Paul Hamlyn Hall, Royal Opera House – 27th October 2023
Reviewed by Fiona Leyman
5*****
With its ‘Live at Lunch’ series, the Royal Opera House introduces new audiences to the beauty of what is performed on stage, while providing free performances to people who might not normally go see a performance of this type.
The Black British Ballet Project, Island Movements, is a “working progress” short ballet, telling the tale of a young Caribbean WW2 Airman and his journey to Britain after the war. Based on true events, it follows him and his family throughout their lives and how the injustice of the Windrush Scandal turns their lives upside down. Darren Panton, the first Black British graduate of the Royal Ballet School choreographed this piece alongside Patrick Williams who has danced in Alvin Ailey and Paris Opera producing beauty from such an appalling event in history.
‘Father’, Wesley Branch, ‘Mother’, Taylor Crouch and ‘Son’, Alexander Fadayiro perform as the three dancers for this piece. Each of them, impeccably skilled in their craft, moving with poise and grace, put on an incredibly moving piece to a packed audience in the Paul Hamlyn Hall. If this is the “working progress” that Director Sandie Bourne said it was, then I cannot wait to see what the final result is, because this, in the eyes of someone who is not familiar with ballet, was incredible.
The ballet’s traditional costumes were not one would typically expect, instead staying faithful to their Caribbean origins. Viewers were able to follow the plot and identify which character each dancer was portraying with ease. This gave the piece a contemporary feel, in addition to the music they chose, which blended modern black British music, calypso, and reggae. Wesley Branch has my fullest admiration for being able to dance so beautifully in an RAF Number 1’s jacket. These are notoriously difficult to move in general, so to be able to dance in one is a great achievement.
This brief performance, which was perfectly explained to be “enjoyed through your eyes, not through a lens”, was masterfully choreographed and performed by highly skilled ballet dancers. It touched the hearts of the audience and left us in complete amazement of their immense talent. It’s not easy to tell a story like this through dance, especially given they only had a few weeks to prepare, but Choreographers Darren Panton and Patrick Williams, along with Director Sandie Bourne and their extraordinary gifted ballet dancers succeeded in doing so, earning their performance a well-earned 5* Review.