The Australian Ballet: Manon -
Lyric Theatre, QPAC, 21 February -
Manon is, unusually, both a sumptuous feast for the senses and a compelling tragedy. With a scenario based on Abbé Prévost’s 1731 novel, this gorgeous-looking ballet travels from the decadence of pre-revolutionary 18th century France to the swampy convict settlements of Louisiana, telling a tragic tale of love, lust, greed and betrayal.
The score, a miscellany from Jules Massenet’s prolific oeuvre, resonates with familiarity, its ‘silky suppleness’, visually realised by Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s luscious movement, sweeping you up in the drama.
The leads in Manon are thus among the most coveted of roles, with passionate pas de deux and complex character developments dancers can sink their teeth into. Lucinda Dunn as Manon and Adam Bull as des Grieux opened the Australian Ballet’s Brisbane season; the first time in 20 years the ballet has been performed here. Surprisingly this was also a debut performance for the diminutive Dunn.
There have been several interpretations of the young Manon, who, on her way to join a convent, becomes infatuated with the student des Grieux, but soon forsakes him for the wealth of the lascivious and powerful Monsieur GM.
Dunn plays her as an innocent; capricious, mercurial but ultimately and fatally seduced by the trappings of wealth. Her transition from love to material lust was made clear in the steamy, sensuous pas de trois with her brother (and pimp) Lescaut (Andrew Killian) and Monsieur GM (Steven Heathcote). You could see her learning corruption from her brother, looking at him for reassurance.
Bull’s des Grieux was more the romantic poet – out of his depth rather than heroic. However, while his statuesque bearing perfectly suited the role, his first adagio solo – a languid, but passionate declaration of love – was unsteady, drawing away from the moment that Manon falls for des Grieux, which importantly sets up the subsequent drama. Although Dunn dazzled like quicksilver in the pas de deux that followed, they were initially unconvincing in their mutual attraction.
Peter Farmer’s opulent set and costume design, brought to life by the superb lighting of Francis Croese, captured the cruel 18th century juxtaposition of the very poor and obscenely wealthy. The Act II party scene was particularly magnificent, and here Dunn finally convinced us of Manon’s drop-dead allure. Callously manoeuvred from suitor to suitor in a lush sequence that is one of the choreographic highlights of the ballet, she exuded the brittle sensuality of the morally corrupt.
Killian made Lescaut more of a larrikin than a real schemer, but it was a strong performance. His ‘drunken’ pas de deux with Lana Jones as his courtesan mistress showed masterful restraint and needle sharp comic timing from them both. Jones made the most of an otherwise thinly drawn character and dazzled in her solos.
Julie da Costa as Madame X captivated, oozing glamour and style as she swept across the stage, while Heathcote perfectly embodied the charismatic, but arrogant ruthlessness of Monsieur GM.
The Queensland Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Musical Director Nicolette Fraillon, was an equal partner in this performance, delivering a sensitive and finely nuanced interpretation of the score that so perfectly underpinned both the drama and the dance.
It was MacMillan’s habit to start choreographing any new work with the pas de deux, and so not surprisingly the duets between Manon and des Grieux are a central part of this ballet. In this performance the best was left ‘til last.
While the final scene in the swamps of Louisiana was visually a little too beautiful, as life flashed past the doomed Manon and des Grieux, their pas de deux exuded raw angst. Dunn and Bull were totally fearless, pushing the lifts and throws to breath-taking extremes, giving Manon’s death a convincing sense of heartbreaking desperation.
- DENISE RICHARDSON