Feel-good theatre experience on ice
FAIRY tales are favourite bedtime stories moms choose to read to their children.
Among their most famous writers are Denmark’s Hans Anderson, Germany’s brothers Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm and 17th century French author Charles Perrault.
Had the Nobel Prize for Literature existed during Perrault’s life he, as originator of this genre, would surely have received it.
Perrault, author of Cinderella’s fairy tale, dipped into two true accounts of dark depravity in ancient Brittany.
Perhaps that accounts why Sergei Prokofiev’s ballet score sounds so sombre. Certainly it’s not light, happy and frothy the way English composers Tim A Duncan and Edward Barnwell’s commissioned score is for Tony Mercer’s Cinderella on Ice scenario.
Mercer’s choreographic handling, with unusual twists and turns unfolds, through movement friendly music, by technically brilliant ice skaters. They are performing in Pieter Toerien’s latest magical presentation on Artscape’s Opera Stage until January 28.
Mercer, Imperial Ice Stars artistic director and international multiaward winning choreographer, selected Australia’s Eamon D’Arcy as set designer.
Matching Mercer’s vision, D’Arcy sets Cinderella’s scene in a 1910/1912 Serbian town, rather than the more traditional 17th century style. Details in D’Arcy’s scenery – such as village clocks, a dressmakers shop and the Palace Theatre – mesh with Moscow’s Alvina Gabueva’s exquisite costumes to make a visual winter wonderland.
Yet Mercer insists he is not reproducing the classical fairy tale.
Mercer’s vision is wider. His dream formed watching world champions Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean. Wishing he had binoculars all the better to see them, Mercer thought skating could/ should be presented in a more theatrical atmosphere.
“It was cold and I barely saw them skate in that vast competition arena. Of course many ice shows exist, but I wanted to create works combining all theatre’s arts with enchanting story lines.”
In time, Mercer joined forces with James Cundall and Vladislav Olenin to co-found the Imperial Ice Stars. Born in Salford, England, but now a confirmed Muscovite, Mercer confesses to a football and theatre background. Not a skater’s training. Something he believes benefits his choreography. “Initially I just revamped classical ballet’s Sleeping Beauty or Swan Lake onto ice.
“However I quickly learnt ice and ballet are two very different disciplines.
“In ice figure skating there are four fixed rules by which skating choreographers must abide. Unlike my 23 champion skaters, I have never been bound by those. This allows me an unrestrictive freedom I might not otherwise have had. So, without being either mentally or physically tied by rule books, I experiment devising choreography suitable to given characters of my stories.
“And I insist my skaters skate in character. In fact, without good characterisation, ice shows become visually dull and uninviting. And what director wants that?”
Mercer continued: “Today’s audiences have less concentration span than 20 or even 10 years ago.
“Once upon a time we were able to present three-act shows, including two intervals.
“Not today. Short and snappy. One interval only is what audiences demand. Youngsters too have changed. Modern technology brings them instantly into world happenings as they flip from site to site. So they soon become restless. My job is to marry everyone’s wishes into one show that holds attention while drawing them into the theatre. It’s tough going. But I love it.
“Modestly I claim our shows have fans, by the million, throughout dozens of countries.”
For Mercer’s Cinderella mounting, it’s the mayor’s son (Bogdan Berezenko) with whom Cinderella (Olga Sharutenko) falls in love; a Gypsy Fortune Teller (Fiona Kirk) replaces Fairy Godmother; Stepmother (Maria Mukhortova) and Ugly Sisters (Alma Soprykina and Elena Shurkova) look lovely… it’s in their behaviour towards charming Cinderella that their ugliness lies.
Dressmaker is Volodymyr Khodokivskyy and Watchmaker’s Assistants are Stanislav Pertsov and Dimitri Ivanov.
Mercer credits his father for inspiring this production.
“Never did I see my father without checking time on one of his time pieces. He valued time, and taught us to use it wisely. Hence my introducing a Watchmaker and village clocks. After all time, particularly midnight, changed Cinderella’s life, therefore it seemed appropriate to make clocks a feature.”
At a cost of £800 000 they make a strong feature.
Mercer, sees Cinderella as a “feel good theatrical experience”. “Choreographically I’ve introduced all manner of new tricks, flying acts, steps and presages not yet named. Steps go well beyond barrel turns, petit tours, double tours en l’air into arabesques and little runs on tip-toes. As for speed?
“Last speedometer reading read 35km/h.”
Mix all that with superb skaters, costumes, music, decor, lighting, unexpected happenings, a make-believe story, Cinderella on Ice becomes a spell-binding family show. Book at Computicket 021 421 7695.