Sleeping Beauty, but with a little added bite!
It's a dream combination of a classic fairy tale and classic score with contemporary dance and er...vampires.
Sir Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty has arrived at Birmingham Hippodrome and it's a show with added bite.
It follows the traditional good versus evil format with dark undertones, including a dramatic finale where the heroine Princess Aurora is saved from the clutches of the evil Caradoc.
Billed as a gothic romance, Bourne casts his own spell over the fairy tale with magnificent results.
The renowned choreographer always puts his own twist on the classic story and he delivers once again here with a gothic fairy tale complete with magical fairies and vampires.
The production has plenty to awaken the senses – from the moment a life-like baby puppet makes an amusing entrance in scene one.
The mood is menacing, the dancing to Tchaikovsky's unforgettable score is sharp and spiky. The costumes both simple and sensuous with Edwardian whites contrasting with vibrant red velvet and sinister black leather of the modern day nightclub scene. Credit also to the creative time for the impressive sets and lighting effects, complete with full moon.
The production feels as fresh as when it first premiered 10 years ago.
Ashley Shaw as Aurora manages to portray both the lightness of her joyful liaison with her true love Leo, the Royal Gamekeeper, played by Andrew Monaghan, as she floats across the stage and the heaviness of her 100 year old slumber while under the spell of the evil Caradoc.
The clever use of well concealed travelator adds to the dreamlike quality as the talented dancers glide across the stage.
Shaw and Monaghan dance together with an impressive chemistry. And Ben Brown, as Caradoc, brings an air of arrogance and menace befitting his evil role.
Sumptuous, dramatic and action packed – Bourne's Sleeping Beauty leaves you spellbound.
It runs at Birmingham Hippodrome until Saturday, February 11.
