A TUDOR THRILLER IN TIGHTS

By Emma Carney | Bunny Pudding · Digital Coven · @bunnyscopes ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Press Invite

Tudors* and Tutus? I’m in… The moment I learned about Scottish Ballet: Mary, Queen of Scots, I was aflutter with anticipation. And from the moment the curtain rose, that excitement was not only met but completely surpassed. This isn’t just a ballet; it’s a two-hour historical thriller that grips you from the first scene and refuses to let go, leaving you spellbound and aching to immediately experience it all over again.

The production, a masterful collaboration between choreographer Sophie Laplane and director James Bonas, cleverly frames the infamous rivalry through the memories of a dying queen. It opens with the final days of Elizabeth I’s life, and that opening scene alone is breathtaking. In a stroke of casting genius, powerhouse dancer Charlotta Ofverholm portrays the ageing Elizabeth. As a member of the audience, I was in awe; we need to see more experienced dancers in these roles, as Ofverholm commands the stage with a gravitas that grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let up until the very end. It is here, in her final moments, that we are invited into the memories and fantasies of Older Elizabeth as her younger self (a commanding Harvey Littlefield and a stroke of casting genius) and her rival, Mary (the luminous Roseanna Leney), appear to help relive the drama that defined their lives.

From there, we are swept back in time. We see a young Mary in the French court, exiled from the country she rules by right, and her subsequent return to a Scotland fraught with peril. This complex history is told with remarkable clarity and manages to avoid, at least with the second half to avoid the usual pits falls of making Mary a martyr or innocent victim (All history buffs know Mary made a lot of foolish and selfish decisions and was given PLENTY of opportunity to literally save her neck). There is a wonderful scene where the use of proxies for the two Queens (Anna Williams for Mary, Grace Horler for Elizabeth) who dance out their correspondence as the real queens look on, is a breathtaking piece of storytelling, perfectly capturing their intense, lifelong connection despite never meeting.

The creative team has built a world that is both stark and deeply atmospheric. Mikael Karlsson and Michael P Atkinson’s original score pulses with Celtic rhythms and moments of profound tenderness, perfectly underscoring the drama. Soutra Gilmour’s set design is a marvel of transformation, with walls that rise and fall like the shifting fortunes of its characters. But it is the lighting by Bonnie Beecher that truly elevates the piece; the masterful use of shadow, from the menacing silhouette of spies, Mary’s transformation into something monstrous, and the final brutal axe, is simply amazing. Anouar Brissel’s projections add another layer, constantly reshaping the stage and our perception of it.

The entire ensemble is superb. Evan Loudon’s Darnley begins as a charismatic escape for Mary before his ambition curdles into something dark and violent. His sensual duet with Bruno Micchiardi’s Rizzio makes the subsequent, shocking murder in the first act all the more devastating. Thomas Edwards is a chillingly effective Walsingham, his network of spies moving like a sinister flock across the stage. Kayla-Maree Tarantolo’s Jester, a splash of lime green in a world of monochrome, serves as a brilliant, punk-infused bridge between the 16th century and our own, adding a distinctly modern and feminist charge.

This show is a must-see. Very rarely do I watch a ballet and want to sit through it again immediately, but there I was, two hours later (which flew by in an instant), sad it was over and not quite ready to leave the world I had been invited to enter. It is a five-star triumph. Scottish Ballet: Mary, Queen of Scots is a remarkable piece of work, offering a poignant and powerful commentary on the place of women in a world of men, and on the mythology that continues to surround these two iconic queens.

*Look, I KNOW it’s also Stewards involved but it doesn’t rhyme as well, ok?

Scottish Ballet: Mary, Queen Of Scots is running at Sadler’s Wells until Sunday 8 March.

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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A 5-star triumph not to be missed.

Photo Credit: Andy Ross