Adam Bruce
I’ve never had the opportunity to see a ballet production until now, and I’m extremely pleased to say that Northern Ballet’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream has been my first. I’d been intrigued in the production since I saw an image of the production’s famous fairy Puck leaping against a black background on a billboard outside of the West Yorkshire Playhouse.
I love theatre that plunges the audience right into the middle of the action and immerses them in a world different from our own. The stage was littered with dancers warming up to begin rehearsals for their newest production of Romeo and Juliet, which they would eventually take up to Edinburgh by train throughout the course of the show, albeit with a few dazzling surprises along the way.
Act One follows the company rehearsing for their production of Romeo and Juliet, whilst the company’s Artistic Director Theseus, played by Hironao Takahashi, tells his soon to be wife Hippolyta, played by Antoinette Brooks-Daw, that he no longer thinks she should dance and must retire from her role of Juliet. Also throughout Act One we see the development of a complex love tangle between Lysander, Demetrius, Helena, Hermia and Nick Bottom, played by Kenneth Tindall, Tobias Batley, Pippa Moore, Martha Leebolt and Matthew Topliss respectively. Theseus calls off the rehearsal and the company board the train to Edinburgh, and during the night, Theseus dreams that he is Oberon, the King of the Fairies, and wars with his wife Titania, sending his fairy Puck to cause mischief. The company appear in his dream and fight over who loves who, eventually awakening to their arrival in Edinburgh, where they perform their production to incredible applause and celebrate afterwards.
When the lights went down, the stage was filled with the electrifying synchronicity of the company. The dancers all moved with incredible grace, especially Ballet Master Puck, played by Kevin Poeung. Having said that, the fantastical creatures that came alive in Theseus’s dream sequence in Act Two all dripped with astonishing character. The movement and eloquence of the dancers complemented their vibrant characters, especially Puck’s movements, which made him stand out as the mischievous creature that the world recognises him as.
A particularly fantastic moment was when the company boarded the train to Edinburgh – the company brought on cut-outs of pieces of the train, which spun around to show their individual rooms. Smoke filled the stage, and the company effortlessly brought to life something industrial and interesting. This made the transition between reality and fantasy all the more magical.
Accompanying the dancers on stage was a playfully powerful sonic soundscape, created by none other than the Northern Ballet Sinfonia. The soundtrack seamlessly merged with the actions of those on stage, and successfully managed to create the mood and atmosphere for the show. This was most evident in the dream sequence of Act Two, where the blisteringly powerful orchestra managed to soar as high as the dancers on stage. They helped to create an ethereal world that brought the audience into the mystical dreams of the character of Theseus.
Overall, what Northern Ballet bring to the stage is a clever and inviting new ballet that seamlessly echoes the events of one of Shakespeare’s finest plays and creates something unique. It is an incredibly journey that everyone should have the opportunity to enjoy.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is playing at the West Yorkshire Playhouse until 14 September. For more information and tickets, see the West Yorkshire Playhouse website.