To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Dance Academy staged the humoristic ballet Coppelia, on Sunday 15th December at 7.00pm at St. Agatha’s College, in Rabat. The ballet was performed by Dance Academy’s semi-professional youth dance company, the da Dance Company.
The production was brought to life through the outstanding projections, wonderful costumes and excellent lighting. The main characters were danced/played by Majbritt Kristensen (Sawnnilda), Dorian Mallia (Franz), Luke Cucciardi (Dr. Coppelius), Daniela Blake, Catriona Cassar, Petra Camilleri and MarieClaire Formosa (Friends). Supporting the da Dance Company were the vocational students of Dance Academy. The rhythmic Mazurka, and the elegant and proud Cazardas in Act 1 were danced with much enthusiasm, precision and very good heeled footwork. Swanilda was danced by Majbritt Kristensen who demonstrated an exquisite rendition of clear classical lines and quality. Her interpretation of Swanilda showed a down to earth eminence, a true representation of a peasant girl. During the ‘Ear of Corn’ dance, Majbritt Kristensen and Dorian Mallia displayed a particularly good rapport with each other. This was more remarkable in the Grand pas de deux in Act 2 of the production. Luke Cucciardi was equally impressive in his mime passages throughout the whole production which were, clear, ardent and comical, without being forced. In Act 1 scene 2, the toy shop sequence was indeed very magical and artistic. It was indeed a wonderful moment in the ballet where the magic of… A real joy. The story ends in the village square with additional splendid festive dancing to celebrate the wedding of Swanilda and Franz. These included, the Dawn and Prayer Variations, the waltz of the hours, and Harvest dance just to mention a few. The quality and standard was sublime all the way through.
I was clearly moved by the whole experience as it proved to be a captivating and most enjoyable classical balletic production. It was wonderful to see so many promising artists from various artistic backgrounds come together and offer a wonderful evening that captivated the audience right through. Indeed a most appropriate way to celebrate Dance Academy’s 25th anniversary. Well done to Miss Ingrid Desira Buttigieg, as the principal and artistic director of the da Dance Company and school. I look forward to their next production.
Photos by Ron Kerr