★★✰✰✰ There is, however, one undeniably compelling personage in this somewhat flat production of Hamlet - the quiet and fragile Ophelia, as portrayed by Venus Villa...
Tag - Mats Ek
One of the go-to international choreographers, particularly if you want something arresting and unusual, is Alexander Ekman. His "Cacti", appropriately featuring a stage full of Cacti, is about to be presented by Royal New Zealand Ballet and Sydney Dance Company - Valerie Lawson catches up with a dance maverick...
Lynette Halewood with her personal selection of London dance memories this last year…
More than one dancer has been dubbed a “punk ballerina” but no one deserves it more than Sylvie Guillem, who has ruffled feathers at the world’s best companies, and at 50 years old is still on top.
Acosta’s Carmen is far from a disaster, propelled by committed performances and Tim Hatley’s dramatic designs...
I was told my body type wasn’t really ideal, and during high school I had ballet teachers who said that maybe I should consider pursuing college because my body wasn’t suitable for classical ballet...
Sylvie Guillem’s farewell programme at the Coliseum (following its modest Sadler’s Wells presentation in May) is a glorious spectacle in the largest theatre in London.
It is almost eight years to the day since The Car Man was last revived at Sadler’s Wells (having premiered in 2000) and it seems even better than I recall...
It was only when I worked with Mats Ek that I understood who I was as a dancer.
Maina Gielgud first staged her production of Giselle for the Australian Ballet in 1986...
Lynette Halewood with her personal selection of London dance memories this last year…
Despite many critics’ reservations, Eifman’s work does remain popular internationally, and in France it can be explained by the lack of good quality touring dance in the country.
This time, I made 15 trips to the theatres – there were performances at 5pm and 9pm each day - and saw 82 different full-length ballets or extracts in the eight days I was in Havana.
The choreography is determined by the need for co-operative effort in manipulating unpredictable swathes of fabric – a metaphor for mankind’s attempts to control the forces of nature
Ek’s choreography, for both groups and individuals, is animated and detailed.
Gallery by Dave Morgan...
The Artificial Nature Project extends the Ingvartsen’s curiosity about choreographing materials, this time using seven dancers to animate a vast quantity of silver tinsel slices.
Gallery by Dave Morgan... Sadler’s Wells presents its largest celebration of lifelong creativity and the contribution of older artists with the Elixir Festival. The Knowbody bill includes work by Mats Ek, Dominique Mercy, Hofesh Shechter, Sonia Uribe, Jonathan Burrows & Matteo Fargion...
Only the official retirement age of 42 requires him to leave the company, alas, though he may be invited back as a guest.
At the outset I have to say I thought this year was one of the better years and we should all feel encouraged at the creativity on show.