense of progression or completion, it feels more like one of the piano accompanists at the pre-talky movies who reacts to the action rather than supports it.
Yorkshire must have been half empty during this performance as the auditorium was packed with supportive fans. They applauded anything that happened on stage; a welcome relief from the normal cynicism of London audiences. There is a very strong spirit of loyalty within the audience who are witnessing David Nixon's dancers doing exactly what they should be doing; high quality, entertaining work with broad based appeal. The audience clearly felt that this was their company who had come to London to storm the walls of the artistic establishment. They didn't but good for them.
Simon Bass
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