Get Out More..........................................Ballet Review

KIROV BALLET (Birmingham Hippodrome, until Saturday)

21-05-2008

One of the world’s best known ballet companies pirouettes into town as part of the International Dance Festival. Stirrer editor Adrian Goldberg dons his tutu…

The thing with the Kirov is, you know exactly what you’re getting.

This is “High Opera”, what has now come to be regarded as the classical form, and judging by the “Bravo’s” raining down from the audience at curtain time, there’s certainly an unsated appetite for it in Birmingham.

Throughout the week, the Kirov will be trawling through the repertoire, with Don Quixote, a mixed Gala, and last night’s opener (repeated again today) Jewels.

Choreographer George Balanchine had the idea of creating work around three great composers – Faure, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky – but it took the Russian company to put the trio together and make it one of their trademark shows.

In truth, the opener Emeralds was a tad anaemic, despite breathtaking staging that saw costumes and backdrops all reflecting various shades of green.

Sure, the dancing was crisp and elegant, but somehow lacking in passion.

It took the fiery Rubies to really set the night alight, the stage now deep red, and Alina Somova, Andrian Fadeyev and Ekaterina Kondaurova swooping and swerving with racy vigour.

For me it was the highlight of the evening, although the finale Diamonds, showed off the Kirov’s incredible group formations, with more than 30 dancers on stage at one time working in seamless co-ordination.

It’s unlikely that anyone wanting their “fix” of trad ballet will be disappointed by any of this – but one suspects that those seeking conversion to the art might be better off catching David Bintley’s rather more adventurous interpretations of the classics on the same stage with BRB.

Buy tickets for the Kirov at www.birminghamhippodrome.com

And find out more about the International Dance Festival at www.idfb.co.uk