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Previews | DANCE
NARRATIVE DANCE MATTHEW BOURNE’S SWAN LAKE Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Tue 16–Sat 20 Oct
It’s often incorrectly labelled the ‘all-male’ Swan Lake, which must be a little galling for the fabulous female dancers who perform in Matthew Bourne’s signature work. What is true, is that the corps de ballet of swans in Act Two,
usually danced by a large group of women, is performed exclusively by men. All those who have seen the show will know just what that injection of testosterone brings.
‘In terms of physicality and emotion they bring the menace of a swan and add a very dominant side to the role,’ says Max Westwell, who is about to make his company debut as the lead swan. ‘You think of swans as beautiful, but they’re also quite scary.’
Westwell spent much of his career to date dancing with
English National Ballet, before moving into musical theatre in the West End to hone his acting skills. Which made Bourne’s New Adventures the perfect fit. ‘I’ve always been really interested in narrative and story, and always wanted to be an actor,’ says Westwell. ‘Matthew’s was the only company I could see that was completely narrative and told stories in that way. It’s like my two loves blended together, so I’m very happy to be here.’
To walk straight into the most coveted, and arguably most memorable, role in Bourne’s entire canon is quite an achievement. What was Westwell’s perception of the show before he joined the company?
‘I’d seen Swan Lake a few times and loved it because it was so powerful,’ he says. ‘It also doesn’t take itself too seriously – it has humour, serious grit and power, and you don’t often see those things put together so well. So I’m just really excited to be dancing in it now, and learning about the movement, what it all means and where it comes from.’ (Kelly Apter)
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CONTEMPORARY DANCE RICHARD ALSTON DANCE COMPANY Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Thu 20 & Fri 21 Sep
Affectionately known as the founding father of British contemporary dance, Richard Alston has been choreographing for a staggering 50 years. With such a vast back catalogue to draw from, finding the best way to celebrate this landmark hasn't been easy – but Mid Century Modern attempts to do just that. ‘It’s been fascinating and a real joy to work on this piece alongside Richard,’ says associate choreographer, Martin Lawrance. ‘We’re recreating works that span from 1970–2018, including extracts from Nowhere Slowly, Rainbow Bandit, Fever and A Signal of a Shake.’
Lawrance, one of the UK’s choreographic treasures himself, has also created a
brand new piece to premiere in Edinburgh. ‘Coming to the Edinburgh Festival Theatre is always a highlight of the year for me,’ he says. ‘Especially to premiere a new work on its beautiful stage. Detour is set to Jóhann Jóhannsson’s remix of Michael Gordon’s Timber, and the music pulsates in descending phrases as duets, trios and solos find ways around each other in the space.’
Two more works from Alston complete the bill – a revival of his popular 2006 work, Proverb, plus a brand new creation, Brahms Hungarian, set to music of the same name. And, for the first time, the company will be spending two nights in Edinburgh.
‘This year we’re presenting four works that the Edinburgh audience has never seen
before, so they’re in for a real treat,’ says Lawrance. ‘And performing for two nights instead of our usual one is going to be amazing.’ (Kelly Apter)
BALLET LES BALLETS TROCKADERO DE MONTE CARLO Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Tue 30 & Wed 31 Oct
Although impossible to quantify, it’s fair to say that Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo has brought many new people into the dance fold. For 40 years, the New York-based company has reached out to those who feel ballet is ‘not for them’, and proved otherwise.
A company of all-male dancers, each playing both male and female roles from the classical canon, the ‘Trocks’ bring humour and skill to the stage – an intoxicating mix that can’t fail to charm. ‘Sometimes ballet can be a bit difficult to understand,’ says Raffaele Morra, a dancer with the company for 17 years. ‘But we explain the stories in a very silly, but also very clear, way. We aim to bring back the soul of those ballets – the excitement of the opening night when it was first created.’ For this particular tour, the ballets in question will be excerpts from Paquita, Swan
Lake, La Esmeralda, Les Sylphides and Merce Cunningham’s Patterns in Space. And a few weeks earlier, on 13 Sep, Edinburgh Festival Theatre will also play host to Rebels on Pointe, a fascinating new documentary film charting the Trocks’ adventures to date.
Having worked with the company for almost two decades, Morra has observed the way different audiences around the world react to their unique style. ‘It’s always really rewarding going to the UK,’ he says. ‘The audiences there combine the politeness of British culture with the enthusiasm of an American audience, so we get a little bit of everything from the audience.’ (Kelly Apter)
1 Sep–31 Oct 2018 THE LIST 93