Keeping quality ballet alive in South Africa: Joburg Ballet in The Sleeping Beauty

The Mandela at Joburg Theatre, Johannesburg
March 29, 2019.

Maggie Foyer

Joburg Ballet is a class act in survival. It has been through a number of changes in direction and name and weathers a constant funding crisis. Now, under artistic management of Iain MacDonald and Lauren Slade, it has come up trumps with a pared down, but high-quality production of The Sleeping Beauty.

The production and staging of the Petipa classic is by Maina Gielgud who charmed and cajoled excellent performances all round. The Sleeping Beauty is a challenge even for major companies, and for Joburg Ballet, with around 30 dancers it demanded, and got, total commitment from each dancer.

Gielgud has done some judicious pruning. With limited numbers of men, she nevertheless managed to garner a strong set of cavaliers but cut the Garland Dance. Left with a choice between Little Red Riding Hood and Cats, the moggies were sadly put down, and one fairy solo went but what remained kept the standards high.

The opening night featured guest artists, Anaïs Chalendard from Boston Ballet and Florimond Lorieux from the Paris Opera Ballet. Also featured was the very welcome Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra who gave a fine performance under the baton of Brandon Phillips.

The sets and costumes have been reconstructed by Vanessa Nicolau from Antony Farmer’s original designs. Very effective use is made of drapes and the elegant minimal sets create a magical ambience although the transformation scene is, of necessity, a little bare. The creative thinking demanded by austerity results in a production that artistic director, Iain McDonald and his team could be rightly proud of.

Chalendard was a delicate and utterly charming Aurora. A musical dancer with finely honed placing, in the Rose Adage she was for all the world the shy 16-year-old meeting her four suitors for the first time. She accomplished the balances and there was a roar of approval as she held the final arabesque. Her solos, in both the first and third acts, displayed her polished footwork and beautiful phrasing and were delivered with ballerina grace.

Lorieux matched her elegance with the beauty of line and form we expect from the Paris Opera Ballet. A young dancer, he nevertheless gave a most convincing performance as Prince Florimund in Act Two. He captured well the distracted demeanour of a prince waiting for fate to step into his life. When he encountered the Lilac Fairy, he responded with genuine delight, quite entranced by the vision. The grand pas de deux, after a careful start and some uncertainty, grew in confidence as the coda climaxed in a brilliant jeté manège.

Among the soloists, Ruan Galdino was a virile Bluebird, creating a strong presence and displaying clean batterie and impressive flexibility in his torso in the brisé diagonal. His Princess Florina was a charming and competent Shana Dewey. Claudia Monja was a gracious Lilac Fairy, oozing charm and with sufficient authority to confront and confound Carabosse.

I loved Monika Cristina’s vibrant Fairy of the Golden Vine. The brief Fairy of the Songbirds’ sole was magicked into a special moment by Alice le Roux and in Act Three, fleeing from a big, bad Wolf, Miles Carrott, she even managed to bring a frisson of excitement to her portrayal of Red Riding Hood. Nigel Hannah was a truly terrifying Carabosse. He brought menace to the mime in strong, clear gestures while his piercing gaze gave full force to the message.

Nymphs, Friends and Lilac Fairy attendants did a tremendous job working double shifts to execute all of Petipa’s steps with reduced numbers of dancers.

Gielgud has invested hugely in this production. Her care and attention to fine details, especially in the elegance and refinement of the ports de bras, her integrity in the drama and the precision in the corps was matched in commitment from the dancers. Keeping ballet alive is a challenge in Johannesburg, but the company can be proud of this very special evening.