Men in tutus give ballet a little tickle in the ribs
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The all-male Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo does a comic take on such classic ballet pieces "Swan Lake." The troupe is performing in Hawai'i this weekend.
Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo 8 p.m. today and Saturday Also: 7 p.m. Sunday, Kahilu Theatre, Kamuela; sold out. (808) 885-6868 |
By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
For Fernando Medina Gallego, a member of the all-male ballet troupe Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, it all comes down to the toes.
"Putting on the makeup, the tights, the tutu is easy," said Medina Gallego, 32. "It's the pointe shoes that you have to get used to. And learn to dance on your toes, on one foot. You appreciate what ballerinas have to go through."
He was speaking long-distance, from a frosty, minus-10-degree clime in Boston last weekend, eager to make his — and the company's — debut in warmer Hawai'i this week (a Maui performance last night, O'ahu shows tonight and tomorrow, a Big Island jaunt Sunday).
Originally from Barcelona, Spain, where he started studying ballet at age 12, Medina Gallego has had his share of bruised toes and foot pain because he dances several key roles masquerading as a woman (notably as Sveltlana Lofatkina in "Swan Lake").
Medina Gallego needs to shave three times daily during a performance regimen, to minimize five o'clock shadow. "Otherwise, it shows through," he chuckled.
That's nothing compared with aching feet. He's been Trock-ing for about five years and has had toenails fall off. "You have to wait a full year for the nails to regenerate, so it's uncomfortable. But you keep on dancing, dealing with it," he said.
At 5-foot-8 and 146 pounds, he would be considered a heavy ballerina if he were female. "That's a challenge, too, for a male to lift me," he said. "At 95 pounds, a woman dancer can be quite heavy. So dancing (in the guise of a woman) ... I can understand all those tears for a ballerina. The pointe shoes, the dancing on one leg — painful!"
He was a classical ballet dancer with European companies (Ballet Victor Ullate, Basil Ballet, Ballet de L'Opera de Nice) before seeing the Trocks in action, then exploring performing opportunities.
"I heard they existed, but didn't believe it till I went to see a show," said Medina Gallego. "I really loved their work."
He was attracted to the comedy more than anything else, because of the challenges. "It's impossible to do a parody of any art, unless you know enough, and if I were not a professional ballet dancer, I would never be able to join the Trockaderos," he said. "You have to like it, know and love it, to live it."
The company was founded in 1974 in the off-off-Broadway meat-packing district of Manhattan, and it took 25 years for the troupe to move uptown. While tongues are firmly in cheek, the dancers are all classically trained, with ties to such legit companies as the Metropolitan Opera Ballet and the Los Angeles Classic Ballet.
The dancers are adorned with ballerina costumes, from tiaras to tutus to those dreaded pointe shoes, but there's no hiding the fact the troupe is male. Body hair is not concealed, for instance, and as part of the parody, the company boasts faux Russian names (Nadja Rombova, R.M. "Prince" Myshkin, Nicholas Kachafallenjar, Sveltlana Loftakina, Ida Nevasayneva, Olga Supphozova) and equally fictitious and fanciful bios.
The dance card often is glistening with camp and outrageous insider jokes, like the Dying Swan that refuses to die, or deliberate miscues amid drill-team precision of ensemble dancing.
The makeup and tights were not issues, since male dancers don light makeup and dance in tights in traditional ballet. The tutu? Simply an additional garment.
"The comedy comes from the outside — I have to put all of my acting skills to work, along with my technical skills," he said. "Of course, you have to feel that you're doing it right, or it all won't work."
Because the Trocks tour year-round, he has but a few weeks off; being a member of the company means total commitment. "No time to do (serious) ballet with other companies," he said.
But he doesn't mind. As long as he can dance. "By now, my whole life is dance. I like it because of the freedom on stage, the chance to be creative. Makes for a pretty healthy body and soul."
Medina Gallego said all company members must learn all parts of "Swan Lake," and each dancer has both male and female roles. "I've done it all," he said.
While the dancers look like drag queens, there's no coy or nelly business; a protocol of technical skills underlines the comedy.
So when he gets roses and other floral bouquets after a night with the Trocks, Medina Gallego knows he's done his job well ... masquerading as a ballerina. "Funny thing, though; we get flowers only in Japan. The girls and women love us there," he said.
Reach Wayne Harada at 525-8067, wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com or fax 525-8055.
