Alberta Ballet brings a new take on German folklore with the world premiere of Grimm
By Dianne Miranda and Daman Singh, October 29 2024—
Right as Halloween approaches, Alberta Ballet wrapped up the world premiere of Stefania Ballone’s production Grimm and it was nothing short of a fabulous experience. The ballet is inspired by seven fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, including The Town Musicians of Bremen, The Frog Prince, Snow White, The Three Spinners, Sleeping Beauty, Seven Ravens and Rapunzel. The narrative follows the story of a girl named Aura, born to a witch named Mirage in the Boreal Forest.
The first act introduces the viewer to Aura’s life. Her mother dying in childbirth led to Aura being raised by the witches of the forest. As Aura turns 12, she meets a donkey, a dog, a cat and a rooster. Inspired by The Town Musicians of Bremem, this was one of the most memorable moments on stage. Introducing the audience to the beauty and complexity of the choreography, it was a beautiful sequence that you could not look away from. With only five performers on stage, everything was unique to each performer. It felt as if looking at one performer would lead you to missing what the others were doing.
Through the production, the stage design of Grimm was a beauty to behold. The art on the projectors behind the dancers created a dreamscape that made the experience so immersive. Malgorzata Szablowska’s work as a set and lighting designer was simply phenomenal. The lighting was beyond stunning, it became a catalyst of the experience. The performance was amazing on its own, but was enhanced with the light design.
One of the biggest strengths and beauties of ballet is the costumes and Grimm did not disappoint. From the colorful costumes of the musicians to the oh-so-effective monochromes of the ravens, the costume design of the production was brilliant and wonderful. One of the main highlights was when Aura found the frog and the princess — their blissful principal performance was beautifully accompanied by their costumes, making the experience ever so engaging.
Act Two touches on the more haunting, dramatic and vulnerable parts of Aura’s story. The second act unfolds a younger Aura looking at what seems to be a sleeping or perhaps dead self in a nest of branches, after being pricked at the end of Act One by the spindle of three mysterious spinners.
A memorable and striking scene was one of a group of eight women with long blonde braids surrounding Aura — their voices echoed as they continued to dance long after Aura fled, revealing to the audience the struggles of the battle of facing one’s deepest inner fears. This hypnotizing scene not only exemplified the breathtaking choreography of Stefania Ballone, but also the simple yet impactful costume design of Eleonora Peronetti as the dancers cleverly use their long braids to mirror the mysterious forces that pull Aura and intertwine her with these ancient forces beyond her control.
Continuing on the theme of destiny, we see Aura finally meet her mother, Mirage. This brief yet powerful interaction extended the feeling of facing fate as the two reached out for each other in a captivating duet, taking up all four corners of the stage.
The audience also had the opportunity to have their fates read, destiny and foreordained paths explored as Grimm’s witchy, otherworldly and mythic merchandise included single tarot card readings. The two cards we pulled at the beginning of the show, The Knight of Pentacles and The Star, uniquely capture the following scenes of Act Two, with the grounded power of resilience in finding our ways through even the darkest of forests.
Nearing the end of the second act, we saw the most breathtaking sequence of the production. As the stepmother’s mirror shattered and she fell, ravens emerged from her gown and took over the stage. Under stunning dramatic lighting, the ravens consumed the stage. The choreography, the dancers, the lighting — everything was monumental to the last detail. The sequence was a showcase to everyone’s mastery over their art.
Alberta Ballet’s Grimm is a craft of an ingenious exploration and reimagination of fairy tales, transporting the audience to this nostalgic, comforting and transformative experience and opportunities of interpretation of beloved Brothers Grimm stories. The world premiere of the production leaves the crowd this lingering invitation to rediscover the themes of complexities of love and loss, self-discovery, transformation and facing the shadows we all carry woven into these familiar folk tales. The first five shows in Calgary and Edmonton breathed new life and depth into such timeless resonance on stage through the production’s rich choreography, mesmerizing worlds of the backgrounds’ visual designs, gorgeous costume design and Taketo Gohara’s incredible original score.
To learn more about Alberta Ballet’s 2024-25 season, visit their website.