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REVIEW: ‘Cinderella’ is enchanted pairing of Orchestra Iowa, Ballet Quad Cities

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The clock strikes midnight for Cinderella and her handsome Prince in "Cinderella," blending the artistry of Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities, onstage April 13 and 14, 2013, in Cedar Rapids and April 20, 2013, in Davenport. (Joe Maciejko photo)

CEDAR RAPIDS — Cinderella charmed her handsome prince and enchanted young and old alike at the Paramount Theatre on Saturday night. (4/13/13) It repeats at 2:30 p.m. today (4/14/13).

Before the show even started, a sweet little girl behind me couldn’t contain her giddiness and declared to her parents: “I can’t wait to see Cinderella.” As the audience was exiting 90 minutes later, a distinguished gentleman turned and said to his friends: “Aren’t we glad the ballet came to town.”

My sentiments exactly. This new pairing of Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities is magical indeed.

The two entities brought Sergei Prokofiev’s 1945 ballet to its toes and a large audience to its feet with an evening that kept even the tiniest princesses enthralled. I heard no fussing, saw no squirming, but did notice plenty of souvenir tiaras bobbing through the lobby afterward. The little girl behind me was hoping to snag a magic wand during intermission. She happily settled for a candy bar.

The orchestra, as always, was magnificent, weaving through music that’s no fairytale to play. This is a demanding score that perfectly captures the flavor of every moment and propels every twirl of Ballet Quad Cities’ immense artistry.

The overture conjures up an ominous, foreboding atmosphere before the curtain rises on a lone girl sitting at a table, sewing a lovely shoulder drape. She is dressed in a simple blue, floral frock — not rags — but a broom leaning against a bench lets us know she is regarded as little more than a scullery maid in her own home.

Emily Kate Long is the picture of innocence, strength and hope as she endures the taunts of her mean Stepmother (Marie Buser) and bratty Stepsisters (Kelsee Green and Margaret Huling). The terrible trio is hilarious at every turn — Buser strutting with her nose in the air and Green and Huling galumphing through their awkward, comical movements. I suspect it takes just as much talent to dance without grace as it does to execute the perfect pirouette.

Especially hilarious is the scene after the young ladies are issued their invitation to the palace ball. An uppity dance master (Calvin Rowe) in engaged to try to teach the girls the steps necessary to walk their two left feet right into the prince’s heart. They fail miserably, while Cinderella takes it all in from the shadows and shines.

Also in the dark is Cinderella’s father (Cedar Rapids actor and radio personality Scott Schulte), a piece of milquetoast so soggy he can’t find his footing in his own dysfunctional household. He seems to have a bewildered fondness for his daughter, but the horrid women rule the roost under his roof. Luckily, Cinderella has enough pluck to rise above it all, even if it’s only in her daydreams.

This rags-to-riches tale has been told in many ways through the ages, but we see the main elements we’ve come to expect, with a few twists. We don’t see a pumpkin transform into a glittering coach, but we do see another magical transformation.

Shortly after the Stepsisters snatch Cinderella’s lovely dresses, leaving her nothing to wear to the ball, a breath of crystalline loveliness floats into her life, waving a brightly glowing wand.

The elegant Fairy Godmother (Jill Schwartz) transports Cinderella from her dreary, stone kitchen to an enchanted forest where she encounters a comical toad and bug, along with a legion of fluttering fireflies, dragonflies, tiny bugs, pixies and fairies. Their task is easy — to dress Cinderella’s beautiful spirit in a beautiful gown and send her to the ball. This is a most delightful scene, capturing the fancy of all ages in the audience.

After intermission comes the moment we’ve all been waiting for — the ball. Majesty abounds as all the young women hope for their turn dancing with the handsome Prince (Jacob Lyon). The Stepsisters’ choreography could easily steal the scene, were it not for the love-at-first-sight chemistry between Lyon and Long. They are in their own enchanted world during several pas de deux passages full of regal lifts and spins just dripping in romance and supreme artistry. His power and her grace are sheer poetry in motion.

The clock strikes 12 with such visual and aural majesty that I didn’t even see Cinderella disappear. But soon the dreary kitchen reappears, with the Stepmother and sisters in their camisoles, slips and pettipants, greeting the prince and his friends who are conducting a frantic search for the foot that fits the sparkling toe-shoe slipper Cinderella lost in her hasty retreat from the palace.

