Naperville Park District gives opera 'Three Oranges' a twist
A wide vocabulary of dance styles convey the beauty of Sergei Prokofiev's opera "The Love for Three Oranges" in Naperville Park District's interpretation of the Russian composer's work.
"It's all different styles - ballet, lyrical, hip-hop, folk dance and royal court-style," said Avery Sipla, the park district's dance program coordinator.
Sipla said the piece, originally an opera, was also written as a narrative story.
"This is the version we're using," she said.
With the aid of a narrator, 70 cast members from age 4 to adult will dance the story of a melancholy prince on the Naperville North High School stage Saturday, Jan. 24.
"His family is told they should try to make him laugh," said Sipla.
When he does, the prince inadvertently incurs the wrath of an evil witch, who casts a spell on him, "that he will fall in love with three oranges," Sipla said.
A series of misadventures ensues.
Ryan Cap, a Naperville North sophomore, plays the prince.
Cap, who does theater productions at North, at North Central College and with several community theater groups, said he heard about the Naperville Park District's dance program when he worked with Sipla on a North Central production.
This is the second annual community dance production mounted by the park district; last year's show was "The Lorax," an adaptation of a Dr. Seuss book.
"The programs here in Naperville are so great. They're the most friendly people you'd ever want to meet," Cap said. "The dance program is just phenomenal."
As the prince, Cap said, he doesn't sing or speak a single line.
"Three or four characters will have microphones," he said. "I go the entire show just pantomiming it. The narrator explains what I'm saying."
Cap said the youngest dancers do a hip-hop routine. There's also a fight scene and a "Stomp" scene in the show, he said.
The prince, he said, gets the opportunity to dance a pas de deux.
Cap said he welcomes the chance to experience dance within the framework of a show that encompasses so many dance styles performed by a large cast of dancers.
"I'm interested in pursuing this as a career, either in the dance field or the theater field," he said.
Sipla said the show, in rehearsal since September, will run about 90 minutes with an intermission. The show is supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council and Target, she said.
<p class="factboxheadblack">If you go</p> <p class="News"><b>What:</b> Prokofiev's "The Love for Three Oranges," presented by Naperville Park District dance program students</p> <p class="News"><b>When:</b> 1:30 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24</p> <p class="News"><b>Where:</b> Naperville North High School Auditorium, 899 N. Mill St.</p> <p class="News"><b>Tickets:</b> $6; available at the door and at the park district administration building, 320 W. Jackson Ave., Naperville</p> <p class="News"><b>Info:</b> (630) 848-5000 or <a href="http://www.napervilleparks.org" target="new">napervilleparks.org</a></p>