The Royal NZ Ballet’s new production of Carmen opens with a band of blokes rough and tumbling (quite literally) in the street outside a cigarette factory. If you’ve never been to the ballet, or if it’s been a while, it’s a scene that hits you like a tonne of bricks; men leap and spin and dive and roll across the stage, setting the scene without saying a word. Very different to the talk-fests we’re accustomed to on TV and on the big-screen! You might even feel a little confronted, wondering how this story will be told. But when Micaela stumbles into the scene in her polka dot dress and sensible shoes, and clutching her handbag (quite rightly) to her person, we begin to discover just how much can be said with the human body sans vocal cords.
Sweet Micaela has come to visit her fiancé, José, but he’s still on duty as a member of the Security Police, and the men loitering around the factory harass and taunt poor Micaela until she finally leaves in a fluster. It’s incredible what can be conveyed through dance; the men’s lecherousness and Micaela’s embarrassment are unmistakeable. Moments later, the women’s shift is over at the cigarette factory and the girls pour out – much to the delight of the waiting men! These women are far more worldly than Micaela and they relish the male attention, pulling off their factory uniforms to reveal tight shorts and cut-off shirts. They parade across the stage in a dance designed to impress. Then Carmen arrives. Wearing her trademark red, now as a form-clinging singlet, Carmen is a magnet to which every eye is drawn. Played by the incredibly talented Pieter Symonds, she utterly owns the stage and her dancing is magnificent. Much to the chagrin of the other women, the men’s attention is now fully occupied by Carmen alone. And where is her attention? Directed at Micaela’s fiancé, José.
And so begins a rollicking journey into the underworld of petty criminals occupied by Carmen and her rag-tag compatriots; a world into which she draws José, costing him everything in the process. Carmen is amply equipped to lead us through this world; she is charming, beautiful, passionate, funny and tough – to the point of selfishness and, ultimately, to tragedy. Whether you’re a ballet aficionado or not, Carmen’s story is one that will have you entranced from beginning to end. Really, who needs words?!
The Royal New Zealand Ballet Meridian Season of Carmen plays this winter throughout New Zealand.
Wellington – St James Theatre 5 – 12 June 2010
Invercargill – Civic Theatre 17 – 19 June 2010
Christchurch – Isaac Theatre Royal 23 – 26 June 2010
Palmerston North – Regent on Broadway 29 – 30 June 2010
Napier – Municipal Theatre 3 – 4 July 2010
Auckland – Aotea Centre at THE EDGE® 7 – 10 July 2010