La Fille Mal Gardee [Blu-ray]

La Fille Mal Gardee [Blu-ray]
by MacGibbon

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Blu-ray details

Actor: Carlos Acosta, Jonathan Howells, Marianela NuÃ±ez, William Tuckett
Director: MacGibbon
Brand: Naxos OF America INC
Blu-ray: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Unknown); German (Unknown); French (Unknown); Italian (Unknown); Dutch (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Italian (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Original Language); English (Original Language)
Format: Classical, Color, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 112 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: 2009-03-31
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Bbc / Opus

Blu-ray Reviews of La Fille Mal Gardee [Blu-ray]

Blu-ray Review: Ashton's evergreen masterpiece, now on Blu-Ray!
Summary: 5 Stars

When I reviewed the Collier/Coleman performance of Fille mal Gardee from the 1980s, I expressed a wish that he 2005 performance of Fille would be made available on dvd, since I find it to be, all things considered, the superior performance. Well a couple years later, I got my wish! In my opinion, this telecast, starring Marianela Nunez and Carlos Acosta, is THE performance to get of Frederick Ashton's rustic charmer.

Marianela Nunez was only 23 when this performance was filmed, and considered a rising star. Since then she has become one of the Royal Ballet's prima ballerinas. It's easy to see why her rise was so meteoric. Joy is the best word to describe her dancing. With her blond hair, huge smile, and elegant port-te-bras, she's the ideal Lise. She's the right mix of girlishness, mischief, and pure fun. She effectively pulls off the mime, which was handtaught from Tamara Karsavina to Frederick Ashton. She's the rare modern dancer that can dance the fast footwork Ashton favored, including tricky diagonal hops on pointe. Carlos Acosta, the Cuban superstar, is sunny and boyish as Colas. I love the gusto with which he does jumping jacks in one scene. Both of them are known as prodigious technicians, but in this ballet they don't go for fireworks. Instead, they let the quiet charm of Ashton's choreography speak for itself. More importantly, they have the all-elusive chemistry needed for this ballet. Their lifts seem a spontaneous expression of young love. In the cats cradle duet the ribbons are tied and untied, twirled and untwirled, without a hitch.

As for Ashton's choreography, if your idea of classical ballet is Swan Lake or Balanchine's Apollo, you might not enjoy Fille. It has the air of an English rustic comedy. Charm and humor are the words inevitably used to describe it. It starts with a chicken dance, an includes a famous in travesti clog dance by Widow Simone, Lise's mother. Lise's dimwitted suitor Alain dances with his umbrella. The most celebrated choreography is probably the enchanting "cat's cradle" duet between Lise and Colas. Ribbons are a recurring theme -- Lise is first seen dancing to ribbons, Lise and Colas express their love through a dance of ribbons, Lise and Colas dance with the villagers holding up two sets of revolving ribbons, the villagers' happy maypole dance is interrupted by a storm. Besides being visually appealing, the ribbons are a good dramatic device. It gives a sense of love, connection and harmony between the characters. I find it all very charming. The score is a mishmash of different tunes pieced together by John Lanchberry. Opera buffs will detect several famous operatic melodies sprinkled throughout the score, including the Barber of Seville.

Part of the reason I love this video so much is that the sets, costumes, and video quality are all superior to the earlier video. I also prefer the Nunez/Acosta pairing to Collier/Coleman. If you want something lighthearted, fun, but with enough choreographic substance to be considered a real ballet and not just "fluff," this video of "Fille" is perfect.

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Description of La Fille Mal Gardee [Blu-ray]

Ever since its triumphant premiere in 1960, Frederick
Ashton's La fille mal gardée has been treasured as one of his
happiest creations his artistic tribute to nature, and an
expression of his feelings for his beloved Suffolk countryside.
Marianela Nuñez and Carlos Acosta perfectly portray the
young lovers Lise and Colas, determined to thwart the plans
of Widow Simone to marry off her wayward daughter to
Alain, the simple son of wealthy Farmer Thomas. Osbert
Lancaster's colourful, picture-book designs, along with
Ferdinand Hérold's tuneful score, arranged by John
Lanchbery, provide the perfect setting for Ashton's blissfully
bucolic ballet, complete with haywain, pony, maypole and
ribbons, a cockrel and his chickens and, of course, the famous
clog dance, here wonderfully led by William Tuckett as the
irascible but lovable Widow Simone.

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