The Australian Ballet Presents COPPELIA At The ArtsCentre From 10 June

The Australian Ballet presents Coppélia at the Arts Centre from 10 June 2010. This colourful and irresistible production has everything a good story ballet should: a touch of magic, a dash of romance and masses of sumptuous costumes.

Boy meets girl, girl is a doll, doll comes to life - Frankenstein the ballet? Not quite. Coppélia is a comic ballet which combines the magic of theatre with deft dancing and remarkable characters.

Artistic Director David McAllister said the production was bound to appeal to the whole family.

"Coppélia features a cavalcade of dolls that come to life, young romance and unwise decisions, traditional harvest celebrations, a wily magician and, if that's not enough, we've even thrown in a dancing monkey!" The tale of Coppélia sprang from the same fertile imagination as The Nutcracker story - ETA Hoffmann. It premiered in Paris in 1870, at the turning point of the age of Romantic ballet and the scale and spectacle of the high classical style that would dominate the rest of the century.

Australians got their first taste of this comic gem when Adeline Genée and members of the Imperial Russian Ballet toured in 1913. The production is a particularly important part of Australia's dance history. It was performed as part of the inaugural season of The Australian Ballet in 1962 and its return is a fitting tribute to choreographer and founding artistic director of the company Dame Peggy Van Praagh. Van Praagh revisited Coppélia in 1979, breathing new life into the production by highlighting the magic and joy in Léo Delibes' score and Hoffmann's story, resulting in the beautiful ballet the company has in its repertoire today.

Exquisite sets and costumes designed by a young Kristian Fredrikson conjured a world of magic and pastoral romance, while direction from Australian film and theatre luminary George Ogilvie polished the story to perfection. Ogilvie will return to place his directorial stamp on the production, working with the company prior to the production opening in Sydney in May.

Last presented in 2001, this production is a playground for The Australian Ballet's dancers. Wellknown performers have made their mark on the lively and headstrong roles of Franz and Swanilda, while the beautiful group variations give the full company opportunity to shine.

The story:
Coppélia is a magical ballet in which belief is suspended and fantasy prevails. Dr Coppelius, an eccentric toy maker, dreams of breathing life into his collection of mechanical dolls. The young and precocious Swanhilda tricks Dr Coppelius into believing his dream has come true by changing places with his most beautiful doll, Coppélia. The action kicks off at the Harvest Festival, where the appearance of Dr Coppelius and his mysterious ‘daughter' wreak havoc on the proceedings. When village boy Franz falls for Coppélia's charms, his feisty fiancée Swanilda exacts her revenge. Identities are mistaken and plans foiled, the dreams of old age destroyed by thoughtless youth, with Franz learning the hard way not to fall for living dolls.

The performances:
Melbourne 10 - 22 June (13 performances)
the Arts Centre, State Theatre with Orchestra Victoria

Bookings: australianballet.com.au or 1300 369 741
Sydney 4 - 22 May (21 performances)
Opera Theatre, Sydney Opera House
with Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra

australianballet.com.au
behindballet.com
2 Kavanagh Street Southbank Victoria 3006 Australia
Telephone: (03) 9669 2700 Facsimile: (03) 9686 7081

Photo Credit: Justin Smith

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