Review: Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes – distinct, visually arresting and magical

Matthew Bourne is the Tim Burton of dance. What does that mean? Whatever he produces is distinct, visually arresting and magical beyond doubt. Anyone heading over to Sadler’s Wells this festive season won’t get a typical Christmas show… but they will be entertained by Bourne’s 2016 The Red Shoes.

Most people have either seen or are aware of the 1948 film by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger starring the enigmatic dancer Moira Shearer as Victoria Page. The movie, of course, used the 1845 fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen as narrative inspiration, so referencing was part of the journey from the beginning, and it continues to be, sometimes to the detriment of the authenticity of the overall experience.

That said, Bourne is a magpie, as we all well know, and it was in fact Powell and Pressburger who took real-life people and scenarios as fodder for their narrative foundation. I may not have been around to witness the Ballet Russes and Sergei Diaghilev in action, but The Red Shoes takes one as close as one can get to experiencing the whirlwind of a period it would’ve been.

Fundamentally, the story is about Victoria Page, a gifted dancer, and the trials and tribulations she has to deal with in relation to her professional and personal life. She’s obsessive about her work, which all dancers are… and dare I say, need to be. And she’s also susceptible to falling in love – which human isn’t? Sadly, these two components aren’t the best of friends… especially if you have a charismatic, powerful boss who’s taken a shine to you. Eek.

As an ex-dancer, I can really tap into the existential crisis side of things. But as an audience member, the show can get a tad confusing. At one point I believe we were in a fantasy, in a show that’s in a show as we watched the performance… confused? Exactly. In this moment, one just thinks “go with the flow” but then the next scene demands you follow the narrative path if you don’t want to get left behind. I’ll leave the best choice down to the individual… but I was a bit drained by the end of the first half.

All in all, people will be far from disappointed. The dancers are gifted and very well rehearsed, though the hardcore dance critic in me wishes some of the footwork was more pliable and aesthetic. Lez Brotherston‘s sets and costumes are a wonder – at times doused in opulence, at others minimalist to support the expressionist environment and language. The score by (primarily film) composer Bernard Herrmann, and orchestrated by Terry Davies, is as you’d imagine – lush and cinematic in feel. And Bourne does his usual thing with the choreography. Kitsch, bound in style group scenes are interspersed with dramatic duos, and the combination works… but doesn’t necessarily develop dance language as we know it.

In the cast I saw, Cordelia Brathwaite was movie star-esque as Victoria Page, with port de bras and dynamic movement to die for. Leonardo McCorkindale brought expressive emotion to the tortured artist love interest Julian Craster, and Andy Monaghan knew exactly how to portray the complex impresario character of Boris Lermontov.

Brilliant elsewhere were Glenn Graham as the twisted ballet master Grischa Ljubov, Liam Mower as the diva premier danseur Ivan Boleslawsky and Michela Meazza as the DIVA prima ballerina Irina Boronskaya. Meazza is an extremely experienced performer, and one scene where she sends up how dancers mark through work I could watch forever. The balance of embodiment and subtle yet obvious humour is the stuff of greatness – brava.

Matthew Paluch Guest Author

Matthew Paluch was awarded a place at The Royal Ballet School in 1990 where he graduated in 1997. His first four years as a professional dancer were spent working with London City Ballet, Scottish Ballet, K-Ballet and English National Ballet, becoming a full-time member of ENB until leaving in 2006.

Matthew graduated from the Royal Academy of Dance, Professional Dancers’ Teaching Diploma in 2007, and was formerly on faculty at The Royal Ballet School. He completed his Masters in Ballet Studies at Roehampton University in 2011, has been a freelance writer since 2010 and currently works in the Law Sector.

He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.