Matthew Bourne’s adaptation of classic ballet movie The Red Shoes dances onto Milton Keynes Theatre’s stage this month and here at Total MK we simply can’t wait to be dazzled by the choreographer’s latest spellbinding production.
After a sold-out Christmas run at Sadler’s Wells, Bourne’s New Adventures company is bringing all the glamour of the 1948 British film to audiences beyond the capital on an extensive UK tour, writes Georgina Butler.
Predictably, tickets are selling fast!
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s seminal motion picture employed glorious technicolour wizardry to create a visually striking backstage melodrama.
Ambitious ballerina Victoria (Vicky) Page loves – lives - to dance and is poised for superstardom when she is cast as the lead dancer in a ballet inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Red Shoes. This dark narrative follows a young woman who puts on a pair of enchanted crimson ballet slippers which dance away with her. Unable to stop them, she is forced to dance until she can dance no more.
Charismatic but controlling impresario Boris Lermontov demands his protégés dedicate themselves to their art. He is impressed with Vicky’s overwhelming desire to dance but warns her that she must sacrifice a normal life to become a true artist.
As rehearsals for The Red Shoes get underway, Vicky and the ballet’s composer, Julian Craster, resolve some artistic differences and end up falling in love.
Lermontov realises that he has his own romantic feelings for Vicky and, despite the triumphant success of The Red Shoes when it opens (the ballet’s performance makes up a spectacular interlude within the blockbuster), he begins to look for faults in Julian’s ideas.
A jealous, possessive, love triangle develops and, eventually, Julian is dismissed from Lermontov’s company. Vicky decides to leave with him and the pair marry.
When Lermontov’s ballet company prepares for a revival of The Red Shoes, Vicky finds herself torn between her dream career with the manipulative Lermontov and her love for Julian.
She longs to lose herself in her dancing once again but feels that to do so with Lermontov’s company would betray her husband.
No longer sure how she can possibly follow her heart when she is so passionately devoted to both dancing and true love, Vicky impulsively descends into her own tragedy. Her life ends up mirroring the themes of the fairy tale depicted by the ballet that made her a star.
Renowned British ballerina and actress Moira Shearer won international acclaim for her radiant performance as Vicky Page. She was sheer perfection in the role - her flaming red hair even matched the titular ballet slippers! Indeed, Shearer remained primarily known for The Red Shoes despite continuing to work for many decades after the film was released.
Loved by ballet fans and film buffs alike, The Red Shoes has legions of admirers so producing a refashioned rendering of the beloved masterpiece is no mean feat.
Of course, Bourne - who was knighted last year for services to dance – is not one to shy away from a choreographic challenge.
He treated us to an ensemble of menacing male swans in his reimagining of Swan Lake; entranced and entertained with his version of the romantic dark fantasy film Edward Scissorhands; and, most recently, gave The Sleeping Beauty a gothic twist complete with vampires.
The Red Shoes boasts distinctive characters and strong narrative drive. Even more significantly, an all-consuming love for the arts generally, but especially dance, is at the heart of the piece.
Perfect source material aside, Sir Bourne is a pro at creating storytelling dance and he inspires the best from his accomplished dancer-actors.
Did I mention that I just can’t wait to see this…?
Georgina Butler
For more dance and theatre news, features, interviews and reviews from Georgina, click here and follow her on Twitter @GeorginaLButler
Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes runs at Milton Keynes Theatre from Tuesday February 14 until Saturday February 18.
To book tickets click here or call the Box Office on 0844 871 7652.
