The Red Shoes Archives - North West End UK

22Apr

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

The Red Shoes – Bradford Alhambra

Powell and Pressburger’s classic movie The Red Shoes was about a ballerina forced to choose between love and art, so it seemed natural Matthew Bourne's New Adventures company would adapt it for the stage. The movie was itself a new take on the rather gruesome Hans Christian Andersen fairytale where a haughty young girl is punished by a pair of red ballet shoes with a life of their own that force her to dance endlessly even when her feet are chopped off. Thankfully Bourne’s places his less bloody version in the late 1940s where rising star Victoria Page catches the eye of demanding ballet impresario Boris Lermontov. She joins his company becoming his star creation wearing the fabled red shoes before falling in love with composer Julian Craster, but the demanding Lermontov forces Page ...

Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes – Liverpool Empire

A dancer enters the stage wearing vibrant red ballet shoes, the lighting renders her faceless, the music boldly proclaims that there is drama ahead… I am already hooked. A timeless tale of love, passion and conflict perfectly plays out from start to finish. A ensemble dancer is discovered by a ballet impresario, but are his obsession and her desires compatible? This tour of The Red Shoes celebrates the tenth anniversary of its original production and is a celebration of art and performance. The beautiful score originally composed by Bernard Herrmann is beautifully orchestrated for this company by Terry Davies. The visual identity of the piece is beyond description, and, quite simply, begs to be seen. Lez Brotherston’s set, with its grand moving proscenium arch and clever use of material...

Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes – The Lowry

Matthew Bourne’s production of The Red shoes is a true masterclass in storytelling. Directed and choreographed by Bourne, it enchants audiences and speaks volumes without a single word being spoken. From the opening moment, the stage is charged with a dramatic intensity that pulls audiences in to a world of passion, ambition and a life in the 1940s. The staging is a work of art and a credit to designer Lez Brotherston, A single stage curtain on a proscenium arch creates the starting and ending backdrop to this story of a young dancer dreaming to make it, who’s passion for dancing becomes an obsession, torn between two men, her tragic fate was sealed the moment she put the red shoes on. It’s as if we are watching a ballet, but also a life imitation, and the revolving curtain is framing t...