The Wedding at the Aotea Centre

The men get the lion's share of the action in The Wedding.

The Wedding is a winner. Fresh and flirty, frivolous, farcical and funny, how could it not be, with all that creative nous behind it?

The story was spun by witty Witi Ihimaera: lightish in weight, a love triangle that explodes at the altar, but one that also garners together an extravaganza of Kiwi wedding ritual and has a good cackle at the associated social pathology.

It is sumptuously set and dressed, by designer Tracy Grant, in a froth of gelato colours and a rainbow of fashion styles from the heroine's snappy little 50s shirtwaister, through hot pants and cowgirl boots, caftans and capris to settle somewhere contemporaneous with long shorts for the blokes and fashionable High St for the girls.

Grant's set is simple but gorgeously sophisticated, with a facade of windows and arched doorways that brings both Paritai Drive stucco palace and motel to mind, with banks of gleaming steel mirroring some of the action and giving the whole a sharp, very Auckland edge.

But there is romance, too, in the huge cut-out hibiscus blossoms, evocative of every northern summer garden, the subtle, twinkling night-time cityscape, and the pretty gauze of the opening scene, with its feathery heart shape.

The capricious rhythms of Gareth Farr's fabulous score, performed wonderfully by the Auckland Philharmonia under Marc Taddei, drive the action.

Tailormade for the story, it is truly music to dance to.

And dance they do. Maestro choreographer Mark Baldwin has wrought a big bouquet of movement that crosses the divide between classical and contemporary, but remains firmly within the bounds of ballet at its best.

The boys fare better with content which makes a nice change and which shows off the company's new strength in the male ranks.

The most beautiful duet of the evening is danced by two boys in a gay flirtation (Craig Lord and Andrew Simmons on opening night) and the best solo belongs to Charles (Michael Braun) on the lawn outside the mansion, in the first act.

Then there is the hilarious rugby scene, a scrum with hopping arabesques, and several lineouts with cygnet-style jetes - a hoot, if almost too camp for its own good - followed by a titillating, but tasteful, shower room display. The girls do make a splash as the Rock Chicks and the trolley dollies, looking super sexy in boots, miniskirts and big hair, but it is more sauce than challenge, booty-shaking than technique.

Qi Huan is the roguish bridegroom Brad, in the first cast, in his first big role since arriving from China last year. A colleague of Ou Lu, former RNZB star, at the Beijing Dance Academy, he shows elegant and athletic promise of stepping into the leading man's shoes.

His bride Angie is Chantelle Kerr, sharing the role with the effervescent Lucy Balfour.

Kerr is as light as a feather, with great extensions and the most gorgeous feet, almost too flexible of ankle for her pirouettes. And she underplays the histrionics in her big angst and confusion scene to the best effect benefiting perhaps from dramaturge Raymond Hawthorne's presence.

The opening night performance received a genuine standing ovation - a rare event for ballet in cynical old Auckland. The sponsors, Meridian Energy, were also pleased and announced the renewal of their three-year contract at the after-match party.

It augurs well for the future of this big, bold commission by a brave and daring RNZB.

* The Wedding at the Aotea Centre, to Sunday