This ballet gala featuring classical and contemporary dance styles was very good. The cellist, Steph Teh and pianist Celine Goh provided inspiring accompaniments for the dancers and soloist Aimee Bajev. They were all excellent performers, and the show could have been great, rather than good.

The performance was let down by elements beyond the dancers’ and singer’s control. Across the back of the stage was a stark white backdrop which was not used to good effect. The first two pieces made no use of it at all – not even to highlight the play of the dancers’ shadows as the lighting was too harsh for good shadows to be created.

It was not until the third piece when back projections were used. The stormy seas and shipwrecks all added to the atmosphere of the Fisherman’s Daughter which was beautifully danced and choreographed by Nicola Rose.

I especially enjoyed the dance called Female Factory which had the perfect accompaniment of the Sinéad O’Connor song Famine. I assumed this was a reference to the UNESCO world heritage-listed Cascades Female Factory in Tasmania. Against a projected backdrop of raging seas, the dancers were wearing Victorian era dresses with aprons, and were constrained by bright red ropes they were pulling against, perhaps symbolising all the many restrictions on the women. Later the dancers were partially undressed with corsets and frilly drawers, while projections of tatting and lace making could be seen. I did wonder whether this costume and the lace making were a veiled reference to the very limited opportunities which were available to female convicts when they had completed their sentences.

Soprano, Aimee Bajev singing Ah Tardai Troppo from Linda di Chamounix was utterly sublime and it was great to have ‘live’ music but she too was let down by the set and the lighting. Once again, the white backdrop was blank and the entire interlude took place under harsh white lights.  

Having worked in theatre, I realise how difficult it is to put on a show on a shoestring budget, when there is never enough money. But imagine taking a production to the next level by making better use of the technical aspects of the theatre.