BASEL BALLET
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The Basel Ballet, the only Swiss ballet troupe making a considerable splash on the international theatrical circuit, introduced itself to Chicago with three charming performances of La fille mal gardee (“The Poorly Guarded Girl”), the oldest ballet still in the active dance repertory. La fille, created by Jean Dauberval in 1789, a few weeks before the French Revolution began, also bears the distinction of being the first comic story ballet, with characters who were real human beings instead of the mythic Olympians that the French court generally deemed worthy of theatrical presentation. This celebration of true love, in which poor boy and rich girl foil her mother’s attempts to marry her off to the idiot son of an even richer farmer, was a breath of fresh democratic air in the dying days of the Bourbon regime.
However, the Fille we see today has no choreographic connection with Dauberval’s. His version disappeared long, long ago, along with the music he used. The ballet lives on, in title and story line, because its pastoral setting, good humor, and relatively spicy plot–the protective mother unwittingly locks the young lovers in a bedroom–still offer choreographers and dancers great opportunities to show off their talents.
The comic role of Alain, the doltish son, is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. In some versions he’s more involved with a butterfly net than a bride. In others he plays with an umbrella. In Spoerli’s version it’s a kite that arouses his passion. The role demands clever acting as well as skilled dancing, and Basel Ballet is lucky to have two dancers equal to the task. Maurice Choukrane, who danced the part on Thursday night, was gawkier and more obviously idiotic. Martin Schlapfer, in the Friday and Saturday night performances, had a little more trouble disguising his classic style. Both were fine technicians.
