On Wednesday, October 17, Dr. Pauline Greenhill, Dr. Mavis Reimer, and Dr. Catherine Tosenberger from the University of Winnipeg and Judy Slivinski from the Royal Winnipeg Ballet will participate in a panel discussion called The Princess and the Goblin: The Unexpected Hero. It will take place from 12:10PM to 12:50PM in the Carol Shields Auditorium (2nd floor, Millennium Library, 251 Donald Street). This discussion is part of the Skywalk Lecture Series, and it precedes the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s production of The Princess & The Goblin, choreographer Twyla Tharp’s adaptation of George MacDonald’s book, which will run from October 17 to 21 at the Centennial Concert Hall.
Topics to be discussed:
- Inversion of fairy tale, including the lack of parenting by King Papa, and the presence of a female hero, who is also a child
- The implications of George McDonald creating a female hero in the Victorian Era
- The roles of the King (Parents), the Princess (Children) and the Goblins (Street People) and their parallels to current roles and/or perceptions in society
- Twyla Tharp and Rachel Browne countering the male-dominated dance world
The Princess & The Goblin Pre-Show Chats
Mavis Reimer will also be doing pre-show chats thirty minutes prior to the ballet performances on Thursday, October 18 and Saturday, October 20. These presentations will take place in the Centennial Concert Hall South Wing, and admission is free.
Background information:
For information about Twyla Tharp’s take on the book and its adaptation to ballet, please see the latest Winnipeg Free Press article: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/entertainment/arts/regrets-shes-had-but-one-173650531.html.
An electronic version of George MacDonald’s book, The Princess and the Goblin, is available online at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34339.