DON QUIXOTE

Carlos Acosta’s new production of Don Quixote bursts on to the Royal Opera House stage like a summer plum, full of sunshine and flavour but not quite ripe.

More often associated with the flamboyant productions of the Russians than those of the Royal Ballet, Don Quixote is a feast of colour, costumes, toe-tapping rhythms and gorgeous Marius Petipa choreography. With its comedic action and happy ending, it’s a delightful introduction to ballet for younger members of the audience.

Since its first performance in 1869, the ballet has undergone many revisions. Set in Barcelona, it’s the tale of the eponymous figure of romantic chivalry from Miguel de Cervantes’s book, Don Quixote. On his travels, the Don meets an impoverished barber, Basilio, who loves an innkeeper’s daughter, Kitri, and the three of them manage to outwit Kitri’s foppish suitor, Gamache.

Acosta’s production shows the vibrancy of the folk who inhabit the town’s bleached houses, which shift back and forth to create dance space. Acosta’s jump might not be as high now but his stage presence is big enough to fill the role of Basilio, while Marianela Nuñez, as his beloved Kitri, is sublime.

With Martin Yates’s revised orchestration of Ludwig Minkus’s score and design by Tim Hatley (designer for Shrek The Musical), the second act opens on a Gypsy encampment, backed by an orange sky silhouetted by windmills. There’s a swell of camaraderie as the Gypsies gather round their campfi re after a pas de deux between Acosta and Nuñez, which moves by its quiet beauty.

The solitary figure of Don Quixote, played by Christopher Saunders, conveys a melancholic detachment, only coming to life when he attacks the windmills. As the Don’s confused mind imagines a garden of nymphs and dryads, Tim Hatley’s designs make their presence felt in the enormous purple daisies amid a mesh of green stems.

There were some fine supporting roles from fleet-footed Laura Morera as street dancer Mercedes, flirtatiously spinning across the stage. Bennet Gartside as Gamache, the rich nobleman whom Kitri is supposed to marry (but doesn’t, of course), was foppish in his overblown wig and simpering movements. As the famous toreador Espada, Ryoichi Hirano commanded the rapt attention of not just the audience but the dancers themselves.

Don Quixote carries the promise of being a fine addition to the Royal Ballet repertoire – all it needs is time to ripen.

Further performances (different casts) on 18, 25 and 26 October; 2 and 6 November at The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London WC2: 020-7304 4000, www.roh.org.uk