Ballet Ireland saved their best wine till last in their Ballet Extravaganza at the Gaiety on Tuesday night with Gunther Falusy's Belle Epoque to the music of Offenbach. Beautifully costumed, as was the entire evening, against a backcloth evocative of Renoir, it had a Massine-like cafe with waiter, artist, flower girl, sugar daddy, and opera singer with her friends and admirers, culminating in the inevitable cancan. Strengthened by the two splendid guest artistes, Kumiko Horii and Benito Marcelino in a romantic duet to the Barcarolle from The Tales of Hoffmann, it showed the whole company at its best
Other highlights were the guest artistes in the Act 2 pas de deux from Swan Lake, preceded by a creditable performance of The Dance of the Little Swans, Judith Sibley and Falusy showing great style in his own Sissy and the Emperor and his Clowndance, a delightful harlequinade with Horii, Cedric Chapelin, Gavin de Paor and Xavier Rossi. Apart from The Cage, set to Bruckner, which began promisingly with the dancers performing jumped plies in second position and then deteriorated rapidly, despite the grace of Aoife McGrath and her shadow thrown on the cyclorama, the rest of the programme consisted mainly of excerpts from the classics.
These are usually chosen to show off exceptional dancers and though these very young dancers acquitted themselves splendidly, especially after only two weeks' rehearsals, a gala programme invited unfair comparisons. Especially unfair was it to ask anyone to dance the Bluebird Variations, since only a future Nureyev could have shone in it. Nevertheless there was much to enjoy in the evening and great credit is due to the directors of Ballet Ireland to have assembled so many talented young dancers, six of them Irish. I urge everyone to support them.
Runs at the Gaiety until Saturday, with a matinee that day at 3 p.m. Booking at 01 677 1717. Thereafter on tour to Monaghan (October 7th), Limerick (8th), Cork (9th), Water- ford (10th), Killorglin (11th), Dungannon (15th), Bangor (16th), Derry (17th and 18th), Sligo (19th), Ennis (20th), Dundalk (22nd), Carlgallen (23rd) and Mountmellick (24th).
The Dublin Jazz Week continues until Sunday; to book for most events contact Ticketmaster on 01-4569569; to book for events at the National Concert Hall and the IFC phone 01-4751572 and 01-6793477 respectively.
