Straight from Great Britain, with detours through Brooklyn and a few other U.S. stops, Matthew Bourne's dance adaptation of "Edward Scissorhands" opened at the 5th Avenue Theatre last week.
The 5th's artistic director David Armstrong had some interesting moments trying to explain the show to the opening night crowd of "Camelot."
"It's a musical," Armstrong told the Rodgers and Hammerstein traditionalists. "Only there is no singing...no words...just dance. Like a musical."
Since then, the 5th's marketing team have used the interesting term "dance-sical" to describe "Edward" and now seem settled on "dance sensation."
But the dance critics have persisted in referring to Bourne's work as a ballet-i.e., a wordless retelling of a story through dance and music.
Whatever people want to call it, "Edward Scissorhands" drew an excited dance crowd to the theater last week. After opening night, even non-dance people seemed enthused by Bourne's lighthearted but loving adaptation and interpretation of Tim Burton's movie.
For those who missed Burton's film, "Edward Scissorhands" is a homage to the Frankenstein story, with the incomplete creature seeking love in the suburbs. Only he has no hands, just scissors...which makes ballet conventions like a pas de deux or musical dance traditions like holding hands a really interesting problem for the choreographer. Even more fun was seeing how Bourne kept various characters' motivations clear without ever using more text than a couple of "once upon a time" subtitles.
Bourne's choreography has earned him a "love him or hate him" reputation in England, where his male swans dancing through "Swan Lake" made a cameo appearance in the movie "Billy Elliot." Other Bourne works include a masculine twist on the Carmen story called "Car Man" and award-winning choreography for the stage adaptation of "Mary Poppins."
To see how Bourne gets his leading man to dance with his leading lady without excessive bloodshed, check out "Edward Scissorhands" at the 5th Avenue Theatre, from now through May 13. Reach them at www. 5thavenuetheatre.org or call 206-625-1900.
Rosemary Jones writes about arts and entertainment for the Capitol Hill Times. She can be reached at editor@capitolhilltimes.com.[[In-content Ad]]
