REVIEW: Birmingham Royal Ballet - Cinderella at Mayflower Theatre

It’s my favourite time of year as Birmingham Royal Ballet are back at Mayflower Theatre but this time with their rendition of ‘Cinderella’. BRB’s ‘Cinderella’ is by none other than former company director, Sir David Bentley, and I think it’s safe to say that he’s nailed this one. I think everybody has heard of the story of ‘Cinderella’, most likely from the classic 1950 Disney film, but the story of ‘Cinderella’ or ‘The Little Glass Slipper’ actually spans back almost as far as ancient Greece and Egypt. Carlos Acosta’s BRB never fail to disappoint on every level of the theatre experience. From the moment you enter the theatre, throughout the performance, and to the moment you leave - you are fully indulged in the magic of ballet and storytelling through dance.

BRB’s shows are always of the highest production value, and I think this is what makes them the very best at what they do. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again; the scale and attention to detail at every one of their performances is desirable and a good representation of how to do theatre properly. So called ‘Classical’ ballets are easy to get overlooked in todays day and age with companies such as Matthew Bourne completely changing the game and playing field. However I don’t think that BRB are overlooked at all. In fact I would say they are at the very top of their game. Every time I see a BRB performance, the auditorium is packed to the brim. Tonight at Mayflower Theatre was no different. Watching a BRB performance is like watching a classical ballet from the past transported to modern day without it feeling dated. For the few of you reading that aren’t sure on the storyline of ‘Cinderella’, here’s a very quick rundown: This is a story following a girls navigation past her evil step mother and step sisters, involving fairy godmothers, pumpkin carriages, and a jewelled slipper - on her way to find her Prince Charming and a ‘Happy Ever After’. It’s a true story of love and faith that all sprouts from kindness - and the way it translates through ballet is perfect.

This ballet is split into 4 sections; Prologue, Act 1, Act 2, and Act 3. If you’ve ever read any of my reviews you will know that they usually have a certain layout to them. But if you’ve ever read one of my ballet reviews then you know that I break this mould to talk about each individual section as best I can. Before I get into that however, I’d firstly like to give the whole company and crew a huge round of applause and congratulations because they were all flawless. The amount of character in each and every one of those dancers was inspired, and it made following this story incredibly easy. The performers put in the hard work so that we as the audience could get lost in the story - and they did that exceptionally. Bravo! So without further ado:

The Prologue was fantastic. It was darker than prologues tend to be, but what a way to start a show. We first see Cinderella with her father who is just about to leave ‘Cinderella’ with her new step-sisters and step-mother. There’s not a lot of dance in this first bit, but the power in movement with no speech is spectacular. With a musical score from Sergei Prokofiev to accompany, everything just gets tied together beautifully. With a dark backdrop and almost silhouetted figures, we somehow know exactly what is going on and can see and feel the emotions on stage as well. The Perfect way to start the show.

Act 1 is now where we see a grown ‘Cinderella’ played by the fantastic Miki Mizutani. Miki was spectacular all night. From the moment we first meet her, we are with her every emotion. The switch up from vulnerable, to faithful and proud is superb. Not only in the body and face acting, but through her dance as well which was stunning. A lot happens in this act as we start in the kitchen and end act 1 with ‘Cinderella’ in her carriage (spoilers sorry!). So a lot happens, but it doesn’t ever feel like it’s dragging and I think a big part of that is down to the comedy involved. Eilis Small and Reina Fuchigami as ‘Cinderella’s Stepsisters’ were hilarious. The way in which they use their bodies to switch up from incredibly impressive unison dancing, to being playful and silly whilst still making it look elegant is mind-blowing. Fantastic performances. The break from dance heavy pieces, sprinkled with these little bits of comedy really help break up the show and keep engagement high as well. Really cleverly designed and thought out there. Keeping on the thought of comedy and wacky-ness, the introduction of the frog and lizards is also a very welcomed bit of fun. And how can we not talk about costume design here! I also really want to talk about the set design but I’m actually going to leave that for its own shout-out a little bit later on because WOW!

The group dancing towards the end of this act when it’s all in unison is just sublime. Literally faultless. The range of emotions that you travel through with ‘Cinderella’ is brilliant and the storytelling is so smooth - you wouldn’t even have to know the story before hand to understand what is going on. That’s how you know you’ve done a ballet right. Throughout the whole of this first act, there was one part that really stood out to me however. It was when ‘Cinderella’ was over by the sink and looking up at the window that was casting light into the kitchen (great piece of lighting design by the way!). She then goes up onto pointe, BARE FOOT, as to try and reach this light and I don’t know what it was about it - but this whole sequence with the softened score was gorgeous!

