Cyrano De Bergerac
Fri, 12 Aug 2005, 09:02 amWalter Plinge10 posts in thread
Cyrano De Bergerac
Fri, 12 Aug 2005, 09:02 amWhy is that the wonderful play Cyrano De Bergerac is not performed that often.
I think it is a great play.I saw the Sydeny Theatre Company production in 1999 but I haven't heard of any productions being done since then.
Why is this so?
I think it is a great play.I saw the Sydeny Theatre Company production in 1999 but I haven't heard of any productions being done since then.
Why is this so?
Re: Cyrano De Bergerac
Wed, 17 Aug 2005, 07:29 amWalter Plinge
Dear All,
As a Fight Director, 'Cyrano' is a favourite given the amount of work there is to do, particularly the 'ballade' fight early on and the 'Fight with the 100'. Its one of those plays that every Fight Director hopes to get a crack at during his/her career, rather like the actor who yearns to do Hamlet or Lady Macbeth.
Aside from the 'Roxanne' film starring Steve Martin, try checking out the Jean-Paul Rappeneau version from 1991 starring Gerard Depardieu and Vincent Perez. Dealing with the subtitles is worth it for the performances, photography and of course, the fight scenes. These were choreographed by English Fight Director Bill Hobbs.
Harder to find is the 1950 film version starring Jose Ferrer which was an adaptation of his Tony Award-winning performance from a year or so earlier. Its a bit dated and of its style, but is still hugely entertaining. Watch for Cyrano disarming Valvert in the 'ballade' fight which involves flipping Valvert's sword high into the air and Cyrano catching it. During the stage run, the same choreography was used and Ferrer went through over 100 live performances without dropping it once. My mental Rolodex fails me as to who conceived the choreography, but I have a feeling it was Ferrer himself.
Rarer still is the Jacobi version that others have mentioned. This was staged at the RSC in 1984, and the video is essentially a reproduction of that. Sadly, I only have the 'ballade' fight on a compilation video (what a geek, eh?), and not the whole production. Fight choreography was by Malcolm Ranson, a regular at both the RSC and the National.
Incidentally, the MTC production earlier this year starring David Wenham was choreographed by my colleague Nigel Poulton who was also responsible for Bell Shakespeare's 'Wars of the Roses'.
Happy Swashbuckling!
Andy Fraser
Fight Director
As a Fight Director, 'Cyrano' is a favourite given the amount of work there is to do, particularly the 'ballade' fight early on and the 'Fight with the 100'. Its one of those plays that every Fight Director hopes to get a crack at during his/her career, rather like the actor who yearns to do Hamlet or Lady Macbeth.
Aside from the 'Roxanne' film starring Steve Martin, try checking out the Jean-Paul Rappeneau version from 1991 starring Gerard Depardieu and Vincent Perez. Dealing with the subtitles is worth it for the performances, photography and of course, the fight scenes. These were choreographed by English Fight Director Bill Hobbs.
Harder to find is the 1950 film version starring Jose Ferrer which was an adaptation of his Tony Award-winning performance from a year or so earlier. Its a bit dated and of its style, but is still hugely entertaining. Watch for Cyrano disarming Valvert in the 'ballade' fight which involves flipping Valvert's sword high into the air and Cyrano catching it. During the stage run, the same choreography was used and Ferrer went through over 100 live performances without dropping it once. My mental Rolodex fails me as to who conceived the choreography, but I have a feeling it was Ferrer himself.
Rarer still is the Jacobi version that others have mentioned. This was staged at the RSC in 1984, and the video is essentially a reproduction of that. Sadly, I only have the 'ballade' fight on a compilation video (what a geek, eh?), and not the whole production. Fight choreography was by Malcolm Ranson, a regular at both the RSC and the National.
Incidentally, the MTC production earlier this year starring David Wenham was choreographed by my colleague Nigel Poulton who was also responsible for Bell Shakespeare's 'Wars of the Roses'.
Happy Swashbuckling!
Andy Fraser
Fight Director
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