Northern Ballet's Romeo and Juliet

It is always a thrill to see Northern Ballet close at hand. I saw them today as my classmates and I filed out of a rehearsal studio that they were about to occupy. Their next production will be Romeo and Juliet which they will dance in Edinburgh between the 26 and 28 Feb 2015 and Leeds between the 4th and 12th March 2015.

This work has been choreographed by Jean-Christophe Maillot for Les Ballets de Monte Carlo. You can get an impression of the work from the YouTube clip above. The synopsis promises a major role for Friar Lawrence who is described as "the vital thread that links the drama from one part to another" in the scenario. According to the website:

"He represents a figure in a trinity, caught between good and evil, tossed between chance and necessity, will and power. A manipulator who is manipulated, he is the story’s primary architect, through whom the tragedy is caused, even as he believes he has given over the key to happiness. Thus he appears from the beginning of Act One to show how much the story of Romeo and Juliet, their deaths as much as their meeting and even their love, owes to chance. He is the agent of the drama which begins in a street in Verona."

I wonder who will dance that role.

Scotland is also being treated to another Romeo and Juliet.   Ballet West are touring Scotland with their version (see Ballet West on the Road 14 Jan 2015). I shall see them at Stirling this Saturday and will review the performance at the weekend. Scottish Ballet performed Pastor's version at Sadler's Wells in May which I  enjoyed very much (Scottish Ballet's Timeless Romeo and Juliet 18 May 2014). Now that I am a Friend of the Dutch National Ballet I look forward to more of Pastor's work.