Reviews

Need-to-know Japanese vocabulary: utsukushi (beautiful); kanpeki (perfect); oishii (delicious) – all three of which could be used to describe the Trocks’ visit to Yokohama on Sunday afternoon.

The all-male Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo is 50 this year, and has been visiting Japan since 1982; the current tour is their 32nd. The country is a big ballet consumer and exporter- the Royal Ballet alone has three Japanese principals- and visiting troupes are always popular, but “gender-skewering” (the Trocks’ term) has an added appeal in the land of the onnagata, the fragrant male heroines of the kabuki theatre.

The predominantly female fan base established in the early 1980s has stayed loyal to the Trocks, returning with children and grandchildren to savour the bravura technique and deadpan comic timing of the new generation of dancers. The repertoire remains the usual canny mix of ancient and modern. Warmed up by a pratfalling Swan Lake Act 2, the audience is then treated to a second act of shorter works and extracts, followed by a grand final of twirling tutus.

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Arlene Croce, the great American dance critic who wrote for The New Yorker from 1973 to 1996, died on Monday morning, the day before Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo lifted the curtain on its December season at the Joyce Theater.

Many of Croce’s reviews — witty, biting and full of trenchant observations, both harsh and beautiful — were works of art themselves, including one from 1974 about the debut of Les Ballets Trockadero in a loft on 14th Street. The stage was the size of a handkerchief. The corps de ballet was a lonely five dancers.

New York, Croce wrote, “‘the dance capital of the world,’ has long needed a company of madmen to break us all up.”

Fifty years later, the madmen are still at it.

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“It’s all very simple, and very sophisticated. That’s why the Trocks have been going
so long. It works as pantomime, and also so much more.”

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“The Trocks now display skills – fouettés en tournant, grand jetés, petits battements
– that transcend parody and pastiche to challenge the idea that they are a comic
drag ballet company. They are not. They are serious all-male ballet dancers who
incorporate elements of humour. Attention must be paid to such a company.”

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“Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte always brings us good cheer when they visit.
Affectionately known as the Trocks this all-male company…delivers one of the best
and most reliable nights of dance you are likely to see…The company looks a million
dollars as they remind us just how engaging ballet spectacle to a great tune can be.”

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“That is what makes Trocks so irresistible. The joke never feels thin, because the
dancing underneath it is so alive. Technique is there, ego is there, bad behaviour is
there, and the whole thing keeps bouncing back with ridiculous human appetite.”

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What makes this more than an evening of shtick by blokes in tutus and tiaras is that they honour the choreography too. It takes a crazy skill set to be a Trock because you need to combine technical brilliance on pointe with a great sense of comic timing.

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Yet it was the final number, Paquita, that exceeded all expectations. It was an exceptional performance of a Petipa classic rarely seen in the UK — and a huge treat. Takaomi Yoshino, in the lead ballerina role, was phenomenal in the dancing fireworks. But every one of the vivacious, virtuosic Trocks achieved that magic trick of being grand, graceful and goofy all at the same time.

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“It’s visually hilarious and a huge antidote to the steady stream of doom and gloom
broadcast to us seemingly on an hourly basis. I urge you to buy a ticket.”

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What better way to usher in 2025 than with tutus, tiaras and tights? Les Ballet Trockadero de Monte Carlo’s male dancers in drag offer plenty of those as well as an evening of belly shaking laughter and silliness, providing audiences with a refreshing take on a classical dance form. The Trocks (as the company is affectionately called) reminds us not to take ballet, or ourselves, too seriously.

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“They have come to The Pillow as they celebrate their 50th anniversary, in an evening of performances looking back across the years in loving send-up and a celebration. The Trocks are known around the world for their performances of classical and romantic ballet ‘en pointe and en travesti,’ embodying traditional roles with a sense of comedy and confidence and companionship that can expand and transform.”

In these past 50 years, the Trocks have had an important impact—arguably an institutional influence—on the expanding arc of gender understanding in this country and the world, and they have always exercised that influence while bringing both inspiration and genuine belly laughs to their audiences. The Trocks gracefully and ingeniously combine slapstick, farce, and clowning with the pure artistry of dance.

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On Jan. 28, the Trocks returned yet again to UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall with a glorious program of “Swan Lake, Act II,” “Yes, Virginia, Another Piano Ballet,” “The Dying Swan,” “Paquita” and a pas de deux. Bold in scope, the performance beautifully demonstrated the ballet troupe’s diverse and multiform skill set.

The Trocks ended the night with French-style “Paquita.” As the curtains rose, they revealed regal red drapery hanging over the stage, prompting audible “ooohs” from the audience. Though certain moments still came across as distinctly comedic — such as when a dancer was facing the wrong way and subtly (and unsuccessfully) tried to change without the audience noticing — this segment of the performance stood out due to the sheer amount of skill exhibited.

While watching the Trocks, it’s sometimes easy to forget that you’re observing a parody. With each turn and leap across the stage, the dancers display their keen attention to detail and form — they just so happen to do so in a laughter-inducing way.

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