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Carmen’s ride gets pimped, and then purrs accordingly
CAR MAN
Sadler’s Wells Theatre
BALLET supremo Matthew Bourne chose wisely when he decided to remake Carmen, Bizet’s tale of forbidden passions, unrequited love and fatal pride.
All the lifeblood of the original continues to pulse, albeit through very different veins, in
Bourne’s re-imaging, which moves the classic story to a garage in 20th- century small-town America and tinkers loudly under the hood.
In a town called Harmony, a group of mechanics (replacing the bull-fighters) and their waitress gals hang out, kicking up dust and rough-housing under the bleary eye of garage and diner owner Dino, a flatulent soak with a dangerously beautiful wife (Michela Meazza). A sign at the corner of the stage reads “Man Wanted”.
Enter drifter Luca (Alan Vincent), a man so macho he could quite possibly kill you with his eyebrows, who sets about seducing Dino’s wife and young male mechanic Bruno (Matt Dibble).
It is at this point Bourne’s story takes flight from its source material, and all the inevitable, trite comparisons with Bizet’s story float away. Dino discovers his wife’s infidelity and is killed by the conspiring pair, who frame Bruno for the murder.
Bourne has a gift for telling stories and complex emotions and, although the second half falls off slightly in its plotting, the characters are not hampered by the twisting narratives, lovingly borrowed from iconic greats such as Rebel without a Cause.
The dancing is superb: consistently powerful, provocative and inventive. Luca and his gang sashay seamlessly though classical ballet, flamenco and roadhouse grinding, with beer-swilling, butt-shaking and punch-throwing ticks gleefully thrown in.
Carmen has always been a sexy story, but in Matthew Bourne’s hands it positively oozes sex.
And it is tribute to the enduring talent of Bizet that his score lends itself so well to the new territory Bourne takes it.
Car Man’s Americana is wilfully clichéd, and the town’s title (Harmony) terribly contrived, but these are not faults here. In this production, these pop leanings are part of the fabric. Bizet’s Carmen’s has been well and truly pimped, and it’s great ride.
Until August 5 |
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