West Australian Ballet: Pinocchio
His Majesty’s Theatre, 15 September
Pinocchio is artistic director Ivan Cavallari’s final new work for the West Australian Ballet before his return to Europe. It is a theatrical cornucopia created by an all-Italian team who bring a novel concept and a dark, edgy 2012 dynamic to their adaptation of Carlo Collodi’s much-loved 1883 story The Adventures of Pinocchio.
The production is visually attractive with striking designs by Edoardo Sanchi including a spectacular gigantic puppet Mangiafuoco, a glorious Field of Miracles scene, and an enormous, decorative antique organetto di barberia, all beautifully lit by West Australian Ballet’s Jon Buswell. The costumes by Maria Porro are quite charming and a commissioned, ‘simpatico’ orchestral score by Enrico Melozzi, with an extraordinary range of genres and instruments, underpins the work. It was played by WASO with great passion and verve, conducted by Myron Romanul. Cavallari provides the choreographic language for this ‘gesamkunstwerk’ or creative mix and, at times, dance itself takes second place to some of the other elements of the production.
A charismatic Andre Santos in the title role was among several eye-catching performers. He danced superbly throughout and created a lovable Pinocchio. Matthew Lehmann excelled as Geppetto, Jennifer Provins and David Mack were suitably conniving and crafty as The Cat and the Fox, and Sergey Pevnev, in a hilarious cameo as a Russian-speaking, all-singing, rapping and dancing Italian named Lucignolo, almost stole the show. The Circus Master (Daniel Roberts) delivered his lines in a brilliant, actorly manner and The Turquoise Fairy (Jayne Smeulders) spends many death-defying moments suspended from the top of the proscenium and also gets to speak.
Spotted dancing exquisitely were the Clowns (Fiona Evans and Joseph Simons), and the Ballerina (Brooke Widdison-Jacobs) among many others. The entire company embraced the opportunity to move out of their comfort zones, performing as donkeys, black rabbits, puppets, speaking school children and logs of wood. Their vitality and commitment was crucial, especially in some of the flatter moments.
Closing Act I was another of the production’s stars, Richard Symons, a gifted lyric tenor cast as The Singing Cricket, who gave a magic rendition of a poignant aria about dreams, which becomes significant in the final scene. One of his other sung “numbers,” “Cricket’s Latin Cavatina,” complete with sombrero and maracas, later became one of the highlights of Act II.
The growing of Pinocchio’s nose when he tells lies was ingeniously conveyed by dancers Robert Mills, Benjamin Kirkman, Yann Laine and Samuel Maxted wearing huge noses of varying lengths. Another high point is the beautiful underwater scene, in which the shark becomes a manipulated puppet that swallows a miniature puppet Pinocchio.
Despite many highly entertaining moments, some scenes are overlong and the movement, a mix of classical and contemporary styles, occasionally becomes repetitive. And with gunshots, a hanging, and a touch of burlesque, puppetry, vaudeville and cabaret, some of the overt zaniness wears a bit thin and becomes a little disjointed and hard to follow. Prior reading of the synopsis is a must.
However, the final scene reveals that the entire spectacle we have just witnessed is in fact the bad dream of a little boy in bed who calls for his mum and dad to come into his room to reassure him. So, perhaps, as it is a dream, anything goes!
This production may not appeal to everyone, but the loyal opening night audience of mainly adults welcomed it with great enthusiasm.
Pinocchio runs until 29 September.
See: http://www.waballet.com.au
- MARGARET MERCER