CMU School of Drama


Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Dance review: Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre delights in premiere of 'Beauty and the Beast'

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: A fairy tale is only as good as its storyteller. Without some charisma in the delivery, a fable filled with fantasy and colorful characters can fall flat.

At the Benedum Center over the weekend, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre brought Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont’s 18th-century rendition of “Beauty and the Beast” to life through a visual feast of elaborate sets and costumes and an expressive interpretation of Lew Christensen’s choreography, which San Francisco Ballet premiered in 1958 and became a longtime highlight of its repertoire.

1 comment:

Sabria Trotter said...

I always find reviews for things like ballet and opera to be interesting being that the choreography and music are so traditional and never really tinkered with. We always have these amazing jumps in interpretation when it comes to traditional plays, but something in these other art forms continues to keep them from taking a story far from its original form. This review in particular focused on the story telling abilities and technical precision of the two principal dancers. It even went as far to critique a very specific move and moment in the show. I am in awe by the eye it would take to notice such meticulous details in a performance as ostentatious and grand as ballet. I also liked that they mentioned the how interesting the set was and how well the orchestra played. I wonder what else could be focused on when critiquing something so stationary.