Act 2 is where we’re first introduced to the ‘The Prince’ played by Mathias Dingman. He was great. There was so much power yet elegance in his performance. As we are now in the ‘Ballroom’ scene, the group dancing here is energy personified. Again we have heavy group dances, mixed with comedic pieces from the sisters and other members of the company. The contrast keeps the flow of the show really fresh and allows you just to get lost in what is going on. It’s here that I was once again reminded that these guys are so much more than just dancers, but instead full on athletes. The introduction sequence of ‘Cinderella’ to the dance was gorgeous. This flowing straight into the duets between ‘Cinderella’ and ‘The Prince’, as well as the individual pieces - immaculate. The ending of this act was potentially my favourite part of the whole show. The descending clock at the back of the stage was extremely ‘Wicked-esc’ for our musical theatre fans, and I don’t want to spoil anything but what a way to end the act!

Finally, Act 3 was the perfect finalé that we had all been waiting for. We all pretty much know the outcome of the story, so now it’s just us waiting to see how it gets portrayed. The way it starts mixes comedy with set and story design perfectly. To then add layers on top of this and extend little nods from act 2 into act 3 was great. It’s almost a very full circle moment to find ourselves back in the kitchen before the kitchen is removed and we’re left with a big open stage and a duet dance. This was my favourite bit of dance of the whole night. ‘Cinderella’ and ‘The Prince’ together, alone on a big empty stage. There’s something so powerful and symbolic about this coming at the end of the show after all of the impressive dance, design and set pieces that we have seen throughout the show. It just puts a pin on how important and meaningful the dance actually is. Inspiring from every single one of those dancers out there tonight!

I mentioned earlier how I wanted to speak specially about the overall design and set of BRB’s ‘Cinderella’ and that’s because of how amazing it was. It was truly spectacular. The design of the kitchen to begin with, with the forced perspective drawing your eyes to certain areas was brilliant. This with the lighting design of the light shining through the window - fantastic. I also loved how the fireplace utilised actual fire and that haze effect coming through the fireplace before the walls make way for the Fairy godmother was incredibly effective. The giant mirror, the carriage, the clock - all of these set pieces were so grand and intricate and just executed perfectly. Even the use of little props such as bowls, or fruit, or slippers - amazing attention to detail. I also mentioned about how the stage would go from set heavy, to then no set, gradually throughout the act. The points when there was no set were just as majestic as when the stage was full of set. Just perfect!

One thing I also love about BRB is their orchestra run by musical director, Paul Murphy. The live music elevates a show like this so much and BRB never fail to knock it out of the park with their music. I’m glad to still see a full orchestra within the company after previously watching other companies cut back on the size of their orchestras or even scrap them altogether for their touring shows. Another tick in the reasons why you should go and watch a BRB production.

Before we wrap up, I’d also like to mention how impressive BRB’s programmes are. The amount of detail that they include in the story, the prep, the behind the scenes, and the companies individual member profiles is phenomenal. This is something that a lot of shows/productions/companies usually bypass and not really seem to worry about. But not BRB! There’s even a bit explaining the story out for children using illustrations of the costumes and dancers that are actually in the show they’re watching. This is such an important detail to add as it just shows how far BRB are going in making ballet more accessible for a wider audience of all ages and backgrounds. Incredible work!

Overall, ‘Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Cinderella’ was incredibly impressive and so much fun! I don’t think I have ever laughed at a ballet so much before and that is such a refreshing feeling. You’ll feel a range of emotions and you’ll also realise that these performers are more than just dancers, but athletes and actors. The story was incredibly easy to follow, and that’s all down to the perfect symbiotic relationship between cast, crew, design, music, and the company as a whole. If you have never seen a ballet before but are interested in trying one out, I highly recommend BRB to you. If not ‘Cinderella’, any of their performances will do the job, as I would bet money that you will not be disappointed. There’s so much work that goes into a show like this, work that sometimes goes unnoticed but when its done as well as BRB have done it, you can tell how hard everybody has worked to create a piece of art. ‘Cinderella’ is at Mayflower Theatre until Saturday 9th February but if you can catch it in Southampton, definitely try and catch it on the rest of it’s UK tour. I wish the whole of the company the best of luck going forward, and I’m already counting down the days until the next time BRB are back in town!