Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo has dazzled audiences across the globe since their beginnings in New York in 1974. The all-male troupe, affectionately known as The Trocks, brings us two programmes of genuine technical skill and amusing artistry.
The Trocks know how to be witty with classics like Swan Lake, Don Quixote and Paquita by entwining virtuoso technique with satire and artful parody. They dance the classical repertoire with self-mocking humour, not out of disregard for classical ballet, but out of love for it.
Programme One comprises their signature hit of Swan Lake, the Russian classic Paquita and Esmeralda.
In their Swan Lake Act II the swans trip each other, break into hip-hop and exaggerated bird movements in a hilarious and highly skilled performance.
Paquita features six dancers that keep falling down and require a member of the troupe to come on stage to help them stand up and keep balance.
In the Esmeralda pas-de-six Gypsies do all they can to help the heartbroken Esmeralda who is longing for an unseen officer who will never marry her. Needless to say, their help provides little consolation for Esmeralda and much hilarity for the audience.
Programme Two includes Les Sylphides, one of the company’s wittiest pieces; Patterns in Space, a satire of Merce Cunningham; Go for Barocco, a parody of Balanchine’s Concerto Barocco set to Bach’s D minor Double Violin Concerto; and the UK premiére of Don Quixote.
In the Trocks’ version of Don Quixote, audiences are invited to imagine the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza “wandering about aimlessly and getting in everyone’s way, which in most versions is all they do anyway”. Don Quixote showcases the Trocks’ dancing prowess that may occasionally get lost amidst their comedy.
The set is kept to a minimum in both programmes. All eyes are on the dancers, their classy costumes and extravagant make-up. Nothing else is needed to impress: the world’s most famous “boy ballerinas” fill the stage with their over-sized personalities and their sheer comic genius. Not to be missed.
The Trocks know how to be witty with classics like Swan Lake, Don Quixote and Paquita by entwining virtuoso technique with satire and artful parody. They dance the classical repertoire with self-mocking humour, not out of disregard for classical ballet, but out of love for it.
Programme One comprises their signature hit of Swan Lake, the Russian classic Paquita and Esmeralda.
In their Swan Lake Act II the swans trip each other, break into hip-hop and exaggerated bird movements in a hilarious and highly skilled performance.
Paquita features six dancers that keep falling down and require a member of the troupe to come on stage to help them stand up and keep balance.
In the Esmeralda pas-de-six Gypsies do all they can to help the heartbroken Esmeralda who is longing for an unseen officer who will never marry her. Needless to say, their help provides little consolation for Esmeralda and much hilarity for the audience.
Programme Two includes Les Sylphides, one of the company’s wittiest pieces; Patterns in Space, a satire of Merce Cunningham; Go for Barocco, a parody of Balanchine’s Concerto Barocco set to Bach’s D minor Double Violin Concerto; and the UK premiére of Don Quixote.
In the Trocks’ version of Don Quixote, audiences are invited to imagine the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza “wandering about aimlessly and getting in everyone’s way, which in most versions is all they do anyway”. Don Quixote showcases the Trocks’ dancing prowess that may occasionally get lost amidst their comedy.
The set is kept to a minimum in both programmes. All eyes are on the dancers, their classy costumes and extravagant make-up. Nothing else is needed to impress: the world’s most famous “boy ballerinas” fill the stage with their over-sized personalities and their sheer comic genius. Not to be missed.
Please Note: Programme Two no children under 5.
| What | Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, Peacock Theatre |
| Where | Peacock Theatre, Portugal Street, London, WC2A 2HT | MAP |
| Nearest tube | Holborn (underground) |
| When |
15 Sep 15 – 20 Sep 15, At 2:30pm on Sat 19 and Sun 20. Post-show talk on Wed 16 |
| Price | £15-£38 |
| Website | Click here to book through the Sadler's Wells website |