When it comes to fairy tale ballets, one of the most popular, maybe even the most, is “Sleeping Beauty,” choreographed by Marius Petipa back in 1890 and set to a lush score by Tchaikovsky, widely considered his best endeavor for its sophistication and maturity.
While many declare “Nutcracker” and “Swan Lake” to be superior, the fact remains that the “Sleeping Beauty” score is lovely, rich, elegant, and colorful in ways that are fully integrated into characterizations through theme and variation. Granted, as a “they lived happily ever after” story, it doesn’t tug at the emotions as does “Swan Lake.” But as a total package, its success is fully founded in music, movement and story.
It was this legendary ballet that the Richmond Ballet brought to the Carpenter Center Saturday (matinee). Based on Petipa’s plan and crafted by Malcolm Burn, Richmond’s artistic associate and ballet master, with seriously elegant costumes and scenery and the rock solid Richmond Symphony in the pit, it was a visual and auditory treat.
Richmond literally and figuratively keeps its dancers on their toes. The company has a superb Studio series in which modern dance flourishes. While in some companies that dance vocabulary can negatively affect classical dance, it does not with Richmond. The company’s solid hold on modern and classical is equal in execution and appeal, the classical style is fully evident in this ballet that demands perfection of style.
Its structure requires a large corps which was met by the company and members of Richmond’s School of Ballet. As a note, while the numbers were impressive at times, with 30 or more on stage dancing, design lines tended to blur. That aside, praise is due to the older School dancers whose movements were impressively unified and the joyful contributions made by the younger trainees, all of which added appeal.
As for overall impression, Richmond’s acclaimed classical skills were evident throughout as seen in the primary five good fairies, along with the Lilac Fairy, and their cavaliers, the wicked Carabosse and the Act II divertissements.
Sabrina Holland was a splendid Aurora. Her grace and technical skills were evident throughout but most especially in the stunning and difficult “Rose Adagio” in which she was on pointe in what’s called an attitude derriere (picture Jean Bologne’s statue of Mercury, sort of) with her arms above her. One of ballet’s most exquisite moments, Holland pulled it off with style. While a more forgiving tempo might have allowed her more prep time for each of her four executions, it was, nonetheless, superb.
Fernando Sabino, as Prince Florimund, brought strength and dashing display to his leaps and turns. In turn, he offered Holland caring and controlled partnering, which culminated in the closing Grand Pas de Deux which was, in a word, tremendous.
The elegant Lauren Archer lent beauty to this “Beauty” as the Lilac Fairy, who thwarted the evil spell cast by Carabosse, as did Elena Bello offer an engaging, darkly inspired and energetically danced Carabosse.
The Wedding scene provides some of “Beauty’s” best moments, one delightful dance after the other, all of which were done, here, with delight and fine execution. From Jewels to Little Red Riding Hood, color and joy were abundant. However, special nods go to Khaiyom Khojaev, who was a top notch soloist as Puss ’n Boots, as well as a cracker jack partner to Abi Goldstein’s White Cat in their giddy divertissement and to Eri Nishihara and Trevor Davis in an exciting Bluebird Pas de Deux.
Erin Freeman kept a steady eye on the stage and led the Richmond Symphony, which played with sumptuous sound, in an exactingly and musically choreographed endeavor that helped make this “Sleeping Beauty” a beauty of a winner.
Shulson, a Williamsburg resident, has been covering the arts for more than 40 years. He makes a guest appearance in Margaret Truman’s “Murder at the Opera.”
