La Fille Mal Gardee

When was the last time you saw a ballet at the end of which you had that warm fuzzy feeling of being utterly entertained and happy ( like the first time you saw the Wizard of Oz?). If they gave out Oscars for the most enjoyable ballet production of this decade this La Fille Mal Gardee should win hands down.This has to be Ashton at his most whimsical and artistic best, a brilliant and idiomatic piece of choreography of a simple village love affair set in the perpetual sunshine of his beloved Suffolk countryside. Herold's music is unpretentious but melodic and memorable, the costumes colourful and strongly evocative of the rustic setting and the dancers bring the house down with their vigorous and wonderful performances. They appear as if they were all having a gay old time at it.Firstly, Nunez gives a great characterization of the willful,wayward daughter Lise, and Carlos Acosta impresses with his graceful and athletic dancing as her admirer and suitor. The pas de deux are beautifully done, with whirling pirouettes and energetic lifts, both stars are in top form. But this ballet is more than just perfection of the dance, it is wit and frothy humour that makes makes this champagne bubble. And here it is William Tuckett as the widow Simone who almost steals the show. With a wry face and Chaplinesque mime, she provokes more than a few chuckles as the rascally mother hell bent on marrying Lise to Alain, the rich farmer's son. And her famous 'clog dance' is well, hilarious. As for Alain, was there ever a more lovable simpleton in all of ballet ?The set pieces are wonderfully choreographed and eye-catching, notably the Maypole dance and the storm scene which ends Act 1 where the dancers really appear to be blown like leaves in the wind. And of course the rousing finale with the expected happy ending. Mere words fall short of the delight this ballet has given me. I watched it with an eleven year old ballet student who had just the week before scandalized her mother by falling asleep watching a performance of Swan Lake . No danger of that here. Yelps of delight, giggles and even hand clapping at the end of each engaging scene. And after the finale, she beamed at me and asked if we could play it again the next evening. Five stars ? That request alone made it worth a sixth !

I bought this after a friend sent me a clip of the Clog Dance from this production. I didn't really know what to expect but it turned out to be absolutely delightful. I was sitting there smiling all the way through Act 1, especially. Sometimes outright beaming. After I saw it I watched several other productions on YouTube but none of them held a candle to this one from The Royal Ballet with Nunez and Acosta. Even one from The Bolshoi was very disappointing compared to this one. (I'm not at all an expert on ballet, but, so far, all three of my favorites are from the Royal Ballet.)

This DVD was one of the recommendations that Amazon had for me. I think I might have heard of the work previously, but I had no idea what it was about. After reading the review by Ms. Ivy Linn I decided that I would take a chance and buy it. I am so glad I did. As an Opus DVD from the BBC of a work performed at the Royal Opera House and directed by Ross MacGibbon the quality of audio and video is assured and there is very little that I need to add to the other review.What I was not prepared for, was the wonderful colors of the costumes and the slightly cartoon nature of Osbert Lancaster's sets. The color and lighting of the storm following the maypole dance are particularly effective. The music, pieced together from a number of popular composer's works, is very pleasant and full of joy. The aria from Barber of Seville was immediately recognizable but, although the booklet included refers to tunes from Donizetti and Ignaz Pleyel, these were not known to me. This is a very light-hearted ballet with excellent dancing and miming from the two principals, Carlos Acosta and Marianela Nuñez, and a spirited clog dance from William Tucket in pantomime drag as the Widow Simone.Very highly recommended for both young children and balletomanes alike.

La Fille Mal Gardee I saw this ballet when I was a kid and I almost had forgotten, that is why I wanted to buy it, to remember. This particular DVD has a pretty good review and that is why I decided to get it.I am glad that I did it because it is very good.The quality of all the cast, even the secondary characters are great.Lise and Colas played by Marianela Nunez and Carlos Acosta are very convincing and graceful in this ballet, in particular "The dance with the Ribbon" as well as in the second act when she found him in her house.The character of Simone was very well done by William Tuckett as well as the rest of the cast.The costumes, dancing, and scenery were very beautiful representing a real pastoral scene.The lights were very effective in particular in the tempest scene.The orquestra was excellent.This DVD is outstanding and I pretty enjoyed it.

