Yuan Yuan Tan, Tiit Helimets, Sarah Van Patten, Davit Karapetyan, Pascal Molat, and all the other amazing dancers of San Francisco Ballet once again bring their audience to bouts of adoration and standing ovation in the final program of 2011 repertory season.By coming closer to the original Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid, John Neumeier, choreographer, scenic, costume, and lighting designer, rightfully challenges Disney-nursed generations of the American balletomanes, but also demands a lot of compassion – toward the struggles of the main character as well as toward excruciating stretches of stating the same (however tragic) notion over and over again – with little character development beyond the initial [stunning] transformation. Composer Lera Auerbach creates a complex musical story of colliding worlds, but also brings in an inexplicable reference to the Russian version of Chopsticks, perhaps, as a weird remnant of her childhood in the former Soviet Union.
Some of the many striking features of this production include mesmerizing depictions of underwater world, a mermaid-turn-human fight with gravity in a box of a room, and a full-force visual emphasis put on the male lead (not that anyone would mind with Helimets playing the part). Female characters, while performing their complicated and extremely demanding parts with ease and ingenuity, are seemingly intentionally devoid of glamour. Their costumes are less than stunning, the Mermaid’s makeup is not flattering (no matter what’s the historic or theatrical reference) and the bridesmaids’ dresses are proverbially horrific. With that said, there are too many beautiful things in this production to mention them all, so the entire show is a not-to-be-missed bittersweet farewell to the season. The Little Mermaid runs through May 8. More information at: http://www.sfballet.org/. Image: SF Ballet.
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