Jean-Christophe Maillot's HIGH OCTANE BALLET

PNB fans rejoice, as for the very first time Jean-Christophe Maillot's ethereal fairytale ballet, based on the original adapted story by Charles Perrault is staged at the McCaw Hall. Forget the bibbidy-bobbidy-boon of Disney, or glass slippers for that matter; this elegantly designed and pin-sharp choreographed ballet is a triumph of timelessness, yet does away with much of the frippery usually associated with fairytale ballets. Sergei Prokofiev's haunting score leads the darker story, and the coaching by Bernice Coppieters, and Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo shines through. A must-see for fans of the fairytale ballet genre.

Following the Perrault version loosely, our heroine is a put-upon young girl, forced into indentured servitude by her vain stepmother and selfish stepsisters; her widower father is completely under the thrall of his new wife, and therefore doesn't help. Instead of a fairy godmother however, she is helped to attend the ball by a series of spirits, who display their powers in a series of fast-paced and powerful dancing that brings the story up to date! Classical costumes make way for haute couture, and visual effects glide seamlessly in and out amdist the action.