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Austin360 blogs > Austin Arts: Seeing Things > Archives > 2011 > February > 14 > Entry
Review: Ballet Austin’s ‘La Sylphide’
Possession. It’s what Scotsman James wants in the 19th century romantic ballet “La Sylphide” when he tries to tame a free-spirited forest fairy by binding her wings. We’re presented with the age-old question, at least in the world of ballet — can love between a mortal man and a woman in white lead to a happy ending? If you’ve seen “Giselle,” “La Bayadère” or “Swan Lake” to name a few, you can guess the answer: No.
Ballet Austin’s production of Danish ballet master August Bournonville’s “La Sylphide” at the Long Center Friday marked the first time the ballet has been performed in the city. In some ways, it’s an unconventional choice of ballet to present on Valentine’s Day weekend — because James is unable to touch the sylph until he ties her up with a magical scarf, the ballet is devoid of a single luscious pas de deux between its two leads. The realization of their love is unattainable, especially evident when the sylph dies at James’ touch.
To embody the otherworldly role of the sylph, the ballerina is required to be light on her feet, while playfully mischievous at the same time. Aara Krumpe, in flowing stark white tulle, danced the character beautifully. One moment she would move across the stage with the help of her pointe shoes on her tippy toes, the next tilt her body towards the floor with one leg as her anchor, the other gorgeously extended behind her. She always remained an enticing few inches outside of James’ grasp.
James is the polar opposite of his would-be lover. Donning a kilt with furs belted around his waist, Frank Shott illustrated the character’s connection to the earthly. His huntsman’s lodge, complete with a deer-antler-and-candle chandelier, is seen in contrast to the sylph’s realm of the forest, flooded with girls in white. Both sets as well as the costumes were on loan from Boston Ballet.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. Christopher Swaim took the role of Gurn, desperately in love with James’ betrothed Effie, and turned him, appropriately, into a galumphing doofus. Swaim’s priceless facial expressions brought forth such laughter from the audience that, by Act II, all he had to do was walk onstage to elicit giggles.
In the end, the sylph’s lifeless body floats up, up and away in a leafy vessel. It’s a poignant moment for James, who realizes once and for all the foolishness of his need for possession.
Claire Christine Spera is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
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By Bruce Williams
February 21, 2011 6:30 PM | Link to this
With all due respect, you failed to mention that perhaps the finest performance of the evening came from the pit and the cello of Douglas Harvey, principal cellist of the Austin Symphony. There were extended cello solos during the most dramatic moments of the ballet and Doug’s playing was transcendent and inspirational.