Swan Lake on Ice opens at the Artscape Opera House on Thursday. DEBBIE HATHWAY finds out more from The Imperial Ice Stars artistic director Tony Mercer.
TONY MERCER was a world champion ice skater. In his dreams, he quips, but his flair for theatre and an imagination that invites interpretation and invention by his cast of elite Russian skaters have made him the world’s leading creator of theatre on ice.
His latest production, Swan Lake on Ice, takes his artistic approach to an entirely new level. “It’s not just an ice show,” he says, “and it’s not ballet on ice.” Ice dance, he explains, is performed on a theatre stage as opposed to a huge arena. That stage takes 140 hours to build up, finally incorporating 14 tonnes of ice (almost the weight of three elephants), reaching temperatures of minus 15 degrees C.
Mercer joined the theatre industry as a lighting designer, progressing to tour manager and then production manager for artists such as The Three Degrees, Dionne Warwick, The Supremes, Elkie Brooks, Kool & The Gang, The Commodores, The Four Tops and The Temptations, before he became manager of The Dooleys. In the early 1990s he developed the concept of theatre-on-ice shows, directing his first Summer Ice Spectacular in 1994. A decade later he formed the Imperial Ice Stars with fellow producer James Cundall, and businessman and former speed skater Vladislav Olenin.
Since then, the company has taken the award-winning original version of Swan Lake on Ice around the world, as well as The Sleeping Beauty on Ice and Cinderella on Ice.
With The Nutracker on Ice also in the repertoire, Mercer was looking to do “something new”, but making new work requires “time and an investment of money”. He says it was Pieter Toerien’s support of his idea to create a fresh version of Swan Lake on Ice that was pivotal in getting it off the ground. “Pieter is internationally revered in the theatrical world, so when he expresses an interest you know you’re on to something,” says Mercer. Ultimately, though, the pressure is on to deliver and he says he still gets “very nervous” when he’s presenting a new production.
This time Mercer has created a more realistic version of the classic tale. His research revealed some enlightening aspects to the development of the now-famous score by Pyotr Tchaikovsky through his letters to his brother, Modest. While it is not absolutely clear what inspired the story, the source is often attributed to a ballet called The Lake of Swans that Pyotr wrote for his family in 1871.
The version depicting one woman playing the roles of both the princess and the swan that is so well known today is not what Pyotr envisaged, says Mercer. “I’ve approached it in a way that I believe an audience should see it, bringing to the fairytale something believable that they could relate to,” says Mercer.
A new prologue humanises the legend of the princess who is turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer, revealing a more modern take on events that determine the course of the prince’s life. “One secret to the show is that we identify a life view, which is that while we’re all in this together women decide a lot of things. They’re stronger, and I allow them to decide the outcome of the story,” says Mercer.
The cast of 24 Olympic, World, European and National Championship level singles, pairs and ice dancing experts thrives in an environment that frees them to work beyond the bounds of the competition rule book.
Their “incredible training” underpins the infinite reach of Mercer’s imagination, resulting in the development of daring, contemporary skating manoeuvres as yet unnamed. In addition to some spectacular ice dancing and theatrical mime, audiences can expect jaw-dropping acrobatics, aerial gymnastics and pyrotechnic effects designed to enhance moments of the theatrical experience.
“A lot of thought goes into creating those additional effects. They’re not there just for the sake of it,” says Mercer.
The wardrobe features designs by the renowned costumier, Albina Gabueva, of Moscow’s Stanislavsky Theatre, made by the Bolshoi Ballet’s costume cutters while the magnificent set is the work of one of Australasia’s leading scenic designers, Eamon D’Arcy.
The performers rehearse nine or more hours a day, six days a week, for seven weeks to prepare the show, and then put in another three hours daily before each performance. “I’m a Virgo. I’m pedantic. I believe there’s a right way to do things. There is a compulsory regime to how we perform. There is an hour for warm-up, followed by an hour to work through corrections and another hour for exploring a particular movement. The technical crew also spends an hour on checks before each show,” he says.
And the language barrier? There is none, says Mercer. He fell in love with Moscow through repeated visits to the city for auditions. “I taught myself the language and immersed myself in the culture. I needed to live, eat, breathe Russia. And then when my son was born, and began learning Russian, I studied with him while teaching him English.”
l Performances run from January 14 to 31 on Tuesdays to Fridays at 7:.0pm, on Saturdays at 2.30pm and 7.30pm and on Sundays at 2pm and 6pm. Book: 0861 915 8000, 021 421 7695. Group discounts available.