State Street Ballet Brings ‘Chaplin’ to Life Through Dance 

In classical Indian dance, there is one word that means both dance and drama: Natyam, because dance and drama do not exist without each other. State Street Ballet’s Chaplin epitomizes this concept of dance-drama, exploring and exposing the poignant life of Charlie Chaplin through exquisite dance and tragicomic drama.

Chaplin was choreographed by a diverse trio of master choreographers: William Soleau,  Kevin Jenkins, and Edgar Zendejas. The tapestry of their various styles creates a rich portrayal of this complex man. “Chaplin dives deep into character and the raw human experience,” explained Megan Philipp, Artistic Director of State Street Ballet (SSB), “highlighting both how beautiful and ugly it can be. Bill, Kevin, and Edgar sewed their choreography together in a brilliant and sophisticated journey through Chaplin’s life.”

Soleau explained, “When people think of Charlie Chaplin, they see the Tramp,” adding, “[but] there’s much more there than people expect.” The story is told through the eyes of a young girl in New York who becomes so enamored of Chaplin through his films that she is transported back in time, ultimately becoming the Tramp. 

The leading role was originally created for Ahna Lipchik, currently with Grand Rapids Ballet, who will be returning as a guest artist for these performances. Jenkins described working with her day and night to create a movement vocabulary for Chaplin’s quirky character, based on the physiology of hip-hop combined with ballet. Jenkins wrote, “No character has gripped me this tight, so it is an inexpressible joy to see Chaplin once more. He is my oldest and dearest dance friend, and Ahna Lipchik is inexorably tied to who he is in my mind.” 

Philipp said of Lipchik, “The movement and character of the young girl that becomes Chaplin was, and is, Ahna. We are so thrilled to have her back as a guest artist.”

At the studio preview, Hailey Maynard did a very credible job as Lipchik’s understudy, portraying Chaplin relentlessly teasing a New York cop (Noam Tsivkin).  Choreographed by Jenkins to Scott Joplin’s famous piece “The Entertainer,” this priceless scene had me simultaneously laughing and crying.

Chaplin created his iconic screen character, the Tramp, in 1915, after he moved from London to Hollywood. His costume — a bowler hat, a gentleman’s coat and a moustache, with baggy pants and too-large shoes — expressed the polarity he saw between the wealthy and impoverished classes. 

Chaplin declared that the costume chose him, said Jenkins. This fascinating bit of history is portrayed in a scene choreographed by Zendejas in which a bowler hat, lit from the inside, makes its way around the dancers, sometimes landing in a high lift, sometimes appearing low to the ground, seeming to move randomly through the changing patterns of the dancers. Finally, as the dancers disappear from the stage, the hat finds Chaplin (Ethan Ahuero).

Chaplin was originally commissioned in 2018, when founding director Rodney Gustafson was at the helm of SSB, and Soleau, Resident Choreographer, was co-artistic director. Gustafson explained, “During the development of the work, I actually traveled to Switzerland, where we had planned to perform it in Geneva, at the Chaplin mansion, but were stopped by the pandemic.”

Wait … what? There is a Chaplin mansion in Switzerland? 

Yes. I learned, at the studio preview that, when Chaplin, a British citizen who had relocated to Hollywood, was on his way to London in 1952 for the premiere of his movie Limelight, his reentry privilege to the U.S. was revoked because he, like so many Hollywood personalities at that time, was accused of being a Communist. He chose to settle in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland, overlooking Lake Geneva, where he remained until his death in 1977.  

Chaplin’s departure from the U.S. with his fourth wife, Oona O’Neill (whom he married at the Santa Barbara Courthouse!), is portrayed in an emotionally powerful, intricate pas de deux choreographed by Soleau, and danced by Ahuero as Chaplin and Maria Rita Rapisarda as Oona. Soleau described the staging: “As they dance, newspaper headlines are projected behind them. You feel the weight of the world closing in, while they hold onto each other.”  

Finally, in 1972, after 20 years of exile, the Academy awarded Chaplin an honorary Oscar for his “incalculable effect” on the motion picture industry. Initially hesitant to return to the U.S., he did return to accept his award and, as Soleau explained, received a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in Academy history.

Born Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. in London in 1889 to an impecunious father and clinically insane mother, Chaplin began working as a performer at a very young age to help support his family. As Jenkins explained, this impoverished start to his life gave Chaplin the drive and determination to become independently wealthy, and he was, at one time, declared the wealthiest person in California, and possibly the world.

“Chaplin is a complex story about a brilliant and complicated man. Our audience needs to be ready because this ballet will make you think, and leave you with questions. There are moments that are difficult to watch,” said Philipp.

Soleau added, “If you think you know Chaplin, this production lets you see him differently. And if you don’t, it’s a way in through something deeply human.”

Chaplin will be a dance-theater experience that is absolutely not to be missed!

Chaplin is at the Lobero Theatre (33 E. Canon Perdido), Friday, May 8, 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, May 9, at 2 p.m. See statestreetballet.com/chaplin or lobero.org/events/chaplin.