Ballets With Multiple Versions Of The Same Character?

[bart]

I just saw a new play based on the life of Judy Garland, in which there were actually 2 Judys on the stage. One, the Garland of the 1961 Carnegie Hall come-back performance. The other, a mostly non-singing Judy who enacted episodes of the character's life from age 4. The two performers were on the stage at the same time and interacted with one another.

This reminded me of the Balanchine-Weill-Brecht Seven Deadly Sins, in which 2 Annas (one a singer, one a dancer) interact in a similar fashion.

Are there any other ballets in which two or more versions of the same character appear on the stage at the same time?

[BalletNut]

I don't remember where or when I read it, but I remember reading something about how the Shades scene of Bayadere could be understood to be a vision of multiple Nikiyas.

Interesting topic.

[Norman]

In John Neumeier's 1989 ballet 'Peer Gynt' there are seven dancers representing the seven 'aspects' of Peer, in addition to Peer himself. They are all born together in the Prologue, and represent Anima, Childhood, Flying, Erotic, Daredevil, Aggression and Doubt. They are all male, except for Anima, who is female, and this dancer also dances Solveig.

In Matthew Bourne's 2002 Ballet (Play?) 'Play Without Words' five of the six characters are danced by three dancers each, and the sixth by two dancers. Generally there are fifteen dancers involved in presenting six characters, or various aspects of them. When I saw it the audience seemed quite happy with the idea, but I would think that this technique would be easier to carry off in ballet than in a straight stage play. But remember the film 'Kind Hearts And Coronets, where Sir Alec Guiness played most of the parts, all members of the same family who were murdered one by one?

I suppose that, in the case of Swan Lake, the matter is reversed, as we have one dancer playing two parts - Odette and Odile.

[bart]

Thanks, Norman, for your reply. And Welcome to Ballet Talk. I hope you'll introduce yourself on the our Welcome forum and that you'll be joining our discussions frequently. Here's the Welcome Link:

http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.php?showforum=9

The Neumeier sounds like a great example. I've not seen this ballet. Does the "real" Peer appear in all parts of the ballet, accompanied by the a different attribute-dancer for each distinct part?

The Bourne also fits the situation, in a slightly different fashion. Do the various dancers representing the same character appear on the stage at the same time? How does the audience know who they are: costume? movement? Sounds difficult to achieve.

In the ballet/opera movie of Tales of Hoffman, Helpmann plays multiple characters who are manifestations of Hoffman's rival, Lindorf: Coppeliuis, Dr. Miracle, and Dapertutto. This doesn't fit the format, but it might be interesting to have dancers representing all three appear simultaneously at the end to join Lindorf in a triumphal procession while he leads Stella away, leaving the drunken Hoffman befuddled and alone.

This is a topic that got lost. Any other examples to add to our (currently) short list?

[Norman]

Hi bart

Thanks for your welcome.

In 'Peer Gynt' the real Peer is, of course, the main character and present for much of the ballet. His aspects are occasionally there all together, but mostly they appear perhaps one at a time, along with Peer himself, and mainly when their particular characteristics are relevant to the plot and the development of Peer's character. From memory I don't think the aspects are necessarily there all the time. I think Neumeier uses this technique to delve deeply into the psychology of his main character, as he likes to do in most of his work.

In 'Play Without Words' there seems to be no fixed rule, but often the characters on stage will be represented by all three versions at once, some involved with each other, some just standing back and watching. At other times only one, or perhaps two versions are present, and sometimes it's like playing the same story over again with different characters. It's all quite complex and I don't know how the audience follow it. You have to read the synopsis, I suppose, and remember that it was based on earlier works, particularly the well-known Dirk Bogarde film 'The Servant'. As a dance work it probably doesn't matter so much if the audience can't easily follow who is who, as we often have to watch much more obscure works.

'Tales of Hoffman was a great film. It's years since I last saw it, and I have a lasting impression of the brilliant colours, turning the candles into jewels, and the 'Barcarole'.

When you come to think of it, the multiple casting of leading roles and the natural passages of ensemble dances, where the steps of the leading dancers are echoed by numerous couples behind them, it is a natural development in ballet to have several dancers playing the same role at the same time.

[Andre Yew]

Neumeier seems to like that style of choreography, as his Nijinsky also has multiple Nijinskys on stage at once, each dressed in one of his famous roles (Spectre of the Rose, the Faun, Petrushka, etc.).

Having just seen Sylvia (MM's, then FA's this weekend), Diana watches herself iin the past seducing Endymion.

--Andre

[Norman]

I see that this week the Staatsballett Berlin had a premiere (I don't know whether that was a world, or just a Berlin premiere) of a two act ballet 'Tschaikowsky' by Russian choreographer Boris Eifman. The four main characters are Tschaikowsky, His Alter Ego, Nadeschda von Meck and Tschaikowsky's wife. So that looks like another case of two dancers representing one character.

[Leigh Witchel]

It's a company premiere, Norman. We've already had the unforgettable experience of seeing this work performed by Eifman's own company in NYC.

I've seen several examples of this sort of fractured casting, all of them unfortunate. Including Tchaikovsky - which had me sliding under the seat biting my fist to stop from laughing. There's also Bejart's ballet on Yukio Mishima, which had (if I recall correctly) four separate Mishimas. James Kudelka one-upped him by having five different Glenn Goulds in "A Disembodied Voice". The problem in both ballets was the same. Multiple personalities, all alike. Ballet does not have words to express personality, so if one is going to cast several dancers as aspects of the same person, the main concern for the choreographer is to differentiate them. Why do you need four different Mishimas and how are you going to keep them distinct?

