L'Île Enchantée: A Dream of Lost Worlds
The Royal Opera House buzzed with anticipation as the curtain rose on Arthur Sullivan’s L’Île Enchantée. This 1864 ballet, revived after a long absence, promised an intriguing glimpse into a world both whimsical and melancholic. As a dancer myself, I found myself drawn to the ballet's unique history, its early influence on English dance, and its potential for emotional depth.
The narrative, while simple, provides a compelling framework. The ballet begins in a mythical land, home to the mythical beings, Sylphides. The Sylphides are a whimsical and ethereal troupe, their dance infused with delicate grace and otherworldly charm. The lead Sylphide, portrayed by the talented Anya Petrova, embodies ethereal beauty with her every movement, her long, graceful lines conveying an aura of both fragility and strength. She pirouettes and leaps across the stage with effortless grace, her eyes reflecting the bittersweetness of her fleeting existence. Petrova embodies this character perfectly, weaving vulnerability and strength into a truly captivating performance. Each delicate gesture, each whispered movement tells a story.
The ballet is richly woven into the captivating story of a shipwrecked mariner who is drawn to the Isle by a captivating melody. He discovers the magical land and its enchanting Sylphides. Yet, as is often the case in fantastical narratives, his stay is impermanent. The sailor’s fleeting encounter with the mythical world echoes the ephemeral nature of art, leaving him to find a newfound sense of purpose and fulfillment as the curtain falls. While his own movements are less intricate and nuanced, they are grounded in purpose and action, his interactions with the sylphides creating a beautiful contrast in style.
The narrative, with its echoes of the myth of Persephone and a suggestion of romantic longing, resonated with me. There was a genuine yearning present, both for the unattainable and for a sense of connection. This feeling of longing was further enhanced by the rich, ethereal score by Sullivan.
Sullivan’s music is both playful and hauntingly beautiful. It captures the atmosphere of the magical isle with exquisite precision. The orchestra under the baton of Maestro David Lawrence offered an exquisitely crafted performance, showcasing Sullivan's delicate touch and poignant use of orchestration. At times the orchestra swirled in soft, ethereal textures reminiscent of an enchanted forest while moments of soaring melody carried the sailors' quest and desire for home with heartfelt pathos. The combination of his score and the choreographic elegance of the piece was masterful. I can understand why this piece was so impactful in its time.
Dancers and Choreography
The dance, despite its age, remained vital and enchanting. Sullivan's original choreography, as lovingly re-envisioned by a new generation of dancers, presented a captivating interplay of fluidity and power. It demanded a certain type of performer—one with exceptional stamina and control as they shifted effortlessly from dynamic leaps to nuanced expressions of ethereal delight.
The Sylphides, a chorus of dancers who graced the stage with a delicate precision and haunting beauty, stole the show with their ethereal elegance. They were all beautifully matched and trained in an exquisite synergy that allowed them to meld as one entity and be an evocative echo of their mystical being. Their balletic movements, while traditionally rooted in the classical lexicon, were rendered with a captivating expressiveness. I was entranced by their nuanced performance, especially when portraying the Sylphide's tender yet vulnerable bond with the lost sailor.
While the supporting roles were strong and effective, the spotlight focused on Petrova and the lead sailor. It's impossible to deny the chemistry that ignited on stage as they connected, offering an unspoken story with their bodies that needed no further elaboration.
Costumes and Set Design
The costumes by designer Fiona Dillon were both exquisite and fitting, effectively conveying the ethereal nature of the sylphides without relying on overly decorative, distracting, or clichéd embellishments. I adored their use of layered fabric in tones of green, cream, and white which gave them an impression of mist, making the dancer's forms float almost invisibly onstage. The costumes perfectly complimented the ballet's sense of beauty and wonder while retaining a certain timelessness that grounded them in the past but spoke directly to the present.
The set design by James Fenton was simple yet enchanting, relying heavily on light and shadow to create a world of dreamy ethereal spaces that shifted between natural landscape and mystical ethereal domains. His skillful manipulation of lighting highlighted the graceful figures of the dancers and created a magical ambiance throughout. A key moment was when he cast the sailor adrift on the sea during his shipwrecked entrance, evoking feelings of fear and longing.
In conclusion, L’Île Enchantée, while a small production, carries with it the weight of history and a rare sense of evocative, ethereal magic. With its charmingly simple narrative, stunning dance, beautiful costuming and a compelling performance by the lead dancers, this ballet was a welcome reminder of how truly extraordinary ballet can be. The ballet transports audiences to a land of dreams, whimsy and an undeniable touch of pathos. This was more than just a performance; it was a poignant story beautifully woven through dance, a story of dreams, desires, and the delicate, sometimes tragic, beauty of lost worlds.