Two years ago I saw my first Imperial Ice Stars performance, Swan Lake, and left the theatre speechless after witnessing the most incredible work of choreography I had ever seen, performed on a stage of solid ice by talented athletes and performers, some of whom were skating on stilts!
Tonight I was lucky enough to go back to the Burswood Theatre and see their newest production, Cinderella. Lee and I booked tickets to the performance months ago, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting it ever since. We arrived at the theatre a little early and so decided to sit down and enjoy some tea and delicious cream puffs and chat for a while before the show started.
When it was time we found our seats and waited for the show to begin. It opened interestingly to scenes from Cinderella’s childhood and her mother’s passing. From here the screens rose to a town scene, where most of the performances took place. The adaption was very creative and unique, with art deco sets, victorian inspired costumes, a brief tribute to Swan Lake (which felt a little out of place but was enjoyable none the less) and a few changes to the plot. The ‘Prince’ was the son of the town Mayor and the ‘Fairy Godmother’ was a fortune teller from a band of colourful Gypsies. It seemed that Cinderella’s Father did not die at the beginning, but became an important character in the story. The whole performance kept you interested and guessing about what would otherwise be a very well known fairy tale.
The most talented performers in my opinion were Cinderella’s Father, who had a lot of character and very strong arms to carry the weight of both stepsisters! And outshining even Cinderella was the Stepmother, who had an amazing stage presence and dramatic presentation as well as an eye catching costume. All the performers were skilled though, and there were some interesting routines involving climbing strips of fabric, irish dancing on skates and some beautiful wirework that sent the dancers floating through the air.
The entire show was simply breathtaking. Lee and I were enthralled from start to finish (minus the interval where we had to make a mad dash to beat the restroom que!) and we left the theatre gushing over the incredible feats and beautiful music and costumes. If you have yet to see an Imperial Ice Stars production I highly reccomend it, its ballet and figure skating and acrobatics all set to haunting music and gorgeous set and costume design. I can’t wait to see them again!
