Ballet a little spotty

Press, 30 April 1981, Page 6

Ballet a little spotty

By

HEATH LEES

“Giselle” is full of all the Romantic apparatus one [could wish for. There are istar-crossed lovers, woodland [glades with enchanted spir!its, disguises and hunting [parties, all presented with a .' highly melodious, if not [highly memorable score. ! The two acts may be held ■together by the. merest ithread, but that hardly matiters in a ballet which epitomises village life in the [first, and all the enchant[ment of the magic forest in the second. I Of the Romantic ballets “Giselle” is probably the best known and the most common vehicle through which individual reputations are gained and lost’. ; The: New Zealand Ballet opened a four-night season at the Theatre Royal last eventing, . and “Giselle” emerged Mith but reasonable success, fl he. best features included Adrienne Matheson and Mar-

tin James as Giselle and Albrecht respectively. They danced well together, and projected a confidence Of direction in their movements. 'Martin James was particularly good in the air, with joyous, athletic leaps and jumps, and Adrienne Matheson’ was suitably delicate and wispy. In some ways they stood out because the others were sometimes inhibited, even awkward. Surprisingly, the timing was often bad in relation to the music, and since there was not a live orchestra to blame it seemed doubly mysterious why this .should be. ■ ’ • Tq be sure, the scenery for the first act/ occupied too much of the stage, and must have been unduly intrusive, but the set piece by Pauline Tronson and- Allan Barry showed signs'of strain, while Allan Barry’s timing and direction seemed all his own. In the second act, the queen was hardly a com-

manding one, and her dancing lacked over-all fluency; though again this might have been at least partly explained by erratic spotlighting which will no doubt be tightened up in future performances.

Apart from these disappointments there is still much to enjoy in a beautifully costumed production where the mime and acting are well contrived. The fullcompany scenes abound in movement without being over-fussy and the quality of the recorded music is excellent.

Despite the fracas with the spotlights, the general lighting effects contribute much to the sinister atmosphere of the second act, and the various groupings of the dancing sprites are handlfed with considerable imagination. With a little settling this will no doubt become a more rounded, polished production than the first night suggested.