We sat in the Balcony on the back row which enabled us to have a very good view of the stage and the performance; this allowed us to see the different formations and transitions throughout the two halves. I went to watch the production as a part of my Silver Arts Award and I was excited as I wasn't sure what was going to happen during the show and what it would be like. I was pleasantly surprised whilst watching the performance because I expected there to be a variety of choreographed pieces that told a story instead of two completely different dances that took up the two halves didn't have similar stories. Also, I expected there to be lots of dancers but there was only 10 of them.
During the first half, the stage was stage was set old-fashioned and went along with the theme of the dancers dressed in 50's clothing with rabbit head costumes. The first piece started off with one dancer, without a rabbit head costume on, sitting on a swing in the background of the set facing backwards whilst the other dancers (in rabbit head costumes) slowly came on to the stage behind him. From my point of view, it seemed like the character on the swing was dreaming and was slowly becoming involved in it as he started to join in with the other dancers. During the performance, the music was very quiet and the lights were very dim with spotlights which made it quite dramatic. What I especially liked about the first half was how the dance was choreographed; the dancers were carrying each other using different body parts to make contact with the other dancers. Similarly, the dancers did duet parts to emphasise the contact and trust between them.
In the second half, the set had completely changed to a rehearsal studio which linked to the choreography. The dancers were telling a story and danced with speech instead of music. I found it creative because the dancers were acting out what the sound was saying; for example, whenever the speaker said 'ballet boyz' the dancers did a plié. I especially like how they used accumulation when the sound paused and started again and each time that happened they added on a bit more of the choreography. The movement was very creative when they were using the barre and how they went on top of it and trusted the other dancers to catch them. I found the storyline different to the first half because the dancers were emphasising the trust and contact between them but the second half gave me the feeling that the dancers were trying to repel from one another. Also, I thought the body language of the other dancers while two dancers were dancing at the barre was quite casual as if they weren't performing and were just in a normal dance studio.
Overall, I found the show very interesting and I really enjoyed watching it. I would defiantly watch Ballet Boyz or a similar production again as it showed me that ballet can be danced in creative ways. Also, watching the show helped me think about more ideas in my theory and practical work for my Arts Award and other dance opportunities and experiences.
It's interesting to see dance being used to tell a story. Fab review!