Wednesday 25 April 2012

Thurs April 25th: Carbon Life at The Royal Opera House







One of the best things about living in London is having access to incredible and historical buildings.  For just £3 we got tickets to see the latest ballet at The Royal Opera House which is a fee worth paying just to have the experience of visiting this resplendent piece of architecture.  Secondly, it was a real treat to witness "Carbon Life" a new composition by Wayne McGregor, Resident Choreographer of The Royal Ballet.  Renowned for award-winning collaborations, this latest venture is a team matching pop music and fashion with ballet.  Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt (Mike Snow) who write together under The Business International collective, penned the score performed by a band out of the pit and on stage, joined by  Boy George, Alison Mosshart, Hero Fisher, Jonathon Pierce and Black Cobain on vocals.  Lighting designer Lucy Carter mapped the sounds in a synesthsisa style with geometric shapes in high contrast bright shard spotlights and negative space silhouettes.  To mimic these graphic blocks, Gareth Pugh has designed costumes that comprise of angular cone headpieces, shin pads and arm plates.  These structural elements have been shot together in a composition for the official press image to look like one complete arachnid.  When in motion on a mass scale with the whole cast it  was an awesome spectacle for an audience of dance purists who might otherwise never see contemporary, cutting-edge fashion outside of this context.  
(Thanks to Alex Cunningham for taking me and thanks to Leith Clark for her instagram of the actual performance.)

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