Review: Varna International Ballet – Edinburgh Playhouse

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Varna International Ballet, better known as the Varna State Ballet, has set itself an impossible task. To successfully perform just one Tchaikovsky classic on a punishing schedule featuring few to no rest days through to the final show in Northampton on March 5th would be an achievement. To attempt three different shows, Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, and The Nutcracker, is ambitious to the point of lunacy.

On the evidence of the latter two (I wasn’t free to see the first – perhaps it’s outstanding), the company has neither the resources nor artistic cunning to pull it off.

The condensed 2-Act Swan Lake is under-choreographed to the point that our hero Siegfried (Vittorio Scole) does very little dancing until the final act, left instead to gesticulate his way to a meeting with enchanted swan-maiden Odette (Martina Prefetto) and to offer supporting arms for her and other partners more energetic exploits.

The corps de ballet appear under-rehearsed and under-drilled – though in truth they may just be exhausted after 12 performances and only 2 off days since January 2nd. However, there’s no escaping the lack of elegance and synchronicity which plagues both flocks of swans and carousing nobles. Giacomo Ammazzini’s Benno – Siegfriend’s best friend – injects a lively dynamism into his solo work but seems terrified when partnering with others judging by the trembling obvious from my seat in the dress circle.

More generally, the costuming is adequate, though unexceptional, and a little prone to disintegration – even without a moulting, dying swan, the stage is festooned with escaping ‘feathers’. There isn’t any set to speak of other than animated projected backgrounds and an occasional puff of smoke. One can only imagine the logistics of attempting to transport full sets for 3 full-length ballets, and you really can’t blame Varna International Ballet for saying ‘nahhhhh.’

More problematically, this absence of manifest scene-setting mirrors the ballet’s overall story, or lack of it. This attempt to ‘reconstruct’ the original ballet as first performed in 1877, leaves one highly grateful for Petipa, Ivanov, and Drigo’s reimagining of the show in 1895. Too much story can be a bad thing, but too little is a recipe for disengagement.

So it is throughout a first act dominated by Prince Siegfried’s birthday celebrations before he just happens upon Odette having chosen that evening to wander down to a mysterious lake. Unfortunately, wicked magician Rothbart (Giovanni Pompei channeling ‘What We Do In The Shadows for all he’s worth) is soon on hand to frustrate Love’s young cross-species dream. Till now, the villain has posed as the Prince’s bumbling tutor thanks to a different coloured hat.

In terms of the choreography, there’s little more storytelling to speak of. Yes, there’s plenty of prancing with wine cups plus sequences of solo and massed swan action, but that’s about it.

A short film projected before the curtain rises having explained the story, it seems Varna’s choreographers didn’t see much need to explain or exposit much thereafter. Audience members concerned about catching the bus are well catered to, however, as these choices reduce the ballet’s run time to around 2 hours, rather than 3.

Siegfried’s birthday ball occupies most of the second and final act, marked mainly by his refusal to marry any of the eligible bachelorettes who dance for his consideration. Time is set aside, thankfully, for black swan Odile (Mara Slvaggio) to seduce the prince into matrimony with a stellar display of pointe technique, and exquisitely controlled limbs.

The ending then…happens, which is about the best that can be said for a climax in which the baddie opts to give up and go away.

This brings us to the Nutcracker, which in contrast is performed with Marius Pepita’s original story and scene structure mostly intact. I say mostly because there’s no Sugar Plum Fairy to complicate the youthful Maria (Martina Prefetto) and her Nutcracker Prince’s (Timofei Fedotov) romantic Christmas dream. Prefetto deserves every bit of applause for injecting every step with grace and control despite essentially dancing two parts in one, those of Maria and the Sugar Plum absentee.

Kudos are also due to Varna for a first act which conjures moments of magic, mostly in orbit around the Venetian-masked toymaker Drosselmeyer (unsure of the casting), and his rather mysterious masked trio of lifesize automatons. Ok so the Mouse King (again casting unsure) dancing toy comes to life with some dad-dance-worthy flappy arms, but the grotesque mask makes him oddly compelling nevertheless.

However, whilst the execution of good ballet is not dependent upon luxuriant props, this production’s scene-setting by projected backdrop and costuming of varying quality leaves much to be desired.

Herr Drosselmeyer and the Mouse King get lucky with stylish masked Venetian garb, but the Chinese and Arabian dancers are decked out as particularly unimaginative stereotypes. All exist in a world without any suggestion of a real Christmas tree and a diminishing sense of adventure the longer matters process.

Any hope of a coherent story vanishes altogether in a second act as our heroine Maria vanishes off-stage, thus leaving the various dancing sweets (you’d have to know the story to know what the varyingly dressed dancers are meant to be) to dance through a series of sequentially staged, yet oddly disconnected solo’s and small group choreographies.

Individually they are executed well enough – though only the Spanish Chocolate dancing trio have any real flare to speak of. Even here, the central soloist’s dress has the sweep of a Flamenco dancer’s garb but is voluminous to the point of interfering with some steps. Trying to produce and perform 3 ballets on the road appears to have compromised the attention available to develop each.

It’s a pity because there truly are promising moments throughout the first act, not least a battle between nutcrackers and mice laced with genuine menace and a sense of grand adventure. The corps do their best work here, perhaps feeling free to give their all in anticipation of a post-intermission rest. There are even a few cleverly conceived magic tricks sprinkled throughout, mostly facilitated by Drosselmeyer’s expansive cloak.

However, by the time the action reaches the ‘Pas De Deux’ – here danced by Prince and Maria, rather than the missing SPF, that magic has waned, and though they acquit themselves well individually, their duets are marred by some quite ugly lifts. There’s no obvious lack of dancing ability, just a lack of time spent in rehearsals getting every moment right.

However, credit must be given to Varna’s Music Director Peter Tuleshkov, who conducts the perky 20-piece orchestra through thoroughly enjoyable renditions of Tchaikovsky’s beloved scores. What they lack in numerical might, the talented ensemble makes up for in audible love for the music.

In an age where an increasing number of touring ballets come equipped with recorded backing tracks, it’s a welcome reminder of the power of live musicians to reach into the audience’s hearts in a way that a tape never will.

If only Varna International Ballet’s attention to the action on stage showed the same pluck. With tickets costing anywhere between £15 and £90+ depending on seat and venue, audiences deserve better.

Featured Image: Varna International Ballet, Swan Lake at New Wimbledon Theatre, London – photo: Elliott Franks

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Varna International Ballet will tour UK venues until the 5th of March 2025. For tickets, and more information, click here.

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