For folks who are not familiar with this ballet, it's a romantic comedy. The plot is simple. Girl loves poor farm hand. Widowed mother wants her to marry the doltish son of a neighbor. True loves wins out. I saw this production in London about 2 1/2 years ago. This DVD helped me relive wonderful memories. Frederick Ashton did the choreography, and is a genius. One of his innovations is a comic clog dance by the heroine's mother who is portrayed by a 6'6" male dancer. The dancing is superb. The costumes are colorful. The music is lush. The story is easy to follow, and the "scenario" feature answers questions you might have about the plot. My 4-year grand-niece has just started ballet lessons, and I'm buying her a copy. Don't miss the beginning of the video. The camera pans around the theater to show you the beautiful interior of the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden.

Although I had achieved the great age of fifty, my niece [really a second cousin],after all the mature consideration that feisty blonds of eighteen give to cultural matters, decided that my education in respect to Ballet was deficient, even lamentable, and so she booked for 'La Fille Malgardee' and that was my first exposure to live ballet. Circumstances conspired against many further adventures, except twice [once in the USSR one in Denmark] but that was my debut, so to speak and this DVD of the Royal Ballet is almost as delightful as a remote witness can attain. A delightful story, humorous, with many elegant and colourful costumes, attractive melodies, this is the best vehicle I know to introduce young children to the world of ballet ,and even uncles. It has a long tradition

This wonderful Frederick Ashton confection from 1960 has remained a firm favourite for audiences ever since its first performance and this 2005 recording does it full justice. The ballet, with music by Hérold, skilfully arranged by John Lanchbery, has so many delights on offer that one hardly knows where to start.The opening scene of the farmyard with the cockerel and hens is completely endearing and is the perfect example of Ashton's unerring sense of style where the humorous effect is achieved by no-compromise seriously good dancing which then frees the audience to enjoy the concept. Much the same can be said of the milk churn sequence, the various dances featuring ribbons, the maypole, the clog dance and everything to do with the hapless and clueless suitor, Alain. Nothing is overplayed and much is achieved by delicious under-statement and this informs every minute of this delightful ballet.Of course, much depends on the abilities of the various dancers and the company to translate Ashton's choreography into the reality of a performance and this involves dancing of great skill. Again, the secret is to allow the charm of the choreography to come through unimpeded by any form of `humorous' exaggeration. All of this is achieved in every detail in this wonderful production.Acosta and Nunez make an ideal pairing and achieve a real sense of mutual affection for each other. This comes over in every step they take in which there is not the slightest sense of competition but simply that of complete practical and emotional support. The essentially humorous roles of Widow Simone, performed by William Tuckett, and Alain, performed by Jonathan Howells, are further examples of tasteful and gentle humour underpinned with rock-steady technical skill. The corps de ballet maintain this pastoral idyll with dancing of equal quality and where the dancers' individual enjoyment of the ballet is plainly there to be seen on the recording.The orchestra under the guidance of Anthony Twiner plays with precision and evident enthusiasm throughout. The staging and costuming are further examples of Ashton's perfect sense of understated but sure-footed style.The bonuses are limited to an illustrated synopsis plus the cast gallery typical of Opus Arte. There is a very informative and interesting booklet supplied.The whole production is blessed with a recording of good quality. The camera work is involving with crisp imaging giving an ideal blend of close and panoramic views as appropriate. The sound is excellent and is presented in 5.1 surround and stereo formats.This is a dream production of a dream ballet given by a dream team and granted a totally sympathetic recording. It would be a Desert Island choice for me as it simply oozes happiness and a feel-good atmosphere that would enhance the gloomiest of days! For all of these reasons it is hard to imagine this fine disc failing to give future purchasers anything except considerable pleasure and so a 5 star rating seems the only reasonable option.

