BALLET
SYLVIA ★★★★
The Australian Ballet, State Theatre, until September 10

In the same way that the costume design of Kristian Fredrikson came to give an aesthetic identity to the Australian Ballet several years ago, French artist Jerome Kaplan has come to play a similar role today.

His designs have featured in three recent works in the company repertoire, including Alexei Ratmansky’s Cinderella and Lucas Jervies’ Spartacus. Combined with the projection design of Wendall K. Harrington and lighting by Lisa J. Pinkham, Kaplan’s work brings to life the magical, mythological worlds that the characters inhabit in Stanton Welch’s Sylvia.

Kevin Jackson and Ako Kondo.Credit:Jeff Busby

Kaplan's taste is distinctive: whimsical in the outrageous shapes that he crafts around the moving body, and playful in the choices of fabric, from iridescent breastplates to fringed trousers, lizard tails and platinum wigs.

Sylvia threads three storylines, each revolving around a love story from Greek mythology. There is fierce goddess Artemis (Robyn Hendricks) and Orion (Adam Bull), warrior demi-god Sylvia (Ako Kondo) and the Shepherd (Kevin Jackson), and the charming, curious Psyche (Benedicte Bemet) and Eros (Marcus Morelli). Despite some sorrow and comic confusion, all ends happily thanks to the transformative powers of love and immortality.

Robyn Hendricks and Adam Bull.Credit:Jeff Busby

The couples are flanked by a pantheon of golden Olympians, led by stern and bearded Zeus (Jarryd Madden), troublesome parents and an army of stunning warrior nymphs in silver armour who shoot arrows at Artemis’ command.

Welch’s choreography first presents each of the three individual stories, then weaves the narratives together. It's no easy task given the complexities of each story and the large number of players. The first act, in particular, can be hard to follow.

Marcus Morelli.Credit:Jeff Busby

The work strengthens into the second act. All six leads are outstanding; Kondo and Jackson’s partnership is particularly strong, but they also have interesting material to work with. The playfulness in Leo Delibes’ score is drawn out through the movement motifs in their courtship, which sees Sylvia take the lead.

The strong lines and powerful stances by Artemis’ army of nymphs bring moments of drama, while the four Fawns (Yichuan Wang, Cameron Holmes, Shaun Andrews and Drew Hedditch) steal the show as they prance and leap through each vignette.

Sylvia is a polished and enjoyable production, with just enough theatrical magic to provide the occasional surprise. Co-produced by the Australian Ballet and Houston Ballet (where Welch is artistic director), this addition to the company repertoire showcases both the technical and performative skills of the dancers and the confident flair of the design team.

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