Inspiring glamour and skill of Bessy the Great
In 1960, the lead female role in Pas De Dieux was performed by legendary French ballerina Claude Bessy, who had worked with Gene Kelly on his 1956 film Invitation To Dance.
She encouraged Kelly to make the journey across the Atlantic and he created the role of Aphrodite in Pas De Dieux for her.
By the time Scottish Ballet principal dancer Sophie Martin trained in Paris, Bessy had long since hung up her pointe shoes, but her influence still loomed large over young ballerinas like Martin. “She was the director of the Paris Opera Ballet School and by that time had retired from dancing and worked from her office, occasionally shouting at students!” said Sophie.
“She was a very glamorous dancer, and it’s important to think about that when I am portraying the character she played in Pas De Dieux. She showed that technique has to be there, but you shouldn’t just try to show technique, it has to look natural and effortless. Glamorous and effortless are what the rules have to be.”
Martin and her fellow dancers have worked hard to blend jazz and ballet dance styles, and Martin says keeping the audience’s experience in mind helps her perfect her performance.
“It is very important that we remember we need to get the energy right, otherwise there is no point in doing jazz,” she said. “It’s great for the audience who get to see two different dance styles. I had never really done jazz or trained in it, so even for us as dancers it’s great to be able to touch on new styles.
“That’s what I like about Scottish Ballet, we don’t just do ballet and next year we might do something completely different.
“This show is definitely going to be joyful, the audience are really going to enjoy it.”