The fun we expect ensues as the girls try to cram their feet into the petite shoe. Nothing can compare, however, with the cougar seduction attempt by the Stepmother, as Buser throws her foot high above her head, exposing the Prince to her physical charms. She is hilarious throughout the show, but especially in this blatant disregard for decorum.

Just then, Cinderella steps from the shadows to produce the matching slipper. Sparks fly between the Prince and Cinderella’s outstretched hands, bringing the happily-ever-after ending that can melt even the most cynical heart.

Everything about this production is magical, from Courtney Lyon’s beautiful choreography perfectly in synch with the powerful music under Maestro Timothy Hankewich’s baton, to the elegance and humor of the dancers and the simply lovely costumes, backdrops and lighting.

Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities is a match made in heaven.

FAST TAKE

What: “Cinderella,” by Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities

Where: Paramount Theatre, 123 Third Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids

When:  2:30 p.m. Sunday (4/14/13)

Tickets: $20 to $50, Paramount Ticket Office, (319) 366-8203 or Orchestraiowa.org

Also: 1 and 7:30 p.m. April 20, 2013, Adler Theatre, Davenport; $12 to $35, Balletquadcities.com

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Cinderella

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(Photo by Joe Maciejko)

With the world at war, the time was ripe for a happily-ever-after ending.

Sergei Prokofiev put the ultimate fairy tale en pointe for the masses needing an artistic escape from the horrors of World War II. “Cinderella,” which charmed Russia’s Bolshoi Ballet audiences in 1945, is leaping to the Paramount Theatre stage on Saturday and Sunday (4/13 and 4/14).

Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities are teaming up to bring this timeless rags-to-riches tale not only to Cedar Rapids, but to the Adler Theatre in Davenport, as well, on April 20.

The details

The story we think we know so well actually dates back to an ancient Greek tale of an eagle that snatched an unusual sandal from a rosy-cheeked maiden and dropped it into the lap of the king. A search for the maiden ensued, and when she was found, the king made her his queen. Other versions popped up across ancient Asia and even appeared as an “Arabian Nights” tale.

It’s been told more than 300 ways, from folk tales to pantomime, opera to ballet, by Rodgers and Hammerstein on stage and screen, in pop songs by Michael Jackson, Britney Spears and Mudvayne, and with an animated Disney spin. The Brothers Grimm gave it a darker feel, having Cinderella’s help come from a wishing tree growing on her mother’s grave.

Prokofiev’s ballet is darker than modern pop culture settings we’re used to seeing — but ends with a love theme, says Timothy Hankewich, Orchestra Iowa’s music director.

“The style of music that Prokofiev wrote for this ballet has been emulated by many film composers like Danny Elfman and John Williams,” he says.

That influence can be found accompanying Tim Burton’s films, which “tend to be a little off kilter and a little dark,”  Hankewich says, as well as the Harry Potter series and “The Addams Family.”

“So even though people might not directly recognize a particular melody from this production, they will certainly recognize the vocabulary,” he says.

It was written at a time when Soviet Russia was urging artists to write pieces that would be popular with the masses, Hankewich says, which created a cultural renaissance on the heels of a crackdown on artists in the mid-1930s who were writing “subversive or too progressive and dissonant works.”

“That had a real chilling effect on the artistic output of Russia’s greatest artists of the time,” he says. “Ironically, during the second World War — because of the war effort and the distraction that the government naturally had to go through to continue the war effort — there was actually a thawing period for many of the nation’s artists. This (piece) is a perfect example of it.”

The music varies in tone, running the gamut of real human experiences in a fairy tale realm that also is populated by pixies, bugs and fairies.

“Some parts are bright and lively and some of it is extremely moving and emotional,” says Joedy Cook, executive director of Ballet Quad Cities. “It’s just got all of the components of a masterpiece. It evokes so many different emotions in the human heart — I can’t wait for everyone to hear it.”

Hankewich says every square inch of the Paramount’s orchestra pit will be filled with musicians and instruments. The story will be told by 14 professional dancers from the Quad Cities company, as well as eight young dancers from that region.

Cook’s troupe has mounted the ballet before, and it’s being revamped with new choreography and some new costuming and scenery. Run time will be about an hour and 20 minutes, to make it more modern audience-friendly. She says the cast also has been charged with developing full, rich characters who could live in the real world.

