BALLET BLACK | HEROES (REVIEW)

Review by Taylor Anderson | Photography ASH

Ballet Black explores the meaning of ambition and purpose in the HEROES double bill with two contrasting but complementary pieces, If At First and The Waiting Game.

In an era of social media, where we present the clean, unmessy versions of ourselves and where celebrity status can be gained or taken away overnight, these two pieces offer a space to contemplate the pursuit of greatness, the burden of expectations, and the beauty of the everyday.

The concept of If At First is set up as Jean-Michel Basquiat’s crown—in the form of a wearable crown—takes centre stage as the prize; the one who wins the crown is the victor. But this simple premise is continually questioned as the role of the “hero" is refracted through clever lighting bouncing off mirrors, a series of enthralling vignettes, and wonderfully chaotic interludes.

Cassa Pancho’s Ballet Black in If At First, choreographed by Sophie Laplane. Dancers: Acaoã De Catro and The Ballet Black Company

Each distinct section offers new understanding to the audience: the bright, cheerful solo of a victor soon crumbles into a melancholic, nightmarish sequence; an argument— exchanged through a duet of ferocious, sharp-angled movements—makes us wonder who is deserving of a title, while two female dancers swaying as one, oozing with femininity, offer a thoughtful consideration of sisterhood, punctuated further by the only lyrical composition in this piece, “I’ll Be Your Woman” by Michelle Gurevich.

Between these moments of reflection, the dancers flood the stage with explosive energy, and a dynamic score bubbles underneath as they claw at the crown, enraptured by a Game of Thrones-esque battle, stealing it back and forth between them, continuously trying and failing to adorn themselves.

Cassa Pancho’s Ballet Black in If At First, choreographed by Sophie Laplane. Dancers (L-R): Bhungane Mehlomakulu, Elijah Peterkin, Megan Chiu, Taraja Hudson, Acaoã De Castro, Isabela Coracy, Helga Paris-Morales, Ebony Thomas & Love Kotiya

You can’t help but be reminded of the words of R&B icon Aaliyah, “If at first you don’t succeed, dust yourself off and try again.” But choreographer Sophie Laplane’s piece raises the questions: what happens when you do succeed? Is sitting on the throne a lonely place to be? And who do we choose to do so?

By the culmination of the performance, as multiple crowns are no longer stolen but exchanged as gifts, the meaning of every vignette satisfyingly stacks on top of each other, like building blocks reaching to one compelling message—we are stronger together. From a British company whose DNA is rooted in challenging the alienating framework of a traditional institution—classical ballet—inclusivity is painted as the true victor over exclusivity, and acts of everyday quiet heroism finally get a platform.

Cassa Pancho’s Ballet Black in If At First, choreographed by Sophie Laplane. Dancers (L-R): Helga Paris-Morales and Love Kotiya

The Waiting Game is a far more introspective and solitary journey than the first, and yet shares similar themes. It is an honest piece by Mthuthuzeli November, updated from an original version in 2021 with a new score and choreography.

Exploring existential meaning through movement is an impossible endeavour, and yet Ballet Black does just that. The lead of the piece, Ebony Thomas, does an extraordinary job of portraying a struggle between the rational self and a universally felt anxiety—why am I here? 

One moveable door, passed across the stage and climbed on by the dancers, seems to be a portal from the psychological state to the physical, and at times from the self-critical to the self-compassionate voice. Door designers Richard Bolton and Phil Cristodolou, in tandem with the lighting technicians, play with shadow puppetry, casting silhouettes of the dancers on the backdrop, serving as figments of the lead’s imagination. The setting is hauntingly underlined by prerecorded layered voices of the performers, acting as intrusive thoughts that just won’t quit.

Suddenly, the audience is invited to a very meta fly-on-the-wall view of the dancers’ changing room. Comedic lip-syncing gives way to shared advice and an unexpected sparkly jazz number, which seems to scream, “Oh well, the show must go on!” The sentiment of which feels a little cynical, but perhaps quite a realistic portrayal of a depressive existence in free fall. In a more positive light, you might be able to take away from it that you have no idea what people are going through, so offer support, be kind, and stop comparing yourself to others.