This wonderful Frederick Ashton confection from 1960 has remained a firm favourite for audiences ever since its first performance and this 2005 recording does it full justice. The ballet, with music by Hérold, skilfully arranged by John Lanchbery, has so many delights on offer that one hardly knows where to start.The opening scene of the farmyard with the cockerel and hens is completely endearing and is the perfect example of Ashton's unerring sense of style where the humorous effect is achieved by no-compromise seriously good dancing which then frees the audience to enjoy the concept. Much the same can be said of the milk churn sequence, the various dances featuring ribbons, the maypole, the clog dance and everything to do with the hapless and clueless suitor, Alain. Nothing is overplayed and much is achieved by delicious under-statement and this informs every minute of this delightful ballet.Of course, much depends on the abilities of the various dancers and the company to translate Ashton's choreography into the reality of a performance and this involves dancing of great skill. Again, the secret is to allow the charm of the choreography to come through unimpeded by any form of `humorous' exaggeration. All of this is achieved in every detail in this wonderful production.Acosta and Nunez make an ideal pairing and achieve a real sense of mutual affection for each other. This comes over in every step they take in which there is not the slightest sense of competition but simply that of complete practical and emotional support. The essentially humorous roles of Widow Simone, performed by William Tuckett, and Alain, performed by Jonathan Howells, are further examples of tasteful and gentle humour underpinned with rock-steady technical skill. The corps de ballet maintain this pastoral idyll with dancing of equal quality and where the dancers' individual enjoyment of the ballet is plainly there to be seen on the recording.The orchestra under the guidance of Anthony Twiner plays with precision and evident enthusiasm throughout. The staging and costuming are further examples of Ashton's perfect sense of understated but sure-footed style.The bonuses are limited to an illustrated synopsis plus the cast gallery typical of Opus Arte. There is a very informative and interesting booklet supplied.The whole production is blessed with a recording of good quality. The camera work is involving with crisp imaging giving an ideal blend of close and panoramic views as appropriate. The sound is excellent and is presented in 5.1 surround and stereo formats.This is a dream production of a dream ballet given by a dream team and granted a totally sympathetic recording. It would be a Desert Island choice for me as it simply oozes happiness and a feel-good atmosphere that would enhance the gloomiest of days! For all of these reasons it is hard to imagine this fine disc failing to give future purchasers anything except considerable pleasure and so a 5 star rating seems the only reasonable option.

A fortnight before the storming of the Bastille in 1789 a new ballet was performed for the first time in Bordeaux. It was a simple story of a girl in a small village who wants to marry her sweetheart but her widowed mother wants her to marry the simple son of a rich local farmer. As you would expect, all ends happily.The original music was largely made up from popular tunes of the day. Various bits were added and in 1818 the composer Ferdinand Hérold pulled the whole thing together, including original numbers which he composed. During the nineteenth century numbers were added: for example those who know their Rossini will recognise that the music accompanying the entrance of Lise (the heroine) is lifted straight from the first act of The Barber of Seville. There are also extracts from Donizetti. To complicate matters further one Johann Hertel composed a completely new score in 1864, and this was the one everyone used from the end of the nineteenth century till 1960.In 1959 Frederick Ashton and John Lanchbery worked up a completely new version. The basis was Hérold's score, together with many of the later accretions. Lanchbery used only one number from the Hertel score: a dance in 4/4 which he recast in 12/4 as the well-known "Clog Dance". He also wrote some original music himself and adapted music from other composers.The notes for this DVD record that the music is "By Hérold, freely adapted by John Lanchbery" but you will see that this is something of a simplification!In my opinion Lanchbery has done a first-class job with the score. It all hangs together very convincingly and is full of delightful tunes.As for the stage performance itself I found this, as a very occasional ballet spectator, to be wholly satisfying. I am not competent to pass judgement on the quality of the dancing but it seemed pretty good to me. In particular the characters are well drawn and the action is easy to follow, aided by plenty of close-ups where appropriate. The costumes and sets are traditional, and none the worse for that. The sound and picture quality are, as one would hope to get in a recent recording, of good quality.There is much to enjoy in this performance of La Fille. Not very demanding fare, perhaps, but we all need high quality relaxation sometimes, and this DVD provides it in spades.If, like me, you find the score irresistible do also seek out the CD of this charming music as well. It's available from Amazon (advert.) and I strongly recommend you to get the more expensive version which is coupled with "Ma'mselle Angot". It is excellent for helping the time to pass on long, tedious car journeys

Another of two great performances from the Royal Ballet. Watch out for more Ashton as Ondine was being videoed last night 6/6/09 at for Opus Arts DVD. Not only is the picture superlative but so is the sound. My comments / chat in the interval with one of the recording engineers was about the sound quality of both this and on the recording of Gizelle. Both are of a standard only achievable in the 21st century. You will need high quality 5.1 or 7.1 sound system to realise the quality and this is so close to that I enjoyed last night and three weeks ago in the front row of Covent Garden. I eagerly await the appearance of Ondine so we will then have two great Ashton ballets on Blu-ray. This will keep you going til real performances return March / April 2010 and then serve as an accurate reminder to enjoy after the live performance. Such performances can bring you to tears!Ashton's File Mal Gardee is about the country life whereas Ondine is about the sea. Works of a genius performed by the greatest artists who I have a very deep affection for Nunez and Acosta two of a dozen or so great principal dancers of this world class ballet company.