“This can be a true story,” she says. “Our Cinderella is a young woman, 19, and it really is about her journey overcoming adversity. She’s a very, very strong, sweet, caring young woman. In this production, our dancers have really delved into their characters. … For instance, Cinderella’s stepmother is quite evil and treats her very, very badly. That mother’s character is absolutely incredible. When she’s onstage, she controls the stage. You can feel her wrath.”

Cedar Rapids actor and radio personality Scott Schulte brings his own kind of magic to the role of Cinderella’s father, who “is constantly trying to keep everyone happy,” Cook says. “(Schulte) has brought so much depth to the character — we are so delighted to be working with him again. He’s a jewel.”

Both Hankewich and Cook sing the praises of the newly forged partnership between Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities, which brought ballet to Brucemorchestra last September and “The Nutcracker” to the Paramount and Adler stages for the holidays. That partnership will continue next season, with “Dracula” in October, “The Nutcracker” in December and “The Rite of Spring” in April 2014.

“Live music and ballet were meant to be together,” Cook says, noting that at a time when many ballet companies are using taped music to cut down on expenses, this partnership is bucking that trend.

“It’s such a thrill to be able to bring two really committed arts organizations together to our communities,” she says. “This is the type of partnership that should be happening.”

Hankewich says experiencing ballet “live in 3D” is “not just about pointe and tutus telling a story. It’s about emotion and the beauty of the physicality. It’s gorgeous — beautiful to watch and a delight to listen to.”

(Photo by Joe Maciejko)

REVIEW: ‘Nutcracker’ shines with glorious, magnificent artistry at the Paramount

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Clara (Emily Kate Long) and her prince (Jacob Lyon) create magic on the Paramount stage in Tchaikovsky's famous "Nutcracker" ballet, Saturday afternoon (12/1/12) in Cedar Rapids. (Kyle Grillot/The Gazette-KCRG)

CEDAR RAPIDS — “The Nutcracker” is a shimmering, triumphant pas de deux for Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities.

This stunning new holiday collaboration opened to cheers, shouts, multiple bursts of applause throughout and an instant standing ovation Saturday afternoon (12/1) at the Paramount Theatre. Organizers expect at least 4,000 people to see the production this weekend.

A few seats were empty for the opening matinee. Larger crowds were expected for the Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon performances, but some tickets remain for each. To check for availability, go to www.paramounttheatrecr.com

The production will move to the Quad Cities Dec. 8 and 9, with three performances at the Adler Theatre in Davenport.

“Gorgeous” is the predominant declaration throughout my notes, punctuated with several “magnificents.”

This is a top-flight production, with the same crispness and musicality we expect from Orchestra Iowa, made all the more glorious by the marvelous professional ballet troupe from the Quad Cities. Local children, perfectly rehearsed by Carol Rezabek, charmed the audience as scampering mice, regal angels, colorful French clowns, toy soldiers and party guests.

Angelic voices from the orchestra’s young Discovery Chorus, directed by Amy Hanisch, added crystalline glow to the enchanting Land of Snow.

The scenery was gorgeous, from the festive 19th century decor of Clara’s family home dominating the first act, to the exotic, intricate backdrop for the Land of the Sweets in the second act. The costumes were gorgeous, as well, no doubt sending baby ballerinas home dreaming of tutus, ball gowns, princes and tiaras.

The dancers were nothing short of magnificent. Emily Kate Long was all youthful exuberance as Clara, the girl who receives a nutcracker from her mysterious Uncle Drosselmeyer (played with aplomb by local celebrity Scott Schulte, an accomplished actor who can hold his own on the dance floor, too).

As glorious as Long is playing Clara, she is utterly breathtaking dancing the pas de deux with her prince, Jacob Lyon, near the end of the production. The sheer majesty of their fluid lines, lifts, leaps and spins is echoed throughout the show, by all of the dancers, from the mighty Russians to the athletic, acrobatic Arabian contortionists. Courtney Lyon’s choreography is as imaginative as it is breathtaking to behold.

This is a magnificent marriage of artistry between two highly professional organizations, just meant to make the Paramount Theatre their home. They will team up again in April for “Cinderella.” Do not miss out.

ARTS EXTRA

What: “The Nutcracker” ballet

Where: Paramount Theatre, 123 Third Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2

Tickets: At the door, (319) 366-8203, 1-(800) 369-TUNE or Paramounttheatrecr.com

Information: Paramounttheatrecr.com