Northern Ballet Beauty and the Beast at the Mayflower Theatre Review
Northern Ballet
Beauty and the Beast
Mayflower Theatre, Southampton
30 November to 3 December 2016
Reviewed by Joanne Hughes
A fantastical feast of fairytale romance performed through powerful and moving dance, Northern Ballet’s production of Beauty and the Beast is a delight for all the family.
The well-loved story of a vain and egotistical Prince who is transformed into a beast by an enchantress when she learns of his vanity and selfishness, but his returned to his former self once he learns to love and his loved in return by the beautiful Belle, was first written by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve in 1740 with a slightly darker side but has since become synonymous with Disney’s 1991 animated film version.
David Nixon’s (Artistic Director) adaptation takes the story back to its original roots, focusing on the beast’s inner anguish as he wrestles with his vanity, the riches-to-rags tale of Beauty (Belle), her father and two spoiled sisters, and the wonderful romance that blossoms between the beast Prince and Beauty.
The performance opens with Prince Orian, magnificently portrayed by Joseph Taylor, preening himself in front of the mirror whilst his manservant attempts to draw him towards his awaiting adorers. A stunning dance between the Prince and his adorers reinforces the beauty of this Prince to the audience. Then enters the enchantress fairy, disguised as an old woman requesting food to eat, which the Prince refuses, and with a show-stopping moment, the Prince is cursed by the fairy and transformed into a beast. A second fairy, the good fairy and sister of the enchantress fairy, appears and magically conveys her solution to the curse through the presentation of a single red rose, pressed first to her heart so that no-one is left with any doubt that love will save the day.
In the next scene, we are enchanted by the graceful and elegant poises of the heroine Beauty (Ayami Miyata), which are contrasted to the comical characterisation of her two spoiled sisters, who have recently returned from an overly-expensive shopping trip and are showing off their purchases to their father. An amusing and witty performance ensues in which three sun-glasses clad men-in-black debt collectors arrive and strip the family of all their belongings, including the sisters recently acquired wardrobe, leaving them only their underwear. This scene, although humorous, did not seem to fit well in a classical fairy-tale, however, the dancing was joyful and expressive.
Now homeless and left in the forest, Beauty and her family luckily stumble upon an old car which Beauty sets to making into their new home, whilst the sisters look on and the father heads off deeper into the forest in search of food. On his search, the father stumbles upon the castle gardens of the Beast, whereupon he sees the most beautiful white rose that he is compelled to pick for Beauty, an act for which the Beast demands his life. The power and strength of the dance from the Beast (played by Riku Ito) was mesmerising. The set design and lighting for this scene is technical excellence, adapting from the soft forest to the harsh castle gardens of the Beast, with the hidden window which allows us to see onto the vision of the daughters that the father has when he believes he will never see them again – a true work of art.
The Beast, also seeing this vision, spares the father his life in return for one of the daughters returning to live with him, which Beauty chooses to accept. The rest of the story is focused on the captivating romance that blossoms between Beauty and the Beast – the pair complement each other wonderfully, and we are bewitched by their ability to convey the changes in their emotions through their movements and posture. One impressive scene opens with Beauty asleep on a massive rose-bed (amazing set-design), and we witness a captivating dream dance between Beauty, Beast and his former self as Prince Orian, which encapsulates the beast’s anguish.
The production ends with the marriage of Beast and Beauty, at which point Beast is re-transformed into his former beauty though remaining a compassionate man.
The show is well-performed and all the characters show great ability and beauty – there is superb dancing, terrific costumes, awe-inspiring set-designs, amazing live orchestral music, and a magical fairy-tale with love triumphing over self-obsession. I would urge everyone to attend this show, whether they be lovers of ballet or not, though I do believe that the recommended age of five may be a little young as it can be quite confusing at times, especially the dream dance between Beauty, Beast and his former self as Prince Orian, if they have never seen ballet before.
The Mayflower Theatre in Southampton was the perfect venue for this show – the stage is impressive and the staff are brilliant. Being treated to the services of the Empire Suite, we were very well looked after, and we must compliment the chef on his fish and chip canapés – they were delicious.
Can’t wait to see The Little Mermaid!
Rating: 5/5 
Tickets cost from £21 to £38 (booking fees may apply).
Northern Ballet’s Beauty and the Beast is at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton until 3 December 2016. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 02380 711811.
Mayflower Theatre, Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1GE | 02380 711811
