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ent001636-025

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ent001636-025
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    University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Libraries

    HI "What I like about it is that there are parts which are really like an opera or a ballet, making it very much Broadway theatre rather than Variety", he explains. "But it is so fast-paced and there is so much happening that there are no boring moments, and there are more fleshed-out stories and more situations which are based on universal themes that people understand and can relate to emotionally." "Even where we have given the audience time to catch their breath there is plenty of action and these moments are just as exciting and arousing in their own quiet way." To help him capture the mood and feel of real theatre, Jackson has relied on music from classical composers Khachaturian and Ravel, and received inspiration from Orf's Carmina Burana. The songs allow arrangements more in operatic style, and he has drawn from his own experience to inject balletic grace into the choreography. Music played on three violins, a cello and a viola from the Queensland Symphony Orchestra add an extra classical touch. And above all, he has gone to great lengths to ensure that everything is as authentic as possible. Jackson had lessons from a Japanese woman expert in 13th century fan dances and spent three weeks with scholars pouring over historical texts and translations. Original Koto music is used in the Oriental segment, and Kabuki style music is adapted by synthesiser and percussion. Two Russian expatriots, former members of the Moiseyev Dance Company are involved in the Cossack dancing, and the Gauchos specialty act came directly from the plains of Argentina. Hours and hours of research went into designing and manufacturing the costumes, with special screen prints of fabrics made to ensure the patterns were authentic. .../ 3