Not your typical ballet company by a long shot, the all-male Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo — who stop in Clearwater this Tuesday — perform riotous send-ups of romantic and classical works like Swan Lake, The Nutcracker and Giselle, and parody the clichés of ballet while simultaneously showing off their skills, combining expert knowledge and skill with wicked comedic sensibility. The dancers portray mainly female roles and the hilarity comes with seeing brawny men delicately balancing in toe shoes or gleefully leaping, posing and plunging from one side of the stage to the other, all with an exaggerated grace and in the heavy make-up and frou frou outfits for which your average prima ballerina is best known. Founded by choreographer Peter Anastos in 1974, the troupe has been entertaining dance aficionados and complete novices for more than 30 years. Tues., Feb. 27, 8 p.m., Ruth Eckerd Hall, 1111 McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater, $30.50-$45, 727-791-7400, trockadero.org.
This article appears in Feb 21-27, 2007.