39 YEARS’ on after first choreographing the ballet Carmen back in 1987, Cape Town-based South African choreographer and dancer Veronica Paeper, is preparing to reprise the global cultural phenomenon in collaboration with the Joburg Ballet especially for Johannesburg and Pretoria audiences from September 25 to October 25.
Almost forty years ago when the petite virtuoso first staged the production, South Africa was still embroiled in the turmoil of apartheid, and now in the democratic era, Paeper finds herself still possessing the physical and imaginative will to present the production in partnership with the Joburg Ballet’s contemporary cohort of multiracial dancers.
The current colour composition of the Joburg Ballet’s dancers set to participate in Paeper’s production indicates how the industry has evolved from the era when her dance orbit used to be populated by few dancers of colour such as Johaar Mosaval.
In an interview in the Joburg Ballet’s Artistic Director, Dane Hurst’s office during a break from intense rehearsals at the Joburg Theatre, the 82-year-old opened up about her long journey from being a dancer with CAPAB, PACT, et al. – to become South Africa’s most prolific choreographer.
Although Paeper came under the tutelage of Dulcie Howes at the University of Cape Town Ballet School, she cited her teacher David Poole as the figure who had a profound influence on her career – and who became the catalyst of her choreographic career.
A 2005 Molteno Gold Medal recipient in recognition of her lifetime achievements in the performing arts, Paper is a cofounder of the South African National Dance Trust – a nonprofit organisation established to promote dance through performance, education and job opportunities.
Observing Paeper directing the dancers of the Joburg Ballet through their paces with the assistance of proteges, Ballet Mistress Kim Vieira and Associate Ballet Mistress Nicole Ferreira-Dill just before the break, the passion with which she struts her stuff was evident to everyone involved.
She further approved of Joburg Ballet’s endeavour in making the industry accessible to dancers of colour such as Mokoena, as well as its performances being affordable to audiences – even when the remuneration factor for dancers play second fiddle to their love for the craft.
Paeper’s Carmen, is a thrilling portrait of a woman who refuses to be owned, and of the passions that consume those who try to possess her. She (Carmen) wants freedom, while he (Don José) wants her.
Leading the cast will be the Joburg Ballet’s principal dancers Revil Yon, the only South African male principal in the country and Brazil’s Monike Cristina, who both bring exceptional depth, maturity and dramatic intensity to the iconic leading roles of Don José and Carmen.
Debuting in the lead roles will be Ryoko Yagyu and Ivan Domiciano and they, together with the new partnership of Darragh Hourrides and Bruno Miranda, will – according to the pre-event media release – add fresh energy and theatrical vitality to the production.
Soweto-raised Corps de ballet dancer, Mokoena – who along with Chloe Blair, Gabriella Ghiaroni, Mario Gaglione, Miles Carrott and Miguel Franco-Green will carry Carmen’s legacy forward – will take center stage as one of five ballerinas who’ll assume the Carmen role.
About Carmen
Carmen is a story originally written as a novella by French author Prosper Merimee in 1845 and was then written into a major theatrical stage production as an opera by French composer Georges Bizet in 1875.
Choreographers subsequently interpreted Bizet’s operatic music through dance with Roland Petit becoming the first to adapt the narrative into a full-scale ballet in 1949.
The Joburg Theatre’s run of Paeper’s Carmen will consist of ten performances staged from September 25 until October 4 – to be followed by two performances at the State Theatre in Pretoria on October 24 and 25.
Tickets can be purchased via Webtickets. For more information about Joburg Ballet’s 25th Anniversary Season, visit www.joburgballet.com
Image M. Jacob MAWELA (Veronica Paeper, the choreographer and dancer limned during rehearsals for Carmen with dancers of the Joburg Ballet at the Joburg Theatre.)
