Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo

The laughs started before the curtain opened. A voice-over announcer told us that Katarina Bychkova and Marina Plezegetovstageskaya were in … alas Ms Notgoodenov was out.

An onslaught of cheesey dance routines followed … as Swan Lake was plucked and dissected. How one of the men, who looked like he was almost seven feet tall, managed to balance en pointe made the mind boggle.

The Trocks, as they are known, have been doing this routine since the mid 1970's. They remind me more of elite athletes than dancers. The men in tutus joke still works, but I doubt it has changed much over the years.

For me the highlight of the show was the send up of contemporary dance. Two bored looking musicians were on stage. They used all manner of weird and wonderful devices to make 'music'. There was a gargle, a moo, a paper bag being blown up and burst. Strange looking dancers in modern gear were jumping about.

The person sitting next to me said it reminded him exactly of one of Australia's leading contemporary dance companies.

Sometimes satire can be cruel.

The Trocks continue in Sydney until November 15, then to Perth from Nov 18 - 22.

David Spicer