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A LITTLE FILM LIKE "CENTER STAGE" BRING THE
MASSES INTO THE WORLD OF BALLET?
Written
by Dean Kish
Edited by Andrew Marcus
Cast:
: Eion Bailey (Jim), Shakiem Evans (Erik), Peter Gallagher
(Jonathan), Ilia Kulik (Sergei), Debra Monk (Nancy),
Donna Murphy (Juliette)
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Premise:
Follow the hopes and dreams of a tight-knit group
of young dance students as they try to make a
name for themselves and become stars in the fiercely
competitive world of professional dance.
Overall
Rating:
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Rated
PG-13 for language, sensuality
Appealing
to the ever growing teen market, "Center Stage"
focuses on a sextuplet of fresh faces who so desperately
want to be a part of the American Ballet Association’s
Troupe.
Center
Stage is the "pop" version of ballet. The
audience is never bogged down with technique and never
really gets the allure that is ballet. The script instead
bogs down viewers with stereotypes. It’s very hard
to see when one stops and another begins.
Where
is the grace and beauty associated with this classic
art form? And why is the classic form so devilish? I
remember the film, "Dancers" and I wonder
what it would have been like if we'd seen a cast like
this in a film like that. A beautiful twenty-something
cast in a real movie that discovers the allure, grace
and magic of ballet. Now that would be ballet.
The
final dance number to close the film draws on a lot
of Hollywood influences but does make me wonder if companies
actually take the risks seen here. Is ballet actually
becoming more geared toward a Broadway feel? It is quite
interesting blending the two. It's been done to figure-skating,
why not try it for ballet?
To
get to the guts of "Center Stage" it might
be good to talk about a couple of the stand-out performances.
The only recognizable face to my knowledge in the cast
was Peter Gallagher from "While You Were Sleeping".
He plays the villain who can’t help but be a bore.
His character tries to do what’s best for the troupe
and stick with traditional dance. For that he is laughed
at and mocked by the new generation. Can you really
say this is a villain?
My
favorite performance was from new-comer Amanda Schull
who played a wonderful innocent girl trying to do all
she can to follow her dream. It’s hard in a person's
motion picture debut to actually breathe life into a
shallow character like the one presented to her here.
Drawing from her background as a ballerina, Schull brings
a lot of feeling to her performance especially in her
dancing. I hope to see more of her.
What
I can suggest about Center Stage is that you should
bring your teenage daughters because this is for them.
It has the music, the chemistry and even the beautiful
morale "Follow your dream". It’s a pure
message and it’s a film parents can take their
daughters to.
(2.5
of 5) So Says the Soothsayer.
© 2000 Columbia TriStar Interactive.
All Rights Reserved.
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