Published in 1820, Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow stands out as America’s first ghost story. The town’s residents enjoy telling stories of the supernatural and The Headless Horseman is among the most fascinating. The ghost of a Hessian mercenary hired by the British during the Revolutionary War who was decapitated by a cannonball, he rides a black horse during the night to kill people until he finds his head so it can be interred in the town churchyard where his body is buried.
More than 200 years later, Irving’s story still rivets readers of all ages. It actually rises upon a complex narrative structure with many flashbacks and an unresolved ending. The town is exquisitely detailed in a long passage by the first-person narrator, a man in a tavern who tells the story of Diedrich Knickerbocker, the apparent fictional author. Ichabod Crane, a teacher, is a cultured newcomer, but he also is shadowed by fear and weakness, a contrast to the town’s most celebrated figure, Brom Bones. And, that is where some of the greatest tension comes, as Ichabod hopes to win the hand of Katrina Van Tassel, whose father is the town’s wealthiest property owner. In 1922, a silent film featured Will Rogers as Crane and in 1949, Disney adapted Irving’s story. More recently, Tim Burton’s 1999 film Sleepy Hollow, starring Johnny Depp, was darker and more Gothic horror and fantasy in its essence.
Stepping away from its usual fairy tale adaptations, Ballet West is adding its unique take on this American literary classic for its Family Classics Series, which runs this weekend (March 27-28, Capitol Theatre. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow production features Pamela Robinson-Harris, Ballet West’s rehearsal director and the creative force behind Family Series favorites including Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast
In an interview with The Utah Review, Robinson-Harris said in aiming for comedy, character depth and just enough scary elements to grab the attention of kids and adults, she turned to various sources including a 2018 one-act adaptation by Peter and Hans Bloedel which premiered at Bethany Lutheran College. This play, in part, inspired how she wanted to capture the love triangle between Ichabod, Brom Bones and Katrina. She said, “I added a lot more townspeople, including a farmer, pastor, members of the town’s family, school children and, of course, the Sleepy Hollow gang of boys.”
Keeping the original Irving story in mind while deciding how to keep the production concise in its hourlong format, Robinson-Harris scripted a role for a narrator, which will be taken by Adam Sklute, Ballet West artistic director. Taking the role for the Spanish language performance (March 28, 7 p.m.) will be Pedro Flores, with translation provided by Alex Moya.
The original story is “actually quite fascinating as it is a mix of true historical facts and fantasy,” Sklute wrote for the program notes, “taking place in a Dutch settlement in the late 18th Century of Tarrytown, New York. The legend of the ghost — The Headless Horseman — was actual folklore from the region about a soldier who had lost his head in the Battle of White Plains – part of the Revolutionary War. Irving’s lead character, the persnickety schoolteacher Ichabod Crane, was named after a real life army captain of that time, but the actual character was based on a school teacher friend of Irving’s and the lead townspeople Katrina Van Tassel, Brom Bones, and many others were developed from names that Irving found on the gravestones in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Tarrytown.”
The cast comprises dancers from Ballet West II and the Frederick Quinney Lawson Ballet West Academy, Robinson-Harris also created a character specifically for Mallory Ostmark, an intermedia student at the academy, who is a descendant of the real-life Katrina Van Tassel. Ostmark will perform the role of the housekeeper for the Van Tassel family.
The production will feature recorded music in a compilation by Robinson-Harris which includes Georges Bizet, Karl Goldmark, Richard Meyer, Ottorino Respighi, Camille Saint-Saëns with arrangement by Deborah Baker Monday and Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari. Meyer stood out for her, with his eight-minute tone poem based on the story and composed for string orchestra. Meyer also has written string orchestra pieces ideal for high school orchestras including the Curse of the Rosin Eating Zombies from Outer Space. Likewise the sounds of a galloping horse, a cannonball and other effects add to the ballet’s mysterious and ghostly palette.
Among the academy dancers performing in this premiere are Sasha Scholnick, 12, who attends The McGillis School in Salt Lake City, and Jaynie Degen, 9, who attends Farnsworth Elementary in West Valley City. Scholnick will perform the role of the farmer’s daughter and Degen will perform as one of the six bats of Sleepy Hollow.
Both are already building up some notable performing credits and are excited about being in a new ballet. Scholnick, who also is interested in photography and psychology, has danced in four productions of The Nutcracker, as well as other Family Classics Series productions including Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Aladdin (as the cobra). Degen appeared as one of the party princesses in last December’s Nutcracker production. Both young dancers cited rehearsing with Ballet West II dancers has been exciting. “It’s great to learn from them because they already have so much experience,” Scholnick explained.
Three performances will be offered: March 27-28, 7 p.m.; March 28, 2 p.m. For tickets and more information, see the Ballet West website.