Guest blog from Chris Bradley
From the end of the first act of Northern Ballet’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ last December they had me hooked. From that point I knew I had to watch more of their shows and so going to see ‘I Got Rhythm’ was a no brainer.
A collection of 12 pieces by George and Ira Gershwin choreographed by David Nixon bring together ballet and jazz in a colorful and evocative way through, the dance, the music and lighting that had the audience completely focussed throughout the performance right from the opening piece, ‘American In Paris’ all the way through to the final of ‘Girl Crazy’. The energy of the show was set in an impressive way on one of the hottest days of the year so far that showed the skill and fitness of the company. The execution of Nixon’s choreography was second to none with precise flowing lifts, contacts and footwork that fused the two styles of dance seamlessly.
One of the best pieces of the evening for me was the Cuban Dance that closed the first act which was vibrant and colorful in both the dancing and lighting, making you feel like you could actually be in Cuba. The purple’s, greens and oranges all complimented each other and worked extremely well with Nixon’s costume design and brought an extra warmth to an already warm stage and auditorium.
There was an interesting added touch of placing the Northern Ballet Sinfonia on stage to perform in big band style with the conductor, John Pryce-Jones lauded the applause at most opportunities. The style worked very well visually and made a nice cabaret look, however it sounded quite heavily micced to me making the band sound a little less authentic than their staging would suggest, though this could be down to where I was sat and trying to fill the space of the Grand Theatre.
Some pieces in the show such as, I Got Rhythm, Summertime and I Got Plenty O Nuttin’ were accompanied by singers Simone Sauphanor and Robert Winslade Anderson. Sauphanor’s performance fitted the piece perfectly adding a powerful edge to the music to which I would have loved to hear again. Both singers performed in an operatic style which worked for some pieces and others not so much. Winslade Anderson’s voice seemed out of place for me and didn’t work with his songs, ‘I Got Rhythm’ and ‘I Got Plenty O Nuttin’. There seemed to be a mismatch of style, and not to detract from either performer but a more bluesy style would have been more in keeping with the music and the period.
All in all Northern Ballet’s ‘I Got Rhythm’ was a great night with plenty of fantastic ballet and jazz with colour and warmth that really entertains and brings the audience along with the varying tempo of the show and is definitely well worth a watch.
I Got Rhythm is at Leeds Grand Theatre until Saturday 26th May and then moves to Norwich, Theatre Royal from Tuesday 29th May to Saturday 2nd June. For more information visit www.northernballet.com