Sin and melodrama at the House

THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS/PIERROT LUNAIRE
Friday 4 May, 2007
Royal Opera House

I’m a modern girl with an open mind so imagine my surprise when I spent a good part of this performance wondering whether it was right to see Royal Ballet principal dancers in sexy black undies and suspenders? It seems sacriligious, somehow, as if those childhood notions that ballet dancers are in fact magical princesses, beyond time and sexuality are still frighteningly present. Zenaida Yanowsky, however, kicked ass (having her ass kicked) as the innocent Anna, sold into the sex industry and passed coldly from man to man on her way up the pole to Hollywood fame, flirting dangerously with all seven deadly sins along the way. Her opposite number, half or sister, played and sung by Martha Wainwright, pockets the ill gotten cash and narrates other Anna’s sad story through Kurt Weill’s dark and harsh operetta. Wainwright sounds good and it’s genius to have her on stage amidst the action – she’s a brave one to move side by side with Yanowsky but there’s only one point tonight when she’s caught out inelegantly with bent legs in the air… just for a second.

What was odd about this “ballet chanté” was that although Lez Brotherston got the look was perfect; sleazy, glamorous and stylish the production also reeked of Bournesque aspirations. At times hammed up and verging on the cartoonesque we could have been having an immoral Christmas at Sadlers Wells but with less of a sense of humour.

As for the choreography, Yanowsky spends most of her time legs splayed, upside down being carted around without subtlety but then, this is about fucking your way to money and fame so maybe it’s absolutely perfect. Her provocative dancing with Mariela Nunez in the strip club is ace – bet they love being able to push all those boundaries of modesty on stage for once.

This was an enjoyably dark and dramatic piece. It doesn’t totally work and is perhaps over ambitious but the mix of live sung score and fresh choreography made it engaging and interesting enough. For more, read this Telegraph article here.

Edward Watson. Sigh.

Pierrot Lunaire is a simple short ballet about the loss of innocence and, tonight, was just superb. The Schoenberg score sung live by Linda Hirst was mindblowingly good – her voice swooping and shrieking, lamenting and cooing; now that’s what I call singing. On stage, Alexander Zaitsev was a spritely, mournful Pierrot and Mara Galeazzi his shy love object, Columbine. Then along comes Brighella. A man has never looked so good in a green catsuit. Edward Watson was rivetingly villainish, seductive and full of leggy evil. If it weren’t for the sorry fact he had a crappy costume sword I would have been genuinely terrified. Columbine’s reappearance as a flame attired harpy helps fulfil Brighella’s evil plan to corrupt Pierrot and kill him and the excellent performances all round, topped off by Hirst’s wonderfully characterful, disturbing storytelling soprano made this totally enthralling.

We couldn’t stay for the final piece. We knew we’d only be disappointed.

Read more about Edward Watson here.

Londonist mentions… Breakin’ Convention

Bank holiday hip hop hooray.