Ballet Freedom Edinburgh Fringe 2022 Pleasance at EICC Lennox Theatre 6th August Review
Ballet Freedom at Pleasance at EICC Lennox Theatre is going to be one of the success stories of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2022, I have no doubt of that. This is simply a must-see show that, for me, ticked so many boxes.
Ballet Freedom are from Kyiv, Ukraine and although for most of us, thinking of this country without thinking about what is happening there now is impossible, don’t let the name of the company fool you into thinking that this is a company and a show out to make a political statement, no matter how valid that statement might be at the moment. This is not a show about politics, this is not a show that is even attempting to remind us of larger world wide events; in fact, if anything this is a show that by not making any of these statements, reminds us all what we are in real danger of losing forever, reminding us all of what in the end rises above everything else - real people and their hopes and dreams, their creativity, their love of life.
If you like burlesque, if you like cabaret, then you will like the fusion of both that Ballet Freedom have created here with their adaptation of their hit show “Boudoir” as 14 dancers create an almost surreal world to a diverse soundtrack of songs and music.
With the centre-piece of everything on this stage being a large mirrored wardrobe that is full of so many surprises, so many different people, this story asks many questions about their lives, about loves, and losses, and asks how you see your own self reflected in a mirror. Often here in this show, that line between what side of the mirror are we viewing from is a question that is never truly answered as it so often gives us surreal possibilities to explore instead.
For some reason, whenever I look at a wardrobe like this one on stage, I think of the entrance to Narnia, but this wardrobe looks like it is the gateway to a world much more interesting, a world of often obvious sensuality, but one that never crosses that razor-sharp fine line into crudity. Ballet Freedom knows exactly where one stops and the other starts. There are also some wonderful comedy moments in this show, many of them invoking some of the great European comedy acts of yesterdays.
There are at times too, moments here of us all as adults trying to look through Alice’s looking glass. Perhaps the real power of this story is that we all see something very different when we look into our own mirrors, something that no one else can ever see, even if they are standing right beside us.
This is of course a dance company, and as well as the obvious high levels of talent that Ballet Freedom dancers have, this show is a tribute to innovative and perfectly timed choreography.
There are few shows that I would be happy to go straight back in and watch again if I could, but Ballet Freedom is one of those few.
Review by Tom King (c) 2022
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
Ballet Freedom are from Kyiv, Ukraine and although for most of us, thinking of this country without thinking about what is happening there now is impossible, don’t let the name of the company fool you into thinking that this is a company and a show out to make a political statement, no matter how valid that statement might be at the moment. This is not a show about politics, this is not a show that is even attempting to remind us of larger world wide events; in fact, if anything this is a show that by not making any of these statements, reminds us all what we are in real danger of losing forever, reminding us all of what in the end rises above everything else - real people and their hopes and dreams, their creativity, their love of life.
If you like burlesque, if you like cabaret, then you will like the fusion of both that Ballet Freedom have created here with their adaptation of their hit show “Boudoir” as 14 dancers create an almost surreal world to a diverse soundtrack of songs and music.
With the centre-piece of everything on this stage being a large mirrored wardrobe that is full of so many surprises, so many different people, this story asks many questions about their lives, about loves, and losses, and asks how you see your own self reflected in a mirror. Often here in this show, that line between what side of the mirror are we viewing from is a question that is never truly answered as it so often gives us surreal possibilities to explore instead.
For some reason, whenever I look at a wardrobe like this one on stage, I think of the entrance to Narnia, but this wardrobe looks like it is the gateway to a world much more interesting, a world of often obvious sensuality, but one that never crosses that razor-sharp fine line into crudity. Ballet Freedom knows exactly where one stops and the other starts. There are also some wonderful comedy moments in this show, many of them invoking some of the great European comedy acts of yesterdays.
There are at times too, moments here of us all as adults trying to look through Alice’s looking glass. Perhaps the real power of this story is that we all see something very different when we look into our own mirrors, something that no one else can ever see, even if they are standing right beside us.
This is of course a dance company, and as well as the obvious high levels of talent that Ballet Freedom dancers have, this show is a tribute to innovative and perfectly timed choreography.
There are few shows that I would be happy to go straight back in and watch again if I could, but Ballet Freedom is one of those few.
Review by Tom King (c) 2022
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com