For all its built-up hype, the second Ukrainian Pole Art Show seemed more like a practice session than a real performance. It wasn’t short on ambition, however. An interpretation in dance of the classic Jules Verne novel, Around the World in 80 Days, was performed.
Two nights
in Kyiv on Nov. 16 and 17 saw “80 Days Before the End of the World” staged at Kyiv’s
Operetta Theater with a new character added to the original plot. The show will
tour Ukraine in mid-December.
“The
message is – if you choose the right path you will get the right results,” said
Lina Veres, the show’s scriptwriter and actor who played the role of the added “time”
character. In this version, the main character Phileas Fogg is supposed to bet
with time and lose for the simple reason that no one can win a bet with time.
The show’s
main purpose remained the same: to develop pole dancing as an art. And it seems
like it got a lot of support, at least in theatrical props.
“We used 921
meters of different costume clothing, the scenery weighed about three tons and
40 people took part in the performance,” said Olexandr Leshchenko, the show’s choreographer
and lead performer.
Perhaps because
of the extensive advertising, I felt something truly impressive awaited me as
the curtains were raised.
I held my breath
when the first actor stepped on stage. But the next 10 minutes brought me back
to earth. I had expected to see amazing pole acrobatics, highly synchronized group
dances and bright costumes. Well, the show almost delivered on the costumes,
yet the actors clearly looked uncomfortable in their sparkling outfits. That’s about
it for expectations being met.
Yet the modern
scenery, bright costumes and good music, especially composed by Ukrainian young
composer Dmytro Saratsky, couldn’t disguise the glaring dance mistakes.
Many synchronous elements failed in that
respect. Some parts of the show that should be hidden from spectators weren’t. Of
course, a man climbing a pole with a rag clenched in his teeth wasn’t the worst
spoiler. It was rather funny, but pretty distracting. A sore sight for eyes was when the girl on the
pole started to wipe her hands on her skirt before embarking on the next
acrobatic stunt. It gave the impression I was at a dance rehearsal, not the show’s
premiere.
The other
disappointment was how the best pole dancers were used. Ukraine’s best pole
dancers Olga Polishchuk and Julia Boiko hardly did anything impressive on the
poles. Boiko has a small part in just one episode that barely involves the
pole.
Leshchenko’s
performance, however, in the role of Phileas Fogg made me feel rather good than
bad when after the performance. Charismatic, he made every scene look lively
and bright together with his dance partner Ruslan Makhov, who was also great playing
the role of Jean Passepartaut, Fogg’s loyal friend in the story.
“This is
something truly amazing,” said Ukrainian singer Vlad Darvin before the show. “This
is just a mega-show and I am sure that our audience is ready for such a level,”
he said.
The real
question is whether the actors are, or at least whether they’ll be ready before
their tour starts in December.
Pole Art Show: 80 days before the end of the
world tour:
Cherkassy – Dec. 14
Dnipropetrovsk – Dec. 15
Poltava – Dec. 16
(Details to be announced)
Kyiv Post staff writer
Daryna Shevchenko can be reached at [email protected]
