Review-Highland Fling-Hong Kong Arts Festival
22-2-14
By: Meaghan McGurgan
Matthew Bourne’s Highland Fling is described by the choreographer as "La Sylphide for the Trainspotting generation." No statement could ever be more true about this beautiful reinterpretation. Set in a world of drugs, rock and roll and tartan overload, Matthew Bourne’s Highland Fling is a complete pleasure to watch.
One may wonder how many different tartan plaids can possibly be in one production? I counted 22. Did you find more than me? The set and costume design of Bourne’s work is Scottish in hyperdrive. Kilts, tartan and flags adorn everything but it doesn’t come across as tacky. It’s simply a world of drunken Scottish fun. And there was a lot of drunken revelry in tonight’s production.
Bourne’s choreography of a stag night, a Scottish wedding, drunken debauchery and the hang over from hell was full of both beautiful technique and funny as hell. Not an easy thing to do. His stage pictures are full of hidden gems. Selfies, bathroom quickies and beer drinking are all in his choreography and are staged beautifully. My favorite group number was the pas de deux between the male cast members as they’re hung over and constantly supporting each other’s weight. It's a scene we’ve all seen in LKF on numerous occasions but in Bourne’s world it’s a thing of wonder.
What makes the piece truly wonderful is the characters built by the dancers. Often times in ballet we’re treated to great technique with blank slates for faces. The Scottish Ballet’s dancers create wonderful characters full of life and expression and the dancing doesn’t suffer for it. In fact, the dancing is better because we empathize with them. We feel their joy, their heartbreak and their hangovers. We connect with them so much more because of the dancers' commitments to their characters.
The second act of the show is far more serious than the first but a great example of a cast in perfect synchronicity. They inhaled and exhaled at the same time. Their audible breath became part of the theatrical experience. That is a cast in sync.
My least favorite part of the show was the lighting design. The lighting design relied heavily on side light and shin busters. This created some beautiful pictures in the downstage but the upstage sometimes suffered from dark spots. Some really funny moments happened in these dark spots. I wish we could have seen them better.
It is my understanding that there are still tickets available for this show. It’s amazing - a truly enjoyable ballet full of beautiful technique, a sense of humor and so, so, so, so much plaid. Fling yourself to the box offices, immediately!
Highland Fling is playing at Shatin Town Hall through Sunday, Febuary 23rd. For more information, click here.
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