A Review of Ballet Black’s Shadows

I will be the first person to admit that I don’t know very much about ballet. Theatre? Absolutely. Opera? Enough to not embarrass myself. But, ballet? Not really. So, when I saw that there would be a ballet coming to the Oxford Playhouse I saw this as a perfect opportunity to begin to remedy this fact. Shadows is a new performance by Cassa Pancho’s Ballet Black, or more accurately two performances, as this is in fact something of a double bill. Lasting around 45 minutes each, these two performances tell vastly different stories. Both are beautiful in their own right and a testament to the skill of the performers and choreographer Chanel DaSilva, but they distinctly different in theme and design. This is a perfect choice, the contrast allowing the team to succinctly illustrate their range of talent and the endless possibilities of the medium… whilst also ensuring that the audience are fully engaged.

Before the interval the audience is graced with a more experimental and abstract piece exploring the presence of shadows in our lives. Relying simply on the dancers’ bodies to tell the story, the stage is left bare and the use of props is sparse. In fact, the only prop is a cardboard box which our protagonist is fearful to open for much of the performance. This box appears to be the driving force of the narrative, what narrative there is. I felt as though this piece was more about the art of ballet itself rather than any particular story and this does in fact correlate with DaSilva’s driving inspiration of exploring shadow work and its power to reveal our true selves. Through this focus upon shadows, the bare black stage is often darkly lit with harsh moments of spotlight which added an atmospheric backdrop to the dancers in their sheer black costumes.

Atmospheric is certainly the perfect adjective for the first half of this show, with the second half sitting in stark contrast. Far less stylised but equally modern feeling, this second piece is based on Oyinkan Braithwaite’s My Sister, The Serial Killer. A fun and engaging adaptation of the bestselling novel, this performance uses the space in a vastly different way. Utilising a simple but effective set and far more elaborate costumes, the story is brought wonderfully to life. The narrative follows Korede as she witnesses her sister Ayoola kill boyfriend after boyfriend while she follows along behind cleaning up the mess. Despite the subject matter (or perhaps because of), it’s a fun ride. There are multiple opportunities for laughter, the entire performance imbued with the feel of a dark comedy.

As my first press experience of ballet I can say that I was pleasantly impressed. Going in with mixed feelings and a good dollop of curiosity, I was presented with a double bill of what I expected traditional ballet to look like and something vastly different. While I found the first half a little harder to follow, the second piece held my attention with ease and provided an insight into what ballet can be. I look forward to continuing to explore this genre and hopefully getting the opportunity to see more of Ballet Black’s work in future.