Mumbai: Watch this adaptation of The Lion King set to ballet dance form

Ballerinas rehearse the Circle of Life sequence. PICS COURTESY/APEKSHA BHATTACHARYYA

Ballet shoes fastened, hair slicked back and their skirts fluffed up one last time, 60 young ballerinas will await the opening tune to glissade onto the stage in Bandra tonight. It's not Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, or even Bach. It's the slightly more familiar "Nant's ingonyama bagithi baba!" If that doesn't ring a bell, try reading it aloud to the tune of The Lion King's opening theme song, Circle of Life. Comprising preschoolers, teens and young adults, the troupe will pull off a balancing act between the evergreen Disney classic and the structured discipline of Russian ballet.

"The most recognisable part of a ballet performance is possibly the tutus. Layered, stiff skirts that jut out from the hip, carefully customised to fit the feminine themes and characters in the story. In our adaptation, these characters are lions, giraffes, meerkats and warthogs. We knew this adaptation was going to be a wild ride even before it began," laughs Apeksha Bhattacharyya, founder of the Academy and a ballerina with 17 years of experience under her belt.

Performers playing Mufasa (in red) and Scar practise a scene

But this is not the troupe's first rodeo. Seven years ago in the city, Bhattacharyya led an adaptation of Goldilocks and The Three Bears. "Ballet standards like Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake or The Nutcracker are beautiful pieces, but I'm afraid they don't speak to everyone. Imagine a young male child in the audience; would he really relate to the characters on stage?" she points out. Early last year, a re-watch of the Disney classic planted the seed of a new adaptation for young audiences in the instructor's mind.

Making of a jungle

"We started with rewatching the classic on a loop. The team would mark scenes and movements to identify the most interesting parts. With some reference from previous Broadway productions, our choreography started taking shape," Bhattacharyya tells us.

A playful moment featuring Simba with Nala

After multiple revisions, we're glad to learn that the tutu dilemma was finally settled - animal prints and vibrant hues will bring the jungle to life tonight. But the costumes were the least of the troupe's challenges. The founder recalls, "The hyenas in the popular stampede scene are played by our ballerinas who are accustomed to making calculated, graceful movements on their toes in pointe shoes. One wrong move in these shoes can leave you with a broken foot. How does one stage a stampede on tip-toes?" While we were let in on the secret, we suggest you head to the show tonight to find out for yourself.

"We have been through every scene so many times that I can probably never watch the movie the same way ever again," she admits. We think the founder has the enthusiastic children endlessly chanting tunes and dialogues backstage to thank for that. "They know every single dialogue, every single pause, like the back of their hand. And not just their parts, mind you. On stage, it's a well-rehearsed grand drama, but backstage it's pure chaotic comedy," she laughs.

Ballet for all?

Will imaginative performances like this pave the way for new talent to tip toe into the art form, we ask the founder. Bhattacharyya reveals that the air around ballet being an exclusive dance form isn't completely untrue. "Ballet in India comes with a premium," she admits. While instructors here can lay the foundation, opportunities majorly exist in the West where ballet is well established and practised, she reveals.

Apeksha Bhattacharyya

"Every concerned parent who brings their child to the Academy asks us one important question: ‘Is there a secure future in this field?'. I'm often left dumbfounded by such a query, but we are working towards turning that around. With more young dancers reaching new heights every year and proving their mettle, we have a better answer for the parents every year," she signs off.

ON Today; 6.30 pm
AT St Andrew's Auditorium, St Dominic Road, Bandra West.
LOG ON TO @indianacademyofrussianballet
ENTRY Rs 800 onwards