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Dance: Features
CHRISTMAS
FARE IN PARIS
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The mood was quite, quite different at the Opéra Bastille where a tribute to Maurice Béjart was given. Three of his tried and tested works were given with differing degrees of success. The evening began with a 1970 creation, the enigmatic, Serait-ce la mort, which was given a five star treatment. No risks were taken with the casting of étoile Nicolas Le Riche as the man, and étoiles Delphine Moussin, Dorothée Gilbert, Clairemarie Osta and Emilie Cozette in the roles of Death, the Young Girl, Experience, and Sophistication respectively. It is a highly intimate work, and certainly a surprising choice for the Christmas festive season, telling the story of a dying man who sees before him the three women he loved in his lifetime. Set to the Four Last Songs of Richard Strauss, composed just before his death in 1950, it is the excuse for a series of lyrical pas de deux , reminding one why the early works of Maurice Béjart were, and still are, so greatly loved.
Of course, the work was inspired by and written for Béjart's muse and lifetime partner, the magnificent Jorge Donn, one of the most outstanding interpreters of his generation. But Nicolas Le Riche slipped effortlessly into the part. Partnering his ballerinas, one by one, each as lovely as the one before, a very moving and solemnly beautiful performance was given. But perhaps one star shone a little more brightly in the galaxy than the rest. The purity and spirituality of Emilie Cozette was in total harmony with the music, sung sublimely by the soprano, Twyla Robinson. L'Oiseau de Feu, another 1970 creation, came next on the programme, but unlike the previous work, created for Béjart's own Ballet of the XXth Century, Firebird was premièred by the Paris Opera Ballet. It was a total re-reading of the old Russian legend, banishing giants, magic apples, secret gardens and mysterious, glorious birds. Moreover, replacing the supernatural Firebird by a young poet, Béjart created the ballet for Michael Denard, there to supervise rehearsals. He did his work well, for Mathieu Ganio, dancing the role for the first time, gave a very credible performance. Tender, then violent, he looked the part and finally became the part, giving his strength and force to the group of partisans, offering his soul in return for the renewal of their energy.
Le Sacre du Printemps, Béjart's 1959 landmark work, completed the evening. Revolutionary with its blatant sexual energy, it caused a sensation at its première when it heralded the formation of the magnificent Ballet of the 20th Century at the Theatre de la Monnaie in Brussells." Like many of Maurice Béjart's works which were to follow, it was exactly in keeping with its time, and consequently today, seems just a little dated, a surprising fact when one considers, for example, Nijinski's timeless version which was created over fifty years before. Set to Stravinsky's phenomenal score, the ballet represents a fertility rite, a celebration of the physical union of a man and a woman and the stylized choreography demands interpreters of the highest level.
One can only question the wisdom of Shonach Mirk, one of the ballet's greatest interpreters, there to rehearse the opera dancers, who accepted the participation of corps de ballet member, Audric Bezard as the Chosen One. He was embarrassing to watch. Lacking personal charisma, he was a caricature of a mannered dancer attempting a role far beyond his capabilities. Faced with such a partner, Stephanie Romberg gave what can only be called an honorable performance. Evidently, Nicolas Le Riche cannot be expected to participate in every Béjart work, but when programming such a masterpiece, dated or not, more care has to be taken with the choice of interpreters. The dancing of the corps de ballet was far superior to that of the two leading dancers, which made for rather an odd ending to the evening.
The Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Paris conducted by Vello
Pahn gave a splendid performance.
Patricia Boccadoro writes on dance in Europe. She has contributed to The Guardian, The Observer and Dancing Times and was dance consultant to the BBC Omnibus documentary on Rudolf Nureyev. Ms. Boccadoro is the dance editor for Culturekiosque.com Related Culturekiosque Dance Archives Evolution: Balanchine, Nureyev, Forsythe Nureyev: Everything He Ever Said or Did Rudolf Nureyev at 70 According to Ariane Dollfus
Reader Comment: 10 December 2007 Maurice Béjart: 1 January 1927 - 22 November 2007 The Best and Worst of Maurice Bejart Maurice Béjart Returns to Paris Béjart and Beethoven at Bercy Kitsch at the Châtelet: Béjart's Nutcracker Béjart's Lumière: A Sentimental Wallow in Nostalgia or a Bad Attack of Indigestion? |
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