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Royal Ballet

‘Chroma’, ‘The Four Temperaments’, ‘DGV - Dance a grande vitesse’

November 2006
London, Covent Garden

© Jeffery Taylor
Former dancer, Critic and an Arts feature writer for the Sunday Express. Pub 26 11 2006



© John Ross

'Chroma' reviews

'DGV' reviews

RB 'Four Temperaments' reviews

'Four Temperaments' reviews

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At last the Royal Ballet brings abstract modern dance into the real world. A small elite of the country’s best dancers bring their stunning gifts to our most radical modern dance maker in Wayne McGregor’s new Chroma, an explosion of music (Joby Talbot) design (John Pawson and Moritz Junge) and very special talent.

What a lucky man McGregor is. His mission is the deconstruction of movement - any movement, not just ballet - he then channels his two dimensional, kaleidoscopic demolition job through superbly trained dancers like Tamara Rojo, Alina Cojocaru, Federico Bonelli, Edward Watson and, a stunning new addition to the ranks of soloist, American Eric Underwood. Fortunately for us even when dancers of such world class quality purchase their frozen fish fingers at the supermarket check out, their every movement comes from within, with purpose, and framed within a pure classical structure. The result is an esoteric mind game about contrived theory becoming not just physically, and achingly, beautiful but a passionate and sexy expression of human urges and connections. The dancers throw Chroma open to all comers.
 


Alina Cojocaru in Wayne McGregor's Chroma
© John Ross


The second British choreographic premiere featured, Christopher Wheeldon’s DGV, appears to have run away from its creator. Four couples, backed by a small ensemble, demonstrate unusually for Wheeldon, a restricted and pointlessly repetitive dance language. The steps feel too heavy even for Michael Nyman’s music, which has all the gaiety of a dentist’s drill, and even the sensational Marianela Nunez’s natural exuberance fails to pierce the gloom of Jennifer Tipton’s non-lighting and Jean-Marc Puissant’s scrap yard designs. Wheeldon is an uncommonly talented dance maker, but not this time.

Sixty years old this month, George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments is well past its sell by date. It was as radical in its day as any of McGregor’s current output, but sandwiched between Chroma and DGV last week it revealed nothing but its age.


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