In March we return to the Richmond Theatre following sell-out performances in 2006 and in April we're delighted to be performing Alice in Wonderland at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff, our first visit to Wales since 1996.
Oscar Wilde's The Canterville Ghost: Stoke-on-Trent, High Wycombe, Sadler's Wells
Will Tuckett's production of Oscar Wilde's The Canterville Ghost premiered in May 2006 and delighted audiences both young and old. Tuckett has built up a reputation for creating theatrical and child friendly production which include The Wind in The Willows and Pinocchio. His work never fails to enthral pleasing audiences and critics alike.
Designed to bring to English National Ballet's repertoire a new family ballet, this production is filled with humour, spooks and imaginative choreography. Actor Tom Baker is narrator of Michael West's script and Martin Ward, composer of Tuckett's The Wind in The Willows and Pinocchio, created the score. Sue Blane designed the costumes, using Wilde's Edwardian setting as inspiration and reaching into her vivid imagination to depict the characters of the underworld. The Canterville Ghost is the perfect introduction for the whole family to the magic of ballet.
Melody on the Move - Triple Bill: Stoke-on-Trent, High Wycombe, Sadler's Wells
Melody on the Move is a mixed bill of Michael Corder's Melody on the Move, David Dawson's A Million Kisses to my Skin and Christopher Hampson's Sinfonietta Giocosa. A Million Kisses to my Skin has previously been performed, to rave reviews, by the Dutch National and Royal New Zealand Ballets. This inventive and fast-moving ballet is set to Bach's Concerto No. 1 in D minor.
Christopher Hampson's Sinfonietta Giocosa was premiered by Altanta Ballet in New York in March 2006. This is its first staging in the UK. The piece is set to music by Bohuslav Martinu, with designs by Bruce French and lighting by Robert Hand Junior. Christopher Hampson trained at the Royal Ballet School and danced with English National Ballet from 1992 to 1999. His previous choreographic credits for the Company include Perpetuum Mobile in 1997 and Double Concerto in 2001 which won the Barclays/TMA Outstanding Achievement in Dance Award 2002. Hampson's 2002 production of The Nutcracker remains in English National Ballet's repertoire and opens Christmas at the Coliseum 2006.
Michael Corder's Melody on the Move is set to golden oldies from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. It is a celebration in dance, music and theatre of a bygone era, providing an exhilarating and joyful step back in time. The music is by Haydn Wood, Clive Richardson, Robert Farnon, Ronald Binge, Trevor Duncan and Eric Coates. Design is by Mark Bailey and lighting by Paul Pyant.
A Million Kisses to my Skin - Richmond 2007
The Spring Season continues onto Richmond for performances at the Richmond Theatre in March, following sell-out performances in 2006. The British theme continues with Sinfonietta Giocosa and A Million Kisses to my Skin, joined by Ben Stevenson's Three Preludes, Kenneth MacMillan's Concerto, and Hans Van Manen's Trois Gnossiennes.
Three Preludes is a romantic and lyrical pas de deux set to Rachmaninov which shows the awakening of love between two young dancers as they practise class in a ballet studio. Kenneth MacMillan's sparkling Concerto has become one of the legendary choreographer's most popular works, set to Shostakovich's Second Piano Concerto. Hans Van Manen's Trois Gnossiennes is a short pas de deux set to Eric Satie in which the dancers' relationship develops from initial wariness to final harmony.
Derek Deane's Alice in Wonderland
English National Ballet is delighted to return to Wales for the first time in 10 years with Derek Deane's Alice in Wonderland. In April 2007 English National Ballet will take over the Wales Millennium Centre with the magical production of Alice in Wonderland last seen at the London Coliseum in 2006/07. The enchantment and magic of Lewis Carroll's classic book are sensationally brought to life in this captivating show. The costumes and set designs are by Sue Blane. Breathtaking on-stage illusions from Paul Kieve and a wonderful Tchaikovsky score specially arranged by Carl Davis.
Derek Deane's Swan Lake
English National Ballet returns to the Royal Albert Hall to perform its classic production of Derek Deane's Swan Lake in the round from 13 - 23 June 2007. This will be the fifth season in which the ballet has been performed in the round and will feature more than 120 dancers on a stage viewed from all sides. Derek Deane originally produced this version of Swan Lake for English National Ballet in May 1997 and it has since delighted audiences of over 350,000 around the world.
Set to Tchaikovsky's classic music, played by an orchestra of more than 80 musicians, this spectacular production features acrobats, jugglers and 60 swans gliding across the arena. The dramatic narrative of Prince Siegfried's fight for the love of the queen of the swans Odette is told through sumptuous sets and costume designs and choreography that uses the vast and unusual space to great effect.
Wayne Eagling, English National Ballet's Artistic Director, said:
"The Spring Tour really shows both the diversity of our work and the breadth of our audience appeal. By performing in towns such as Stoke on Trent, with more limited opportunities to host national touring ballet companies, and in landmark dance theatres such as Sadler's Wells in central London, a wonderfully wide range of people will see these shows. English National Ballet strives to bring ballet to everyone - from experimental pieces to family ballets, we believe everyone can enjoy this rewarding art form."Â -- www.ballet.org.uk
Posted January 27th, 2007 by ruzik_tuzik
