Vue Weekly
Edmonton’s independent arts & entertainment weekly magazine
BY Sherry Dawn Knettle
When Joni Mitchell chose “Ethiopia” as one of four songs that would be added to The Fiddle and The Drum to create a full-length ballet, Jean Grand-Maître knew that matching his choreography to her African-influenced song would be the biggest challenge of his career.
“I’m a lyrical choreographer,” he says. “African dance is not something that white people like me can do. It’s not in our blood.”
In particular, he wasn’t sure about the complex, syncopated rhythms which dictated a different use of movement and body weight. But he and his airborne dancers, trained to defy gravity, would soon loosen up their joints by getting down low to the ground. To do that, they watched some African dance videos, and eventually found a compromise.
“We didn’t want to pretend to be African dancers,” he says. “We wouldn’t be able to rise to that occasion. So we took some of the basic African steps and transformed them, using some of our own vocabulary. We met half way—white man meets black man.
“It was interesting to see how the inspiration from African dance influenced my choreography to go in a direction I’ve never taken in my life,” he continues. “It was a big challenge, but everybody’s telling us now through the Prairie tour that it’s their favourite song in the whole ballet!”
The tour received rave reviews in January. After its world premiere in Medicine Hat, the company took the show through Alberta and Saskatchewan, where Mitchell grew up. That’s particularly important, as the show features her visual art and set design, and she chose music that would focus on world peace and the environment.
To that end, she chose “Woodstock,“ a peace song written for the historic music festival, and “Shine,” a lullaby.
“But it’s a lullaby no child should hear. It’s about children in countries where bombs are falling,” says Grand-Maître. “But Joni also sings about the beauty of the world. It’s a very poetic and beautiful ballad.”
The contrast in Mitchell’s music and lyrics was reflected in much of the choreography seen in a shorter work along similar themes that premiered two years ago when he juxtaposed war with romance and beauty. But some of the choreography from that show has been changed to integrate Mitchell’s visual designs. For example, Grand-Maître now allows the movement to pause occasionally, letting the audience focus on Mitchell’s art and music, which are often the centre of attention for many.
Mitchell herself hopes that through such exposure, people will get her environmental message. She wants the audiences to understand more about the best and the worst of humanity and life; to appreciate the planet’s beauty and to make changes before it’s too late. V
Fri, Feb 20 – Sat, Feb 21 (7:30 pm)
Joni Mitchell’s The Fiddle and The Drum
Presented by Alberta Ballet
Jubilee Auditorium (11455- 87 Ave), $30 – $90