Love Lies Bleeding, the contemporary ballet commissioned by Sir Elton John, uses fourteen of his original classic rock songs, 150 costumes, seven different sets, special effects and acrobatics. All the whizbang would amount to nothing without Jean Grand-Mâitre’s innovative choreography and the strength of the Alberta Ballet dancers. Along with many other favourites, audiences can look forward to:
- A baseball-themed version of Bennie and the Jets with aluminium bats used as percussion instruments by the company.
- an exuberant full-company whirlwind of Honky Cat with British wave-adapted Charleston and Lindy movements punctuated with second position en pointe. Dancers whip around the stage so fast, their Queen’s Guard grenadier-inspired hairpieces fly behind them like a host of Thing Ones and Thing Twos straight out of Dr. Suess’ Cat in the Hat.
- emotionally fraught ensemble work which begins with a satirical, yet oddly touching Pièta in Yellow Brick Road and morphs from the German-Expressionistic debauchery of Bob Fosse’s Cabaret to the violence of Kubrick’s Clockwork Orange in Have Mercy for the Criminal, where the principle’s passions and demons tear him to pieces. Drugs, AIDs and homoerotic themes abound.
- the surreal showstopper Rocket Man, which features lift upon lift upon lift, including spectacular triple-fish lifts and a scene where the ‘demons’ ripple Hattori’s unbelievably malleable body across the stage almost like a puppet in a Chinese New Year dragon dance.
Hopes Ride on Production
Love Lies Bleeding represents a huge gamble by Grand-Mâitre and Alberta Ballet in spite of the music and Sir Elton’s appeal. When asked why he believed this was the case given such a winning foundation, Grand-Mâitre replied, “I have invested my expertise and reputation in this production. The company has invested a huge amount of money in this production during difficult economic times. We cannot afford to fail.”
It seems that support for Alberta Ballet’s and Grand-Mâitre’s success is flying in from sources all over the world.
“Presenters and impressarios from Toronto, New York, LA, Tokyo, London and Norway are going to be there on opening night,” Grand-Mâitre enthused. “If they like the show, we intend to tour it internationally.”
While this interest is definitely inspired by the lustre of Sir Elton’s music, a substantial amount of interest has also been generated by Grand-Mâitre’s past successes with the 2010 Winter Olympic Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver and his choreography with the Joni Mitchell ballet The Fiddle and the Drum, as well as the fresh, exciting energy of the Alberta Ballet and its dancers.
Love Lies Bleeding runs May 6th – 9th, 2010 at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary, and May 11th – 12th, 2010, at the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton. Choice matinee seats are still available. Tickets can be purchased online at The Alberta Ballet Website.
A story about the origins of the ballet, the overarching ballet narrative and interview with Jean Grand-Mâitre can be read in the articles, Elton John's Ballet "Love Lies Bleeding" by Jean Grand-Mâitre and Elton John & Alberta Ballet Love Lies Bleeding.
Simone Keiran - Simone Keiran’s book A Brief History of Western Sculpture, Quantum Books, was released at the 2009 Frankfurt Book Fair. Her articles ...
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