Ballet British Columbia
John Alleyne, the artistic director of Ballet British Columbia, seems to delight in creating new and challenging ways for bodies to interact. Typically, the strength of his choreography lies in his inventive duets and trios.
This is true of his latest work for Ballet BC, A Streetcar Named Desire, which received its première in Vancouver at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in April. Here, graceful encounters between dancers are contrasted with brusque, sexual ones. Yet, while the dancers interact closely on a physical level, dramatic connections are weak. The ballet only skims the surface of the 1947 tragedy by Tennessee Williams on which it is based.
Following a busy scenario written by longtime collaborator John Murrell, Alleyne sketches the story of fading Southern belle Blanche DuBois’ visit to the small apartment where her sister, Stella, lives with her husband, the brash Stanley Kowalski. In such close quarters, lives collide.
The scenario makes an important digression by introducing new characters: Young Blanche, who appears often with her husband, Allan, and his friend Cam (only alluded to in 1947). By continually bringing this ghostly trio onstage, the ballet keeps Blanche’s torturous memories of Allan’s suicide over his homosexuality very present. It’s a nice touch, solving the problem of how to explain Blanche’s fragile mental state. This device also gives Alleyne plenty of scope for devising lively comings and goings involving the trio, performed by Makaila Wallace (Young Blanche), Jones Henry (Allan) and the passionate Chengxin Wei (Cam).
All 15 company members gave strong performances, with Courtney Richardson standing out as a vibrant Stella, downright gorgeous when she donned a figure-hugging red dress by costume and set designer Kim Nielsen. In contrast, Simone Orlando’s Blanche was pale and constantly swaying, seeming always on the verge of collapse. Donald Sales, in the role of Stanley, tossed off his many classically styled leaps and spins with princely elegance. This approach is a little confusing, because Stanley is supposed to be a working man who likes playing cards with the boys. If you’ve seen Marlon Brando’s surly portrayal of him in the 1951 film version, you’ll understand how greatly the choreography goes against expectations here.
A highlight of the première was the live rendition of Tobin Stokes’ original jazz score by a pickup jazz septet conducted by David LaMarche. Also appreciated was Nielsen’s gentle evocation of New Orleans’ French Quarter, featuring a winding, wrought iron staircase.
Since making The Faerie Queen in 2000, based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Alleyne has been drawn to story ballets. Unfortunately, in his Streetcar Named Desire, the intricacies of the plot are well told, but the harrowing tragedy behind Williams’ brilliant play is missing.
Kaija Pepper is a writer and editor specializing in arts and culture.
