The Snow Queen is Michael Corder’s third new work for English National Ballet; his other works for the Company are his acclaimed production of Cinderella premiered in 1996, and the recently performed Melody on the Move created in 2003.

The music for The Snow Queen will be arranged by Julian Philips from Prokofiev’s ballet The Stone Flower and other Prokofiev works. Julian’s original works include Strange Seas, commissioned by the Britten Sinfonia and later performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and Out of Light commissioned by BBC Proms and premièred at the Royal Albert Hall in 2001. The production will be designed by Mark Bailey whose previous collaborations with Corder include Melody on the Move in 2003. Mark’s recent projects include Hamlet for Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and An Ideal Husband for Theatr Clwyd.

Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s classic fairy tale, The Snow Queen is a touching, gothic fairy tale which will be lavishly retold by English National Ballet.

The Snow Queen tells the tale of two young

The Snow Queen tells the tale of young friends, Kay and Gerda. Kay catches slivers of the Snow Queen’s shattered magic mirror in his eye and in his heart, and his character begins to change.

As Kay is spirited away to the Snow Queen’s palace, eternal winter descends on the village. Gerda searches the world over to find her friend. This fantastic journey finally takes her to the Snow Queen’s Palace inhabited by her magical court of wolves, white foxes, ice maidens and sprites. Gerda’s love for Kay releases him from the spell, the slivers of mirror fall from his eye and heart and the Snow Queen’s curse of eternal winter is broken.

Andersen’s fairy tales have inspired plays, ballets, films and many works of art. The Snow Queen was first published in 1844 and has since been translated into more than 80 languages.

Also on tour this season will be Derek Deane’s Swan Lake. Arguably the most popular ballet ever created, Swan Lake tells the story of Prince Siegfried’s powerful love for the Swan Queen, Odette, and their battle against the evil magician, Rothbart. Derek Deane’s traditional production brings the romance and high drama of the grand Russian ballet tradition alive. Swan Lake is set to Tchaikovsky’s magnificent score, which features some of the most beautiful music in the classical ballet repertoire.

This Swan Lake was originally produced for English National Ballet by Derek Deane in 2000, based on a reworking of his 1997 in the round version. The in the round production has recently enjoyed full houses at the Royal Albert Hall and has delighted audiences of nearly 400,000 in the ten years since its premiere. Excerpts from this production will feature in Concert for Diana in Wembley Stadium on 1 July. The proscenium arch production was last seen in London in 2001 and on tour in Edinburgh in 2006. -- www.ballet.org.uk