REVIEW: Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures 'Red Shoes' at the New Victoria Theatre, Woking

Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures are embarking on another UK Tour, this year with The Red Shoes - a dramatic tale of Victoria Page and her desire to be the greatest dancer in the world and the obsessions which encircle her. The Red Shoes is most famous as a film from the 1940’s - in a world where technicolour was just gaining momentum, suddenly amidst the monochromatic world of cinema comes this remarkable film focussed on colour, specifically (of course) red. Bourne explains this production is “the culmination of a twenty-year ambition to bring Powell and Pressburger’s seminal 1948 film to the stage” and “a personal love letter to a life in theatre and in dance.” Previously winning two Olivier Awards, Woking’s New Victoria Theatre is blessed to be hosting The Red Shoes this week.  

Unsurprisingly, Bourne has selected the Creme De La Creme of modern ballet for this company, with many of this cast having worked together for years. The chemistry of the ensemble is (pardon the pun) en pointe. They all work and pair together so effortlessly. It is always a delight to see Liam Mower shine, and that he did as the effervescent Premier Danseur Ivan Boleslawsky. As Victoria Page’s love interest and struggling composer Julian Craster is Harrison Dowzell who leapt and flew across the stage (and atop a piano) at such heights, I’m convinced he had springs in his shoes. A stunning performance.

REVIEW: The Red Shoes at Sadler's Wells

What is it about dance companies that sometimes brings out a sense of horror, from “Suspiria” to “Company” and “The Red Shoes”? Is it the tireless work that the artists put in, the late rehearsals that end in someone walking home in the dark, or that one dancer with red hair who catches everyone’s eye and is too perfect for words?

The Red Shoes was my first ballet by Matthew Bourne and I was blown away by it – the costumes, music by Bernard Herrmann, ensemble, and that central dancer! 

This story was originally a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen (whose tales, as we know, can go very dark) and was adapted for the big screen by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger in 1948. It follows a dance company and the obsession of two men for a red-haired dancer who will become possessed by her red dancing shoes.