Paris Opera 'Fille mal Gardee' reviews 'Fille mal Gardee' reviews recent Paris Opera reviews more Paul Arrowsmith reviews Discuss this review (Open for at least 6 months)

As posted on our Postings pages...

For a Brit, interesting to see the French accents in the performance – and from a very informative programme understand the long history of the many other versions over the centuries; over 40 are listed.

In Paris, Ashton’s Fille came up very well on the whole, despite a few smudges. The company danced with verve and obvious enjoyment. It was a delight to hear the spontaneous reaction of the audience to Ashton’s cleverness, discovering the work anew.

Reading the comments here about the realisation of the designs – what we saw in Paris (via the borrowed Vienna production) is actually closer to Lancaster’s designs than what we now know in the UK, judging by the original set designs printed in the programme. The sets are scratchier, less finished than the current RB version, with a stronger whiff of the countryside.

Some pluses and minuses. Better hen and cockerel costumes, particularly their heads, the hens without the filly edged bloomers we see in London now. Lise generally drabber (though there was some detailing on the skirt of her second costume), her last act costume closer to the photos of Nerina in the orginal.

The performances:

Myriam Ould-Braham – lovely extensions and easily into attitude. Natural acting – great sense of mischief and tenderness.

Mathias Heymann, a 19 year old sujet was Colas. Wow, what a raw talent! Tremendous elevation, line and brio. Good acting and presence, he found a lot in the role. Partnering needs attention!

Laurent Novis as Simone was a real person – in turn, choleric and tender, though without fully fleshing out the character. The spanking of Lise provoked hisses of pain around us in the audience, but the concern for cette fille was palpable too. Pretty straight clog dance, but funny with it.

Richard Wilk was a Thomas on whose boots you could smell the manure, a real farmer.

Particular highlights, the pony and trap ribbon scene with Colas and Lise, spontaneous applause for her running on pointe. Particularly the orchestra, real feeling under Barry Wordsworth, sounding far less crude an orchestration than normally. Excellent violin playing in the cornfield pdd – with a real sense of tenderness between the lovers.

And the cast list named friends of Lise and Colas, et al.

Low lights – the lifts! The bum lift at the end of the cornfield pdd just about got there as a one-hander (I’m told the only time in the run) but she was back on the floor by the time the music stopped. (The mechanics were wrong, she should sit on his hand on his shoulder, he pushes her up – easy. Not!).

The lift in the last scene was missed too, but well enough covered.

Differences – lots more confetti in the last act, with confetti in the pit too for Wordsworth. Singing and stick bashing all very vigorous than we know here – and the better for it.

And differences to investigate further. The 1992 version by Richard Wherlock called La Haye, “set in the Swiss alps with real cows.”

The ballet.co charabanc hadn’t made the journey to Paris but several balletcoers had – and a pleasure to meet them again, as it was to renew acquaintance with Ashton’s masterpiece.