fbpx

Ushering in Spring with a Midsummer Dream

Northwest Ballet Company presents its 35th annual spring show for Mother’s Day weekend

By Molly Priddy
Kaleb Prestegaard and Megan Bridwell rehearse on April 30, 2015, for the Mother's Day performance of "Midsummer Night's Dream." Greg Lindstrom | Flathead Beacon

The month of May means the return of the sun as spring makes its way into the Flathead Valley, and for 35 years, May has also meant the return of ballerinas to the stage in Bigfork for a beloved tradition.

The Northwest Ballet Company will present William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” over Mother’s Day weekend, May 9-10, at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts.

It’s the company’s 35th annual spring show, and company director Marisa Roth said she was thrilled to present a classic comedy to welcome the return of the warm weather.

“It’s a fun one, it’s got all different kinds of characters,” Roth said last week. “It requires more acting than usual. This one you have to pull out the facial expressions and the body language a bit more than they’re used to, but some (dancers) are totally in their zone when they have a chance to do that.”

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is a delightful romp through fairy-enchanted forests, where multiple plot lines intersect as mischievous sprites manipulate unsuspecting humans for folly and fun.

Written by Shakespeare, the play is translated to ballet through German composer Felix Mendelssohn’s music and Roth choreographed the show for her dancers.

The company has performed the ballet before, the last time being 2008. But the show has a deep history with the company; Roth, who grew up as a dancer in the Northwest Ballet School and Company, danced several of the roles while still a student, including the principal role of Queen Titania of the fairies.

In fact, the costume this year’s sole principal dancer, Megan Bridwell, will wear during the performance is the same Roth wore when she danced it.

Going through her choreography during rehearsal last week, Bridwell was flowing yet tightly controlled in the silver and white costume, which looks like a Stevie Nicks-inspired butterfly.

Her slight figure belying great strength, Bridwell smiled and struck her poses throughout the rehearsal, despite having completed a general training class just moments before.

A dancer for nearly all of her 18 years, this spring show is her final one with the Northwest Ballet Company. The Glacier High School senior will graduate as one of the top in her class, moving on to the Davidson Honors College at the University of Montana, where she will major in music education and minor in dance.

It’s a nice fit, she said, because it combines her love for dance along with her passion for singing, which she developed as a member of the Glacier Echoes choir.

“I’m very ready to graduate,” Bridwell said during a lull at rehearsal. “Everything I’m doing will complement each other.”

As the only senior in the company this year, Bridwell held up the mentoring and leadership role well, Roth said.

“She has been such a great leader in the Northwest Ballet in everything, in classwork, in keeping the bar set high as far as respect and caring and compassion,” Roth said. “She’s so gracious and generous. She can do anything, anywhere.”

Though she’s headed into her future having built a solid foundation of friendship and skill at the company, Bridwell said she’s going to miss the people she has come to know so well, having spent countless hours in the dance studio with her classmates and teachers.

“I’m going to miss the family that I have here,” Bridwell said. “I’m so close to the girls and Marisa. It’s bittersweet, I’m going to cry a lot (after the show).”

Bridwell will be joined on stage with Northwest Ballet Company Guest Artist Kaleb Prestegaard, who will take on the role of King Oberon, along with her fellow company dancers.

The May 9 2 p.m. show will include face painting in the lobby before the performance, and the ever-popular Fairies Parade in the theater following the show.

Along with the music and choreography, Bridwell said the show is sure to entertain all ages with its hijinks and hilarity.

“It’s a comedy, and it’s very funny,” she said.

Tickets for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” are $20 for adults and $15 for kids under 12, and are available at the Kalispell Grand Hotel, or at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts box office one hour before each performance. Shows are Saturday, May 9th at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sunday, May 10th at 4 p.m. For more information, call 406-755-0760, or visit www.northwestballet.com.