[Helene]

How could I have forgotten so soon -- Val Caniparoli's The Bridge, in which five couples portray Admira Ismic and Bosko Brckic, real-life Bosnian and Serb lovers who were killed trying to escape their war-torn country in the early 90's. The keys to Caniparoli's success were using the different couples to display different various of their relationship up through their attempt to escape, and the choice of music, in this case the Shostakovich chamber symphony based on the composer's String Quartet No. 8, and the choreographer's sensitive response to the score.

[zerbinetta]

& then there's McKenzie's Von Rothbart/Swamp Critter.

[Mel Johnson]

When I was a student, I recall seeing a civic company from Schenectady, NY perform a ballet based on "The Three Faces of Eve". It worked rather well, I thought.

[klingsor]

Maybe someone knows his name, but I do recall a South American choreographer (Arias?) whose "Romeo and Juliet" was performed by The Joffrey Ballet.

There were three Juliets (one for each act). Only one Romeo, but he had to schlep three dead Juliets in the final scene.

I tried Googling, but unfortunately "Arias Romeo Juliet" gives me thousands of opera results.

[Kate Lennard]

Maybe someone knows his name, but I do recall a South American choreographer (Arias?) whose "Romeo and Juliet" was performed by The Joffrey Ballet.

There were three Juliets (one for each act). Only one Romeo, but he had to schlep three dead Juliets in the final scene.

I tried Googling, but unfortunately "Arias Romeo Juliet" gives me thousands of opera results.

It's John Cranko

http://www.joffrey.com/season_perf04.html

[Leigh Witchel]

Oscar Aráiz choreographed the version of R&J you are thinking of. Cranko's version, which does not have multiple castings, was introduced to repertory later. Aráiz is at present director of the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires. http://www.teatrocolon.org.ar/cuerpos_arti...dexcuerpart.htm

[klingsor]

Oscar Aráiz choreographed the version of R&J you are thinking of. Cranko's version, which does not have multiple castings, was introduced to repertory later. Aráiz is at present director of the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires. http://www.teatrocolon.org.ar/cuerpos_arti...dexcuerpart.htm

Thank you.

[Farrell Fan]

Paul Mejia once choreographed a "Romeo and Juliet" to Tschaikovsky's fantasy overture for Suzanne Farrell. As I remember, there were eight Romeos. Onstage, that is.

[Dale]

In the case of Swan Lake, there's also the "Odette" who appears in the ballroom after the Black Swan pas. Odile laughs in triumph and than runs off.

In 2001, ABT performed Christian Holder's "Weren't We Fools?" which featured a character who had singing and dancing incarnations. It was performed the same season of a revival of "Dim Lustre" by Tudor and had a similar plot. Doesn't that also feature doubles?

[Mel Johnson]

"Dim Lustre" has "shadows" who carry the lead couple characters back to recollections of earlier acquaintances and infatuations.

Robert Joffrey's "Remembrances" has two "she"s: She, who sings, and She, who dances. Come to think of it, Balanchine's "Seven Deadly Sins" uses the same sort of device.

[bart]

Thanks klingsor and Leigh for the Araiz Romeo and Juliet.

What is the dramatic or dance reason for the 3 Juliets?

There is dramatic development in the character during the play/ballet, but I'm curious as how these 3 Juliets differ from each other -- and especially WHY Romeo needs to dance with all 3 of them in the tomb.

(And what it looked like? I have a vision of the 3 of them stacked in his arms like so many logs.)

[klingsor]

Thanks klingsor and Leigh for the Araiz Romeo and Juliet.

What is the dramatic or dance reason for the 3 Juliets?

There is dramatic development in the character during the play/ballet, but I'm curious as how these 3 Juliets differ from each other -- and especially WHY Romeo needs to dance with all 3 of them in the tomb.

(And what it looked like? I have a vision of the 3 of them stacked in his arms like so many logs.)

Check this thread from 2002:

Multiple Personae? - Ballet Talk

http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=5092

[klingsor]

Originally posted by Manhattnik

I remember Oscar Araiz's Romeo and Juliet for the Joffrey, which had three, count 'em, three Juliets. For some reason.

I can't tell you Oscar Ariaz's reason for having three Juliets, but I can tell you how it worked in the dramatic sense.

When the child Juliet is introduced to her future husband Paris, a more mature Juliet comes through her bedroom mirror and dances a short pas de duex with him. This more mature Juliet then goes away (through) the mirror and takes over the role for the balcony pas through the death of Tybalt.

The third Juliet is the experienced - tragic Juliet, who deals with the emotions of losing her lover when Romeo is banished. She eventually takes her life in dispair.

In the crypt scene of the Ariaz verison, Romeo (Kevin MacKenzie) dances with dead Juliet, all three of them. He drags all three of them to her resting place before he too dies, and then all of the other dead bodies in the crypt stand up and strip out of elaborate costumes (keeping their nude unitards on) and dance individual love pas de deux.

This R&J was not a hit, though as a performer, I enjoyed it. The Joffrey Ballet eventually aquired Cranko's wonderful version and had great success with it.

I remember as the curtain came in on opening night of the Ariaz version, someone in the audience yelled "Bravo Romeo!". Was that you Manhattnik?

[bart]

Thanks, klingsor, for bringing back that thread. The following comment by Manhattanik rings true to me:

There are many ballets which sound better when described than when actually watched, and I fear Araiz's R&J was one of them. One problem I had with it was that there wasn't much difference that I could see between Juliet #2 and Juliet #3. (Juliet #1 was clearly a rather young little girl.)

All that dressing and undressing must have been complicated and taken up quite some time.