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In 1826 composer Felix Mendelssohn created a new dimension to Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with his enchanting musical score – Overture (Op. 21) and Incidental music (Op. 61) – composed for the play. This fine merger of romantic comedy and gorgeous music has inspired many prominent choreographers to create their own adaptations of Dream. The famous Marius Petipa created the first such production set to the Mendelssohn music for the Imperial Russian Ballet of St. Petersburg in 1876.

Balanchine’s dance version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a two-act ballet created in 1962 for the New York City Ballet, is a true masterpiece in which poetry, music and dance brilliantly fuse to astonishingly beautiful effect. This Dream is one of the most extraordinary theatrical dances of modern ballet repertoire. The choreographer ingeniously resolved the difficult task of transforming the ornate and witty poetry of Shakespeare into the nonverbal form of dance, preserving the beauty and peculiarities of its rich poetic expression.

Balanchine conceived his Dream as two ballets in one. In the first act, in the enchanted forest of the Fairies, the choreographer reveals the intricate story of the play: Titania and Oberon, the Queen and King of the Fairies, quarrel about who should care for an Indian boy, Titania’s little courtier. And two pair of young lovers (Hermia and Lysander and Helena and Demetrius), with help from the carefree sprite Puck, embark on a series of adventures, magical and comical, to figure out who loves whom. The boisterous Puck, a central character, guides (and most of the time misguides) the course of events. By mischievously administering a flower potion to Lysander instead of Demetrius, he causes utmost confusion among the couples. With the same flower, he plays a trick on Titania, making her fall in love with a donkey-headed (courtesy of Puck as well) workman, Bottom. These misadventures are so bizarre that they seem more like a dream or even... a nightmare. After the unfortunate love mismatches and misunderstandings of the first act are sorted out, Act II opens with the glorious sounds of Mendelssohn’s Wedding March, celebrating the triple wedding ceremony of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons and Theseus, Duke of Athens; and of Hermia and Lysander, and Helena and Demetrius.

The second act features a series of divertissements choreographed in a form of court dances showcasing some of Balanchine’s most spectacular ensemble and duet choreography.

In sum, the New York City Ballet’s presentation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Kennedy Center Opera House in February was delightful and entertaining. On opening night, Daniel Ulbricht was an exceptional Puck. He brought out the vibrant personality of his character, and danced with dazzling virtuosity. His seemingly effortless soaring jumps and flying leaps across the stage surprised, astonished and delighted. The graceful Maria Kowroski portrayed Titania, exquisitely accentuating the glamour and poise of her heroine. She premiered in this role more than a decade ago, and has evidently been comfortable in the part. Kowroski danced expressively and fluently. In the pas de deux with her Cavalier (Charles Askegard), she displayed a near statuesque posture in a sequence of arabesques and supported turns, executing each element of the choreography in majestic style.
 

Under the spell of the magic flower, Titania undergoes a transformation from the dignified Queen to a woman who has lost herself in love. Kowroski performed the amusing duet with the rustic Bottom (Seth Orza) with girlish happiness, affection and passion, touchingly feeding her love object green grass and decorating his floppy ears with beautiful flowers.

Rebecca Krohn expressively danced the lovesick Helena, eliciting the torments and anxiety of her unrequited love for Demetrius. Jennie Somogyi as Hermia convincingly portrayed a transformation from blissful happiness—from the adoration of Lysander (Jared Angle)—to total disbelief and anguish by his sudden and unexplained change of heart. Amar Ramasar gave a vivid characterization of the two-faced Demetrius – cruel and abusive towards the loathed Helena, and gentle and tender towards his beloved Hermia.

Balanchine brilliantly conveys the amusing twists and turns and countless embraces and rejections of their relationships using simple but highly expressive movements, skillfully telegraphing the comical atmosphere of the original play. The cast danced and acted admirably in disentangling the web of intrigue and misfortune created by Puck.

The heart of the ballet and a true stellar moment of the opening night performance was the romantic and sensuous love duet splendidly danced by Wendy Whelan and Philip Neal in the second act. Envisioned as a triumph of love, this sublime pas de deux is a metaphor of human happiness, the representation of fulfillment of the dreams of the primary characters.

Special mention goes to an impeccably rehearsed cast of children who portrayed the little creatures of the magical realm of the Fairies: butterflies, bugs, and pages. The child ensembles are intricately interwoven in the main choreography of the ballet, evoking a special charm and highlighting the fairy-tail nature of the ballet. The young dancers handled their quite challenging steps in an utmost professional manner.