Ashton’s La Fille Mal Gardée at Sadler’s Wells – Culture Whisper

La Fille Mal Gardée is Sir Frederick Ashton’s sunniest and most joyful ballet. Danced to music by Ferdinand Herrold, it transports the audience to a dreamy bucolic setting where the resourceful girl of the title, Liz, is determined to marry the penniless Colas, despite her mother’s insistence that she should instead marry Alain, the simple … sensible son of a rich local landowner No prizes for knowing how it ends…

Everything comes together to make this the great ballet par excellence. Heróld’s music, performed live by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia, conducted by Paul Murphy, is easy on the ear and interestingly descriptive; Osbert Lancaster’s designs are colorful and so detailed every time you see them you notice something new; the characters burst with vitality; a healthy lively white pony makes an appearance; and most important of all, of course, Ashton’s masterful choreography and crystalline storytelling are pure balletic bliss.

There was plenty to enjoy on press night La Fille Mal Gardée in BRB’s brief residency at Sadler’s Wells. The whole company danced with gusto, and if there were inaccuracies creeping in here and there in the work of the ensemble, they were not enough to spoil the overall effect.

It may seem light and frothy, but this ballet requires solid technique and the ability to pantomime and act accurately, especially in the heroic roles of Liz’s mother, the widow Simone, and the hapless suitor Alain.

Rory McKay as the widow Simone, Gus Payne as Alain and BRB artists in La Fille Mal Gardée. Photo: Riku Ito
Reflecting the English pantomime tradition, the widow Simone is danced by a man en travesti. In this performance, Rory Mackay presented the character just right: a grumpy but loving mother, funny but always likable, insulting the audience but never crossing the line into the grotesque.

Alain is a very difficult role. The simple-minded young man is childish and clumsy, funny but never the object of ridicule or ridicule; and his stripped-down choreography is difficult and demanding. Gus Payne absolutely nailed it, his neat winning jumps were particularly impressive.

While the Colas, Enrique Berejano Vidal started a little nervously – and who could blame him with the shadow of one of the best Colas of the modern era, his boss Carlos Acosta, hanging over him? He soon recovered to give us a cheeky, unstoppable Colas, handling the precise choreography with some aplomb, even if some of his landings lacked control. He was a sympathetic and reliable partner to Beatrice Parma’s Lise.

Béatrice Parma as Lisa in BRB’s La Fille Mal Gardée. Photo: Riku Ito

Parma is still not quite an Ashtonian dancer, but her Lisa was thoroughly engaging. Very strong technique, her acting combined with smooth dancing convincingly portray the image of a sunny girl who is brave, resourceful and determined to find her man.

In short, Ashton’s La Fille Mal Gardée is undoubtedly one of the jewels of English ballet; and BRB is a worthy guardian of this glorious work.