English National Ballet – 70th Anniversary Gala – London
★★★★✰ For those of us that have been involved with the company, no matter how small a part, it is clear that the ‘happy family’ that is English National Ballet, reveres and appreciates all who have been part of its 70 year existence.
Some Memorable Performances of 2019 – London
Lynette Halewood with some reflections on London dance performances over the last year – the good and the less good…
Scottish Ballet – The Snow Queen – Edinburgh
★★★★✰ Hampson has created a naturalistic and, above all, a graceful and harmonious set of steps. It’s all so unforced, but it feels right and creates a beautifully rounded and satisfying production.
Bolshoi Ballet – Don Quixote – London
★★★★✰ The reason the Bolshoi’s Don Quixote is so enjoyable is the gusto with which it is performed. It doesn’t aim to be remotely authentically Spanish or even respectful of the original 1869 version…
Gallery – Bolshoi Ballet in Don Quixote (dress rehearsal)
Featuring pictures of 2 casts: Margarita Shrainer/Igor Tsvirko & Eleonora Sevenard/Artemy Belyakov. Gallery by Foteini Christofilopoulou…
Bolshoi Ballet – The Bright Stream – London
★★★★★ A wildly surreal comic turn involves a dog riding a bicycle, both cunningly choreographed. He’s actually a tractor driver in disguise, disrupting sexual assignations.
Book – Dancing Under The Southern Skies: A History of Ballet in Australia – by Valerie Lawson
Although Valerie Lawson’s context is wide-ranging, she brings individuals into focus with personal details, shining a spotlight onto their roles in Australian dance history. Lavishly illustrated with photographs from Australian archives, her book gives vivid life to long-gone personalities.
The Bolshoi Ballet in London, Summer 2019 – All you need to know (and more!)
The Bolshoi Ballet are in London this summer with Spartacus, Swan Lake, The Bright Stream and Don Quixote. One of the world’s greatest companies, here are Jann Parry’s thoughts on an important visit…
American Ballet Theatre – Harlequinade – New York
★★★★★ To my eye, this Harlequinade may be the most well-rounded of Ratmansky’s historically-minded stagings of Petipa.
Carlos Acosta splendidly summed up as he collects his Critics’ Circle Services to the Arts award
I was at the recent Critics’ Circle lunch when Carlos Acosta won his latest award and was struck by Graham Watts citation – it seemed to splendidly sum up Carlos, both the man and his illustrious career… and why exactly we all admire him. BM, Ed.
English National Ballet – Emerging Dancer Competition 2019 – London
★★★✰✰ The 2019 winner is London-born Julia Conway and her success was well deserved.
Russian Ballet Icons Gala 2019 – London
★★★✰✰ The annual Ballet Icons gala, now in its 14th year, aims to promote Russian culture while providing a Sunday evening’s entertainment for Russians in London and ballet-lovers…
San Francisco Ballet – The Sleeping Beauty – San Francisco
★★★✰✰ The performance was thrilling …because it marked the Aurora debut of soloist Wona Park, whose Kitri debut in the season-opening Don Quixote got loads of buzz. At just 19, she dances with an ease beyond her years…
Royal Ballet – Don Quixote – London
★★★★★ With Marianela Nunez and Vadim Muntagirov… Theirs was a performance that caught up everyone in the sheer pleasure and excitement of spectacular dancing.
Gallery – Royal Ballet’s Marianela Nuñez & Vadim Muntagirov in Don Quixote
Gallery by Foteini Christofilopoulou…
La Scala Ballet – Giselle and Don Quixote – Brisbane
★★★★✰ Nicoletta Manni’s performances in Don Quixote and Giselle on the last three days of Teatro alla Scala ballet company’s season in Australia was extraordinary, not just for her stamina and resilience, but her acting skills.
Interview: Mayara Magri, First Soloist, The Royal Ballet
Jann Parry talks to the recently promoted Mayara Magri at an important time – she is about to make her debut as Gamzatti in The Royal Ballet’s production of La Bayadere – her first major and leading role in the company she joined 6 years ago…
Staatsballett Berlin – La Bayadère (premiere of Ratmansky reconstruction) – Berlin
★★★★✰ In the last several years, the choreographer Alexei Ratmansky has developed a sideline to his main choreographic efforts: the reviving of ballets by Marius Petipa in a way that represents the original choreography with as much fidelity as possible…
Interview: Melissa Hamilton, First Soloist, The Royal Ballet
“I knew that I had to seize my only chance to have a ballet career. Masha Mukhamedov agreed to teach me privately six days a week for ten months…”
Ekaterina Maximova Arabesque Ballet Competition Gala in Honour of Marius Petipa and Lev Tolstoy – Perm
The occasion was the 15th anniversary of the Ekaterina Maximova Arabesque Ballet Competition named, since 2012, after the late and much-loved Bolshoi ballerina, and organised by her husband, Vladimir Vasiliev…
