Edward II reviews
Edward II reviews| Music: John McCabe Choreography: David Bintley Costume Design: Jasper Conran Set Design: Peter J. Davison Lighting: Peter Mumford |
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Edward II is a triumph, a ballet drama of sweeping and chilling scale that showers credit on everyone involved: on John McCabe, a magnificent incomprehensibly little-known composer; on Peter J. Davison and Jasper Conran, the designers; and on its superb performers, as well as on Bintley himself, who hits an epic range, from delicacy to brutishness. |
The commissioned score by John McCabe surges turbulently with rich orchestration - even taking in an electric guitar - and rises to all the dramatic high spots.
| Edward II, based on Marlowe's play... proves triumphantly that, in the right hands, the murkiest tale can make devastating dance... but it is John McCabe's score which tweaks the tension with the most consummate control. There is an unforgettable moment when naked Death stalks the stage to mark the outbreak of civil war, tracked by an insistent, dull thud of a bass brum. If this was compounded by my own terrified heartbeat I could not tell. David Bintley has set a challenging precedent for narrative ballet - not pretty, but very, very potent. Jenny Gilbert The Independent on Sunday 19 October 1997 |
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The narrative pace and John McCabe's racing strings and angry drums zip along so that we can cut right to the chase... Within ten minutes we know who's who and what they are up to. It's a strong tale, told with conviction, danced with passion and staged with the greatest possible style. |
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The Birmingham Royal Ballet has cause for rejoicing. David Bintley's Edward II, in its British première, has the sweep and magnificence which befits this adaptation of Marlowe's play and it can only add further lustre to a company which continues to soar to the stars. Peter J. Davison's settings, Jasper Conran's costumes and John McCabe's sonorous score all stay in the mind after the curtain falls. |
Commissioned by the Stuttgart Ballet, choreographer David Bintley, and first performed in Stuttgart on 15 April 1995, the British première of Edward II was given by the Birmingham Royal Ballet at Birmingham Hippodrome on 9 October 1997. Refer to the events page for future performances of McCabe ballets.
