Uptown Magazine Online - Winnipeg's Online Source for Arts, Entertainment & News

Uptown Magazine - Winnipeg's Online Source for Arts, Entertainment & News

October 15, 2009


	Get your copy! Find the Uptown Magazine pickup location nearest you.

2009-10-15

Paris comes to the Prairies

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet will open its 70th season with the much-anticipated premiere of Jorden Morris' Moulin Rouge: The Ballet

Holly Harris

Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet is launching its celebratory 70th anniversary with garters and gaiety by barrelling into its new season with the highly anticipated premiere of Jorden Morris' Moulin Rouge: The Ballet.

The new work is inspired by the flamboyant Paris cabaret that gave birth to the raucous Can-Can and celebrated its 120th anniversary earlier this month.

It's also the first time that a ballet company has been sanctioned to use the Moulin Rouge's iconic name and windmill ('moulin') imagery. The RWB has been granted a three-year license, and the Paris cabaret's CEO and marketing personnel are flying in for the show's Minneapolis world premiere on Oct. 17.

"The Moulin Rouge has been very, very supportive," says Jeff Herd, RWB's chief executive officer. "They're excited about seeing the ballet."

The RWB's status as a world-renowned ballet company helped seal the deal that was in negotiations over several years.

"They knew of the RWB; they knew our reputation; they had told us that some of their dancers, at one point, had been students of ours," Herd says proudly.

With its half-a-million-dollar budget and the eyes of the ballet world firmly set on its feathered frippery, there's a lot riding on the show. So far, however, tickets have been selling like hotcakes and the company recently added a sixth show to its local run to meet the unprecedented response.

"The volume has been unbelievable," Herd says. "It's a wonderful problem to have."

Set in the late 1890s, the full-length ballet tells the story of lovers Nathalie and Matthew, who tempt the fates while seeking their destiny in the world's most famous music hall. The colourful cast of characters includes historical figures Toulouse Lautrec, La Goulue and cabaret mastermind Charles Zidler, who also falls in love with the fictitious young heroine amidst a backdrop of reckless Bohemian society.

"I hope audiences get a sense of all those beautiful, wonderful, crazy, bizarre things going on at that time, and really go through the journey of these two characters falling in love," says choreographer Morris.

Morris, 42, has also crafted an hour-and-a-half musical score that draws heavily on composers such as Ravel, Massenet, Debussy and Offenbach. He was listening to period music up to eight hours a day to find the perfect balance.

"My true inspiration really comes from finding the right music," says Morris, who describes it as the "soul of the work.

"The connection with the composers who were writing at that time is very important for me."

Another key element was the story's script. Morris worked closely with dramaturge Rick Skene, a fixture on Winnipeg's film and theatre scene, to develop the ballet's narrative arc and flesh out its characters.

The two first met when the Banff-raised choreographer came to study at the RWB School's Professional Division in 1981. Skene was teaching drama during the program's summer session, and remembers Morris as an extremely focused 13-year-old, already dedicated to building a career in the ballet world.

"Jorden was one of those absolutely, cheerfully committed, hardworking students," Skene enthuses. "It was always about the work."

Morris also took acting classes with Skene - whom he describes as his theatrical mentor - at the University of Winnipeg Collegiate after his dance training at the RWB School had finished for the day. Their creative relationship has flourished over the years, with Morris eventually becoming a principal dancer with the RWB in 1992 and associate director of the RWB School's Professional Division a decade later.

Skene has continued to work off and on with the company as a fight choreographer, his last major gig was coaching the lofty swordplay scenes in Morris' high-flying hit, Peter Pan.

"He's almost that little brother," Skene says, "and that's kind of a miracle. That long relationship and trust that we have really made frank discussions possible during this process."

Some of those talks included figuring out how to interpret the iconic Can-Can using classical ballet vocabulary. The boisterous dance - typically filled with racy splits, high kicks and pinwheels - is challenging enough to perform in traditional character shoes. Morris has opted for a balletic version performed entirely en pointe - a technical feat that boggles the mind.

Almost 30 years since that first class together, Skene is proud of his protégé. "Jorden walked into the RWB School as a 13-year-old kid and came up honestly through the ranks," he says. "And now he's steering the boat."

The production also boasts spectacular costumes by Anne Armit and Shannon Lovelace, sets/properties by Andrew Beck and lighting design by Pierre Lavoie. The RWB will take the show on the road for a 10-city tour throughout the season.

MOULIN ROUGE: THE BALLET
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
Oct. 21-24, 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 25, 2 p.m., Centennial Concert Hall

Current Issue • Archive • What’s Up • Contact • Media Kit • Contests