Stunning Dorian Gray sizzles at Milton Keynes Theatre
Wilde's Gothic Tale brought up-to-date by ballet maestro Matthew Bourne.
THERE aren't many ballets that come complete with an age restriction and a warning about containing "adult themes of a sexual nature" - but when has choreographer Matthew Bourne ever played it safe or by the rules?
There is always a strong sexual element to the man's ballets but none have been darker, more sexually explicit, or as raunchy as the explosive Dorian Gray that opened at Milton Keynes Theatre this week. This is a ballet to set your pulse on fire.
Sex, drug taking, and hedonistic debauchery fuelled a story so scintillating that it should have come with a X-rated certificate. The audience certainly needed a cold shower once it was over.
Dorian Gray wasn't for the faint-hearted or those expecting a faithful retelling of Oscar Wilde's gloomy Gothic fairy tale.
Bourne's re-imagining brought the story right up to date. It was set in the youth-obsessed world of modelling where you're only as good as your last spread and immortality is captured in the lens of a camera.
Dorian is discovered working as a waiter at a fashion event. Photographer Basil Hallward is captivated by the man and begins shooting him with his camera.
Within minutes the audience is witness to the great seduction where the ambitious and beautiful young Adonis undresses and has sex with the snapper.
That pretty much sets the scene for the entire ballet. Dorian is an opportunist who uses whoever he can, and takes whatever he needs, to reach the top.
He becomes the plaything of media mogul, Lady H, who then uses her influence to promote his career. He cheats on Basil with anyone he finds attractive, is surrounded by sycophants who feed off his fame, and he enjoys every indulgence until his corruption is complete.
In the opening scene, when we first met Dorian, he was working with another waiter and it was almost impossible to tell them apart. Indeed the fickle hand of fate could have led Basil to snap either man.
And throughout the story the beautiful Dorian is shadowed by his doppleganger, a perfect but younger image of himself, who is waiting to step into his shoes.
While Dorian is bewitched by his own publicity into believing he is Immortal, just like the perfume campaign he fronts, the reality is that pretty soon one poster is replaced with another.
The performances are, as you'd expect outstanding and mostly performed in a state of undress. Indeed, Matthew Bourne could have got Calvin Klein to sponsor the show.
And, like the world they portray, the body beautiful has never been so evident. With so much bare flesh on show everyone is buffed to perfection, from the leading man, Richard Winsor, to the simply stunning Michela Meazza as Lady H.
There's nothing to choose between Winsor and his doppleganger, Jared Hageman, and, in the way that life imitates art, Jared doubles for Richard on his days off.
Jason Piper as Basil is edgy and authentic and all move with a grace and elegance that is spell-binding.
Purists will argue, as they have before, that Bourne's work has moved too far away from traditional, classical ballet, and that they're overly theatrical – but that is the secret of their success.
He has welcomed a whole new audience to his productions who have been drawn into a world that they previously thought elite and rarefied.
We love the drama, the high camp, the modern interpretations on an old story, the awesome sets (as in Edward Scissorhands or Nutcracker!) and the dazzling costumes (all courtesy of Les Brotherston).
They're not for the prudish – Dorian Gray goes further than Bourne has ever gone before – but they're a visual feast that will stay with you
long after you've driven home.
Dorian Gray runs until Saturday. For tickets contact the box office 0844 871 7652 or go online www.ambassadortickets.com/miltonkeynes.
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Tuesday 07 February 2012
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