DanceAspen Festival: Ballet West.

DanceAspen opened its silver-anniversary season with performances of Ballet West's new production, Lady of the Camellias. Choreographed by Val Caniparoli, the ballet is based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas the younger, which intimates the details of his tragic affair with Parisian courtesan Marie Duplessis, who died of consumption at a tender age. The story has been told before, of course, in Verdi's La Traviata and the movie Camille starring Greta Garbo. And it's been done for ballet as well, notably by John Neumeier (for Stuttgart Ballet) and a one-act version, Marguerite and Armand, by Frederick Ashton (for Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn).

Lady of the Camellias is the first evening-length ballet by Caniparoli, who is well known for his imaginative pas de deux. Building on this strength, Caniparoli conveys the emotional aspects of the story via a series of duets. Marguerite dances passionately with her lover Armand, with the Baron de Varville (Armand's rival), and with Armand's father. Interspersed are ensemble dances--at a fashionable salon, in a summer garden, and during a ballroom gala--all of which contribute to the mise-enscene of crinoline-encased Paris.

The opening cast was solid, although at times the complex partnering and complicated lifts seemed awkward for the leads, Pamela Robinson and Richard Bradley. Still, Robinson was an expressive Marguerite, with large eyes and the ability to convey emotional cataclysm in an understated manner. Maggie Wright as Olympe displayed a welcome clarity of attack, and Bene Arnold, in the character role of Prudence, added a certain depth to the production.

Caniparoli has said that he wasn't interested in doing a psychological version of the story, but I couldn't help seeing nods toward Antony Tudor throughout the work. While neither the movement nor the tone was particularly Tudoresque, at times the placement of characters on stage was. Prudence, the aging courtesan, knowingly crosses upstage, alone. A string of innocent young couples seems to float unaware through the main action. And the stiff upper torso of Armand's father, danced by Bruce Caldwell, speaks as much about his character as mime ever could.

Ballet West doesn't tour with an orchestra, and the cut-and-paste score of Chopin's works for piano and orchestra suffers from choppy transitions, particularly in Act II. But they make the best of it by adding sound effects such as a rainstorm, birds chirping, and, in darker moments, a crow's foreboding caw.

Lady of the Camellias is the result of an usual collaboration between Ballet West and Ballet Florida. Costumes by Robert Glay de la Rose and scenery by David Gano as well as the choreography will be shared by the two troupes. It's an interesting solution for ballet companies on a budget.