The Sandman Tour

THE SANDMAN - trailer from Rae Piper on Vimeo.

In The Sandman Cometh - Chantry Dance's New Full Length Ballet 20 Nov 2016 I mentioned the Chantry Dance Company's first full-length ballet. The company has now posted a short trailer to Vimeo which you can see above.  The libretto appears to be based on Hans Christian Anderson's  The Sandman or Ole Lukøje which I discussed in Chantry Dance Company's Sandman and Dream Dance 10 May 2014 when Paul Chantry and Rae Piper danced a one-act version of the story.

With Sir Matthew Bourne's The Red Shoes touring the country (see The Red Shoes Second Time Round 4 Dec 2016) and a new production of The Little Mermaid by David Nixon for Northern Ballet opening on 21 Sep 2017 at Southampton, this is the year for Hans Christian Anderson.

The Sandman will open in Grantham two days later and visit Worcester, Greenwich, Stamford, Horsham and Andover in the next two weeks.

Chantry Dance will also be at Move It in the Excel Centre on Saturday 11 March at 15:45 where Paul Chantty and Rae Piper will teach an advanced contemporary ballet repertoire class based on The Stacked Deck which they performed last year. Theoretically, tickets for the class can be booked through the Ticket Factory website and perhaps you can if you have the patience of Job and time on your hands.

Ulysses Unbound

Yesterday, scientists from Queen Mary University of London reported evidence of an exoplanet slightly heavier than the earth orbiting our nearest star at a distance that could sustain life. Nature, a publication not given to hyperbole, described the discovery as fulfilling "a longstanding dream of science-fiction writers — a potentially habitable world that is close enough for humans to send their first interstellar spacecraft" (see Alexandra Witze "Earth-sized planet around nearby star is astronomy dream come true" 24 Aug 2016 Nature).

Witze quoted the lead researcher, Guillem Anglada-Escudé: “The search for life starts now.”  What better timing for the premiere next month of Chantry Dance's Ulysses Unbound at Grantham's Gravity Fields science fair, Despite its title, Ulysses Unbound owes nothing to James Joyce:

"The last astronaut has left a dying earth in search of a new home. In a thrilling cascade of stunning characters, costumes and imagery, he witnesses the birth of a new star and finds himself on an alien world, populated by very alien creatures!
This extraordinary ballet combines an exciting original soundtrack with contemporary ballet danced by an exceptional international cast. Through the fascinating choreography the dancers interpret cosmic events, from the evolution of a star to the formation of a deadly black hole."

A few days ago I would have called that plot science fiction but after yesterday's discovery I would suggest that it now has a possible basis in science.

This is not the first work by Chantry Dance that has been inspired  by the heavens. Their contribution to the 2014 festival, Chasing the Eclipse, starring Dominic North and Rae Piper had an astronomical theme. A number of journalists have already speculated that the discovery of this exoplanet could be the discovery of the century. If they are correct it would be appropriate for this year coincides with the 350th anniversary of the annus mirabilis in which Sir Isaac Newton carried out not far from Grantham some of his best work (see About Us on the Gravity Fields website).

Ulysses Unbound was created by Paul Chantry and Rae Piper to an original score by Tim Mountain who wrote the music for Chasing the Eclipse. Rae Piper has also created the designs for Ulysses Unbound.

The work will be performed with The Stacked Deck, another work by Piper and Chantry based on game theory:

"Life is a harsh game - sometimes it’s difficult to win with the hand you’re dealt. But is it actually about howwe play the game?
Inspired by the concept of Game Theory and the theme of equality, ‘The Stacked Deck’ is based on a combative game of cards which four players are all desperate to win. Each time a hand is dealt, the players are given a different scenario to face. How they chose to play their hand will determine the final prize.
Intense, raw and gripping, with the dancers radiating primal physicality, this ballet challenges us to look at how we all play the ‘game’"

The double bill open at the Guildhall Arts Centre on 21 Sept 2016 before going on to Stamford,  Birmingham, Worcester and Woolwich.  Sadly they won't be in the North this year. We have got to do something to tempt them here

A Good Month for Chantry Dance

Chantry Dance at Move It 2016   Standard YouTube Licence


Move It 2016 was billed as "The UK's Biggest Dance Event ...... with 22,000 dancers - three days - performances, classes, career advice, celebrities, interviews and shopping!"  I visited the show on Sunday and described it in MOVE IT 2016 24 March 2016. One of the events that took place the previous day was a performance on the main stage by Chantry School of Contemporary and Balletic Arts. To share that stage with the likes of Darcey Bussell, Elena Glurdjidze and BalletBoyz is a singular distinction and one that reflects the growing reputation of the School.

Even more significant in my book is the patronage that the School has received from Sarah Kundi (see the Patrons page). I have been following her ever since she was at Northern Ballet and it was she who led me to Ballet Black (see Why Ballet Black is special 20 May 2013) and MurleyDance (see  Something to brighten up your Friday - MurleyDance is coming to the North 8 Nov 2013). I was almost heartbroken when I feared that we would have to travel to Madrid to see her again (see Bye Bye and All the Best 10 June 2014) and overjoyed when I learned that she was staying after all (see
Saved for the Nation 17 July 2014). The last time I saw her was as Lady Capulet in English National Ballet's Romeo and Juliet in Manchester where she was magnificent (see Manchester's Favourite Ballet Company 29 Nov 2015). Kundi is one of three young British women dancers who move my spirit in a very special way (the others if you are interested are Birmingham's Ruth Brill and Northern's Rachael Gillespie). As I have said, before when Kundi dances I float.

Kundi is not the only fine dancer to be a patron of the Chantry School. Dominic North is another. He, like Kundi, trained with Paul Chantry at Central School of Ballet. North will attend a special studio naming ceremony on 17 April 2016 at DancePointe in Grantham where Chantry Dance are based. The great ballerina, Deborah Bull, who is now Director of Cultural Partnerships at King's College, London, and Robert Parker, Artistic Director of Elmhurst who also flies aeroplanes, will be there too. I last saw Parker on stage at the Hippodrome at the double bill to mark the 25th anniversary of the Sadler's Well Royal Ballet's move to Birmingham and the 20th anniversary of David Bintley's appointment as that company's Artistic Director (see In Praise of Bintley 21 June 2015).

One of the reasons why the Chantry School attracts such support is that it is attached to the Chantry Dance Company. Last autumn the company toured England with its Duology double bill which I caught at Halifax (see my review Duology 29 Sept 2015). One of the works that comprised that programme was Vincent - a stranger to himself which Paul Chantry created. The company's other contribution to MOVE IT 2016 was a class based on that piece.  That took place at the LSC studio by the double decker London bus on Friday and it must have been a wonderful experience for everyone who took part.

The company is planning another Autumn tour of the Midlands and London this Autumn featuring two new works Ulysses Unbound and The Stacked Deck. Sadly they will not make it to the North this time but perhaps we can tempt them to Leeds or Manchester for a workshop or other event one of these days.