Sans magic: Queensland Ballet revisits a love story for the ages
While Queensland Ballet’s latest tilt at William Shakespeare’s best-known work, Romeo and Juliet, is a stunning gift to audiences, our reviewer sensed it lacked that sometimes-elusive magic spark.
Eleven years after its exclusively licensed Australian-company premiere smashed box-office records, Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo & Juliet continues to be the jewel in Queensland Ballet’s crown.
Not only is the ballet a genuine masterpiece, the imprimatur to perform it confers an enviably rare elite global stature and accompanying guarantee of excellence.
Running until March 29 in the Lyric Theatre at QPAC, QB’s third presentation of the production is a must for anyone with any interest in seeing great dance and especially those who are new to ballet.
MacMillan’s choreography is so richly layered that another viewing can still reveal new details. Meanwhile, the parts that are utter perfection – sublimely synthesising movement, music and meaning – remain enthrallingly timeless.
This season, in keeping with the preceding two, also defines a stage in QB’s development. In 2014 – only the second year of then-artistic director Li Cunxin’s tenure – the resounding success and acclaim affirmed his ability to deliver on an exceeding ambition to make QB world class in calibre.
Five years later, a remount of Romeo & Juliet ditched the safety net of international guest partners in lead roles. Excitement came from the creation of new stars from within. Flourishing under the tutelage of principal coach Leanne Benjamin and specialist MacMillan stagers, then-company artist Patricio Revé (who is currently reprising Romeo) and soloist Mia Heathcote (now with The Australian Ballet) were elevated to opening-night honours. Lighting up the stage as the star-crossed lovers, they were immediately rewarded with promotions during their bows.
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This latest rendition cements the ballet’s prime place in the company’s repertoire after the purchase of scarce MacMillan estate-approved sets and costumes, unveiled after a six-year process made possible by private donors. As anyone aspiring to upgrade from renter to owner knows, the acquisition of such an asset is a source of worth and pride.
There will be two guest principals from the Royal Ballet – Victorian Calvin Richardson and Akane Takada, who are dancing together mid-season – on March 26 and 28 to honour the work’s 60th anniversary, supported by the QPAC 40 program.
Opening night saw principal Revé teamed with senior soloist Chiara Gonzalez as his Juliet. As captured in the company’s hero publicity imagery, they are a gorgeously photogenic pair.
As well as looking their parts, they perform beautifully together, reflecting a genuine connection and emotional conviction. The young couple’s pas de deux are some of the most exquisite ever created, communicating a trajectory starting with romantic promise, peaking with ecstatic passion and crashing to unbearable anguish.
Energetic character-based group dances and trios offset this poetic lyricism, most notably those featuring Romeo, best friend Mercutio (Kohei Iwamoto) and Benvolio (Joshua Ostermann) and the Three Harlots (Georgia Swan, Laura Tosar and Vanessa Morelli).
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The three men’s Act I sequence of jumps and attitude derrière pirouettes in unison is so fiendishly difficult that I’m yet to see it completely nailed. In toto, though, the execution of movement throughout by both featured artists and corps de ballet is excellent.
Romeo, Mercutio and Benvolio’s cheeky interplay and the multiple bouts of spirited sword fighting are entertaining highlights – the latter leading to two of the best death scenes in dance (spoiler alert) at Act II’s conclusion.
Delivering richer characterisations than in 2019, both senior soloist Iwamoto as the dashing Mercutio and soloist Vito Bernasconi, a palpably menacing Tybalt (Juliet’s cousin), have also heightened the dramatic impact of their demises.
The presence and artistry that retired principals bring to character roles as guest performers is always a treat, notably on this occasion former English National Ballet stars Lisa Pavane (who was also a beloved The Australian Ballet principal) as Lady Capulet and Janette Mulligan, a QB audience favourite returning as Juliet’s Nurse.
my sense of a magic spark being missing from this version carried through to the ballet’s conclusion
The earthy tones and architectural features of the late Paul Andrews’ design effectively represent the story’s Italian setting, albeit without strongly contrasting the wealth and status of the warring noble families, the Montagues and Capulets, at the story’s centre.
Set to the most distinctive – and portentous – passage of Prokofiev’s score, Act I’s famed ballroom scene didn’t register its usual grandeur and gravitas, and nor did Queensland Symphony Orchestra’s playing.
That sense of a magic spark being missing from this version carried through to the ballet’s conclusion, despite enjoying the work’s brilliance and the uniform quality of the performances and presentation – under different coaches this time they just hadn’t synergised to generate the emotional intensity I’d felt six years ago.
However, in saying that, it’s a reference point not everyone will have, and this variation is akin to the difference between an A and A+ – it certainly doesn’t diminish the value of the production as a gift to the audience any time it is presented.
Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo & Juliet, Lyric Theatre, QPAC, until March 29.