The opening night of WA Ballet’s La Sylphide on Friday 18 May reflected a celebration of two classics.
The more than 100-year-old His Majesty’s theatre shone with its refurbished seats and auditorium and was the perfect complement for the performance of one of the world’s oldest ballets.
First performed in 1836 in Copenhagen under the direction of August Bournonville, this season’s performance of La Sylphide from WA Ballet sees it remain true to his origins utlising international Bournonville authority Dinna Bjorn as the staging director.
Set in Scotland, La Sylphide tells the tale of a famer who on the eve of his wedding is tempted by the beautiful fairy like Sylph.
It’s a classic tale of love and loss which is probably one of the reasons why it has remained so popular.
Under the artistic direction of Aurelien Scannella, WA Ballet has a goal of enriching people’s lives through dance and he has worked hard to highlight the importance of art and culture in our community not only by producing world class ballets but also offering performances to people who have limited access to the arts.
My partner and guest for the opening night had never attended a classical ballet, he’d seen several performances of Ballet at the Quarry but was a little dubious about his enjoyment of a classical offering.
Before the show started I utilised my show program and nightly performance sheet which has an overview of the story and the dancers for the night and read the story to him.
I was so pleased that I had taken the time to do this as it allowed him to revel in the entire performance from the dancers, the sets, music, lighting and costumes and he noticed far more detail than I expected.
I loved that he was blown away by the skills of the dancers from the ensemble dancing to the dexterities of the night’s principal dancers; a new ballet enthusiast was born.
Scannella’s goal of enriching lives through dance had another convert.
Every season WA Ballet goes from strength to strength and this classic performance of La Sylphide is one that should not be missed.
La Sylphide plays His Majesty’s Theatre until 2 June. Tickets from www.waballet.com.au or call 9214 0707.
