The Red Shoes – Alhambra Theatre, Bradford

Based on the film by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger

Adapted from the fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen

Director and Choreographer: Matthew Bourne

Composer: Bernard Herrmann

“There really is nothing in the world that can be compared to red shoes” – Hans Christian Andersen

From a fairytale warning about the sin of vanity, through a film about the intense love of performance, to this culmination of a ballet about ballet, The Red Shoes is an iconic story in the traditional sense of the word. It seems unthinkable that it took until 2016 for Matthew Bourne, the current king of dance, to adapt it.

Victoria Page (Cordelia Braithwaite) is a rising ballet star, and Julian Craster (Dominic North) a struggling composer. They are both hired to work at the Lermontov Company, under ballet impresario and company director Boris Lermontov (Reece Causton). Initially antagonistic towards one another, the pair of young creatives fall deeply in love. But jealous Lermontov believe art should come above all else, and there the problems start…

The Red Shoes is a wonderful adaptation of the highly regarded 1948 film of the same name. The plot has been slimmed down to make it easier to tell through dance alone, but the same beats are all there. It’s a look at the world behind the curtain, into the rehearsal rooms and backstages filled by the dance company. For anyone with some theatrical experience of their own it is gratifying to recognise prima donnas, flamboyant creatives, and stressed designers (costume designer Edith, danced by Kayla Collymore, and her beautiful dance with a dress as a partner was especially resonant to your reviewer). Ballet natives and complete newbies to the genre can follow the simple plot, although it can occasionally be confusing telling the men apart as the costumes and hair styling are all very similar, especially the crew tuxedos obscuring Lermontov at the start when the audience should most be taking note of him. Craster starts with glasses which helps, but once these are eschewed, he becomes hard to spot in the crowd scenes. Both are thankfully well characterised by the dancers, and the women are far more distinct.

The choreography is a beautiful mix of traditional and contemporary ballet. As the story includes a full show-within-the-show in the form of The Red Shoes itself, plus glimpses of multiple other ballets, the dancers have the unique task of performing performing. And they succeed – there is a clear distinction between the somewhat blank, slightly monotonous dancing of the in-universe ballets and rehearsals, and the world building dancing of the real-life scenes. Holly Saw as Prima Ballerina Irina Boronskaya is especially good at this switching; her scenes are always entertaining. Also a fascinating watch is Baithwaite’s section in the finale of Act One where she is being controlled by the famous red shoes. The smooth yet somehow also jerky movements leading from her feet are evocative and her whole characterisation in this section is a joy, foreshadowing the tragedy of Act Two. Braithwaite’s chemistry with both North and Causton is also excellent, the first selling the romance and the latter the obsession with dance beyond romance. And the wider ensemble fills out the stage with lager than life characters, especially during a surprisingly funny musical hall section, when Victoria’s depression is reaching its peak.

It would be remiss of your reviewer to not rave about Lez Brotherston’s impressive set. A swinging, twisting proscenium arch with a set of red theatre curtains takes up most of the stage, but never dominates the space. It moves forward and back, turning from front to rear, to indicate where in the theatre the characters are. There is a filmatic quality to its movements and it becomes almost a dancer itself as the others move around and through it. A large rear projection screen aids comprehension, flashing locations and adding additional scenic cues to move the action between London, Paris and Monte Carlo. New Adventures, Bourne’s dance company, tend to use projections a lot, and while it give a modern feel to the shows, it is sad to lose the more traditional backdrops, especially in a show set in the 1940s.

Art has somewhat imitated life with this tour of The Red Shoes. The 2020 tour was halted by Covid, and this renewal has brought back some of the original cast while also allowing newer dancers to make their debuts. Bourne’s introduction in the programme states that some dancers may be performing this ‘perhaps for the very last time’ – although it is to be hoped that is not because the tragic ending of the show is also being imitated! It’s certainly one to see while the originators are present, an entertaining and though provoking show with all the glitz, glamour and the woes of a golden era of dance.

Runs until 25 April 2026