Review of ‘A Life in Four Seasons’: “Spring of ideas ends up falling flat”

They didn’t bring anything new. Or special. Yet, I can’t say it wasn’t enjoyable. Or that it wasn’t engaging. That is the extent of it, however. As much as the ghost of a transporting show inspired by the Red Priest’s magnum opus lingered throughout, the bloom never came to fruition. And although a few occasional segments were quite full of the joys of spring, some others were completely left out in the cold.

It is a good concept. Just the best way of executing it. Not because there’s no value in what they’ve put together, but because its potential is heavily unexploited. Overall, it’s an underdeveloped piece. There is a solid germinal idea, but a poor exploration of its possibilities, most of which are still waiting to be discovered.

Pre-recorded tracks of The Four Seasons meander between Vivaldi’s original orchestrations and new percussion-based arrangements by DJ Walde, creating a compelling symbiosis of sounds — the new and the old, the jarring and the euphonic, and the restless and the peaceful both collide and coexist. This might be the most robust feature in the entire concoction, which, much like its blurred narrative, is not exempt from its flaws, but at least has a stronger pulse than the rest of its elements.

One of its main problems is its not-too-elaborate choreography, which fails to build a cohesive narrative. Not every dance show needs to tell a defined story, but it should evoke its essence in some way. No matter how open to interpretation, audiences should be taken on a journey that feels complete and, above all, fulfilling.

This is nothing of the sort. There are hints of it, mostly at the beginning alongside some scattered sections in the middle, but ultimately, it doesn’t lead to anything. The ending is extremely anticlimactic. And on the whole, it seems like the piece doesn’t know where it’s going — that is, if it’s going anywhere at all.

There are too many similarities between what both acts offer, which contributes to the slight dullness the rendition is generally affected by. We can grasp the sense of duality between the two, as the company’s blossoming talent precedes the more ripe one, portraying the same reality through different perspectives. But such reading comes across as a bit of a stretch when evaluating its intricacy, and that is average at the very best.

The choreographies serve the score adequately. Even some excerpts brim with expressiveness and strokes of viscerality. It’s not the norm, nonetheless. For the most part, the movements lack resourcefulness — either because they have no sparkle or because they come off as underrehearsed. And many times, it’s just because of its overly simplistic looks.

Some snippets flaunt impeccable precision, which Tanesha Aba’s energetic performance as Spring Heart captures perfectly. But that’s an exception in an overall acceptable but not gleaming rendition, where there is rapport but not faultless coordination, and where virtually no passages display anything impressive, eventually conforming to the mundane and unoriginal.

There are a few budding ingredients in A Life in Four Seasons, but it’s mostly a show in the making. Leaving that embryonic state requires taking a new leaf so its prospects of success finally flourish. There’s a lot of work to do, but its basis is already in place. And by making the necessary tweaks and additions, they will put audiences out of the winter of their discontent.

All pictures credit to Helen Murray.

A Life In Four Seasons plays at London’s Open Air Theatre until 14 June. Tickets are available on the following link.

By Guillermo Nazara