Snow Queen spreads her magical spell
Created by artistic director Christopher Hampson and designer Lez Brotherston, The Snow Queen is Scottish Ballet’s second new work to commemorate its 50th anniversary year.
Taking to the stage at a packed opening night at His Majesty's in Aberdeen, the prologue offers us a glimpse through a ragged peep-hole to the quarrel between the Snow Queen (Bethany Kingsley-Garner) and her sister, the Summer Princess (Alice Kawalek).
The Summer Princess sees her future in an enchanted mirror with a handsome stranger and in an attempt to find true love she flees the icy palace, leaving the Snow Queen alone and filled with rage.
Disguised as pickpocket Lexi, she encounters childhood sweethearts Gerda (Constance Devernay) and her fiancée Kai (Barnaby Rook Bishop), who she recognises as the stranger from the mirror.
However the Snow Queen catches up with them and in an attempt to punish her sister, she steals Kai away to her frozen palace, leaving Gerda to embark on a dangerous journey to retrieve her man from the Snow Queen’s icy grip.
While celebrating the original tale, the introduction of new secondary characters and plot-lines gives the entire ensemble scope for some outstanding performances.
Not least is the addition of the travelling circus troupe, a gypsy clan and Jack Frost all of whom add texture and context with special mention in particular to the clowns (Constant Vigier and Simon Schilgen), Mazelda the fortune teller (Grace Horler) and the Strong Man (Nicholas Shoesmith).
As in keeping with other shows, the lead performers rotate through the principal roles night by night and each more than capably inhabited their characters for the performance.
Without fail the set design by Lez Brotherston’s is outstanding.
With on stage projection to reflective metalic scenery and forced perspective set ups, the level of detail brings the magic of this story to life and if there is any niggle with it, it seemed odd to block the audiences view of the intricate footwork during the opening of couple of minutes of the acts until the stage is revealed in full.
Central also to the tale is Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s score, adapted by Richard Honner, which complements the choreography, indeed the he violin solo by Gillian Rissi at the gypsy campfire gained rapturous applause.
Overall a fantastically imagined interpretation of the tale and a fitting performance in celebration of the 50th anniversary year.
***** David Porter
The Snow Queen runs at His Majesty's Aberdeen until Saturday with tickets from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com and heads to Inverness at Eden Court from Wednesday, January 29 to Saturday February 1.
