PORT ANGELES — William Shakespeare without words is a day without sunlight, or so one would think.
The conveyance of emotion need not solely rely on spoken language but merely upon the stealing of a kiss, the daggers of an eye or the swooning of a lovely lady.
With that philosophy, Paul Destrooper, Ballet Victoria’s artistic and executive director, has molded together a ballet version of Romeo and Juliet — bereft of conversation in the traditional sense but nevertheless robust with meaning.
The premier of “Romeo and Juliet,” presented by Juan de Fuca Foundation for the Arts, will be at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Port Angeles High School Performing Arts Center, 304 E. Park Ave.
Tickets are $15 to $35 for those 15 and older. Tickets for youth 14 and younger are $10.
Ticket are available online at jffa.org or at Port Book and News at 104 E. First St. in Port Angeles.
Communicating through dance and motion “is surprisingly enough,” Destrooper said over the phone this week from Victoria.
“Body language counts for — even in daily life — a very high percentage of communication. But, we have to make [the audience] feel it from a distance . . . so you have to use your whole body as well as your face to convey the emotion.”
That is accomplished, he said, through simple expression such as collapsing a shoulder or lifting it up, lengthening the arms or contracting them.
And, accompanying music aids the conveyance of emotion, Destrooper said, noting it’s used in movies to “enhance the dramatic [effect] of an action or the text.
“The music, of course has a lot of power to support that, and then you have to be clever in terms of not just doing dancing steps — they actually have to mean something.”
Destrooper said he encourages his dancers to study the actors of silent films from the early 20th century who were forced by technology to express themselves only through physical movement.
“It is something that I push my actors to look at — especially the ones like Charlie Chaplain, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd — the masters of subtlety,” Destrooper said.
“It is not just thick pantomime acting. It can be a little bit subtle, and sometimes just even a gaze under your nose can give enough tension rather than the big freaking out scene.”
Port Angeles has been chosen as the site of Ballet Victoria’s world premier of “Romeo and Juliet,” set to an “absolutely stunning” score by Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev, Destrooper said.
“It is the first performance of that show,” he said.
“For me, it is a ballet I have danced many times in my career, but this is a brand new creation that I have choreographed.”
Choreographing the performance was a profound task, Destrooper said.
“It is a work that some people have seen” in other venues “so it has to be crafted very well,” he said.
“We don’t have a big budget for sets or anything, so it is very simple. Our focus is strictly on the dance and the music and the story.
“It is a famous story everybody knows and the verses that Shakespeare uses and different languages even within the work is very sophisticated, so I have to really focus on the choreography.”
Destrooper said he has breathed new life into the centuries-old tragedy through a contemporary style of acting.
That way, “it makes sense — is relevant — to today’s audience,” he said.
“It was a bit of a pressure to achieve that. I think we have. I guess the audience will be the ones that decide.”
In this production, a cast of 12 dancers will perform during the first and second half . Juliet Capulet is portrayed by Andrea Bayne, Romeo Montague is portrayed by Matthew Cluff, Mercutio is portrayed by Luke Thomson, and Tybalt is portrayed by Jessie Gervais.
“It is actually one of our biggest, longest productions but it goes by fast,” Destrooper said.
The cast has spent the past six weeks preparing for the performance, Destrooper said.
“We have been pushing really hard,” he said.
“But, we are a really tight company and the dancers have been with me for a few years, so they are familiar with the vocabulary and what I expect. We definitely have been pushing them dramatically and technically.”
“We have some sword fights that are extremely difficult, extremely fast, extremely scary for a lot of people that have been watching the studio rehearsals,” Destrooper said.
“When you see the blades, the tip is blunt, but you can still hurt somebody very fast if you are not careful.”
“We are honored that Port Angeles has been chosen as the site of Ballet Victoria’s World Premier of their stunning new ballet, ‘Romeo and Juliet,’ ” said Dan Maguire, Juan de Fuca Foundation for the Arts executive director.
“Now, with dramatic new choreography by Artistic Director Paul Destrooper, Ballet Victoria’s brilliant dancing will bring this legendary story of young love and family politics to life with a dramatic intensity that will leave audiences riveted to their seats.”
For more information, call the Juan de Fuca Foundation for the Arts at 360-457-5411.
