At the end the curtain came up once again, and Brigitte Lefèvre (artistic director of the ballet) and Nicolas Joel (director of the opera as a whole) emerged to announce the promotion of the evening’s Solor, Josua Hoffalt, to the ultimate rank: étoile. There were buckets of tears, from Hoffalt, Gilbert, and Dupont. In fact, it was the high point of the evening. An uncontrolled release of emotion...
Archive - March 2012
Kochetkova and Boada were so transcendent that even this microscope-eyed critic could soar with them beyond the less than ideal frame of Tomasson’s version.
The Royal Ballet are going to throw open the doors on the 23 March and live stream on the net through the day - Kristen McNally and TV/radio presenter George Lamb will host. A bold initiative.
Here are the just released dance related nominations. Good luck to all! OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DANCE THE DESIGN TEAM for their work on the Royal Ballet’s ALICES ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND at the Royal Opera House. EDWARD WATSON for his performance in THE METAMORPHOSIS at the Linbury Studio at the Royal Opera House SYLVIE GUILLEM for her performance in her production of 6000 MILES AWAY at...
An important event yesterday – the Royal Opera House annual press conference – with Kevin O’Hare announcing his first season as incoming Royal Ballet Director. He takes over from Monica Mason in the summer. I found myself Tweeting before (on reading the press releases) and during the press conference – on #roh201213. Here is the stream in all its contorted Tweetiness and...
True to style, San Francisco Ballet Artistic Director & Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson is showcasing his dancers in a highly varied programme of ten short works – no fewer than nine of them UK premieres – for their long-awaited return to the London stage.
DanceTabs opened for business 6 weeks ago and it already gives me enormous pleasure to say we are taking on more writers…
They were at last in tune with each other in the bedroom pas de deux, both despairing at his departure. Hamilton came into her own as an actress in her cumulative rage at her parents’ lack of understanding; her resentment at being forced to be Paris’s puppet was compelling. She’d changed from a helpless child to an inwardly defiant young woman...
One of the posters for the Royal Danish Ballet's Dans2Go programme, now in its second year, describes it as 'Ballet for Beginners': it's intended primarily as a taster evening to show new audiences what ballet can do, via three short pieces covering the widest possible range. All tickets cost 150 kroner – about £17 – or half that for under-25s or students, so it's not surprising that every...
SINGERS ANNOUNCED FOR WAYNE McGREGOR / MARK RONSON COLLABORATION WITH THE ROYAL BALLET A star-studded line up of singers was announced today to accompany The Royal Ballet onstage in a new work, choreographed by Wayne McGregor with music by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt. The ballet, entitled Carbon Life, will be set to a cycle of nine love songs which will be sung by Boy George, Alison Mosshart of...
The ballerinas who made the greatest impact were Uliana Lopatkina and Tamara Rojo: regal, gracious, seemingly effortless...
2012/13 does not look a great year for dance at the Barbican – judged by today’s press release anyway. It mainly comes down to Michael Clark it seems. Now Clark is not to be sniffed at by anybody and we much look forward to the premiere of course… but hopefully more dance will come in 2013 and the second part of the season. The Michael Clark Company part of the press release...
Across all three works, the art of set and costume designs, video projections and lighting vied with an almost equal intensity of image-creation with the music and choreography... It was all too much to absorb in a single sitting.
The Place Robin Howard Dance Theatre is holding a special night of dance celebrating Bob Lockyer, one of the major players in the development and establishment of dance in the UK, on the occasion of his 70th birthday.
But in Sharper, aggressively awkward movements are kept to a minimum: the ugly is reduced, and the residue now acts like a tonic of wit. And for the first time in Elo’s work, at least in my experience, we find a lyricism and beauty so profound they sometimes took my breath away.
'Storyville' is a familiar morality tale, but Cira Robinson’s heartfelt commitment as Lola makes us care anew. Hampson has indeed turned her into a star... 'Captured' is a triumph for the company and Martin Lawrance, the choreographer.
24 pictures by Dave Morgan….
...so I will just conclude with noting that another depressing thing about the evening's kitsch-ridden choreography was that it didn't quite obscure the occasional glimmers of brilliance that reminded us that these men are, indeed, among the world's best, despite this tawdry presentation.
Philadelphia’s dance community and a legion of dance fans have been filling the Merriam Theater this week to catch the final performances of Pennsylvania Ballet Principal Riolama Lorenzo. Pushing Boundaries is great programming to mark the occasion and to show the future of this company, going into its 50th season next year. Rio, as she is affectionately known, started out as a member of NYCB...
Taking notes at a performance by Richard Alston's dancers is - for me, at least - a pointless occupation. Descriptive words and points of reference fly past in an unending stream, like Canada Geese migrating for the winter: start writing and you are never likely to stop!