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Northern Ballet Generations Three Short Ballets 16 Sept 2023 14:00
Tomorrow Northern Ballet will dance Benjamin Ella's Joie de Vivre, Hans van Manen's Adagio Hammerklavier and Tiler Peck's Intimate Pages at the Linbury. Those who are fortunate enough to obtain tickets are in for a treat. I saw the show at the Stanley and Audrey Burton Theatre in Leeds on 16 Sept 2023. I have to think back to the first time I saw A Simple Man nearly 40 years ago for a show by Northern Ballet that I have enjoyed as much.
In his foreword to the programme, Federico Bonelli wrote how much he had been looking forward to the moment when he could present a programme of his own to reflect his ambitions for Northern Ballet in the years to come. Each of the works that the company danced had a connection with the Bonelli. Adagio Hammerklavier was a reminder of his time with the Dutch National Ballet, Joie de Vivre of his career at the Royal Ballet and Intimate Pages of his guest appearances around the world.
In his foreword to the programme, Federico Bonelli wrote how much he had been looking forward to the moment when he could present a programme of his own to reflect his ambitions for Northern Ballet in the years to come. Each of the works that the company danced had a connection with the Bonelli. Adagio Hammerklavier was a reminder of his time with the Dutch National Ballet, Joie de Vivre of his career at the Royal Ballet and Intimate Pages of his guest appearances around the world.
My favourite work of the three was Adagio Hammerklavier. I had seen it online as part of the Dutch National Ballet's Hans van Manen's Variations which were screened from an almost empty Music Theatre on 27 and 28 Feb 2023. In my review of that performance, I referred to a panel discussion in the Stanley and Audrey Forum in 2015 when a critic who really should have known better opined that Beethoven is impossible to choreograph (see My Thoughts on Saturday Afternoon's Panel Discussion at Northern Ballet 21 June 2015). It was glorious to watch a ballet set to Beethoven's music in the same theatre in which it had been declared impossible.
In my humble opinion, van Manen is the world's greatest living choreographer. I had the enormous good fortune to shake his hand at the Dutch National Ballet's gala in June 2022. This is not the first time Northern Ballet has performed his work The company performed Concertante in 2013 and on being asked what he thought of the dancers he replied that he liked them very much indeed (see YouTube Dance Master Hans van Manen on Concertante & Northern Ballet), There is now a new generation of dancers at Northern Ballet and I think he would like today's artists even more. The first couple in Adagio Hammerklavier were Amber Lewis and Jonathan Hanks, the second Alessandra Bramante and George Liang and the third Dominique Larose and Joseph Taylor. The pianist was Colin Scott. They danced with flair and precision and I think van Manen would have liked them too,
In my humble opinion, van Manen is the world's greatest living choreographer. I had the enormous good fortune to shake his hand at the Dutch National Ballet's gala in June 2022. This is not the first time Northern Ballet has performed his work The company performed Concertante in 2013 and on being asked what he thought of the dancers he replied that he liked them very much indeed (see YouTube Dance Master Hans van Manen on Concertante & Northern Ballet), There is now a new generation of dancers at Northern Ballet and I think he would like today's artists even more. The first couple in Adagio Hammerklavier were Amber Lewis and Jonathan Hanks, the second Alessandra Bramante and George Liang and the third Dominique Larose and Joseph Taylor. The pianist was Colin Scott. They danced with flair and precision and I think van Manen would have liked them too,
I was not the only one to relish that ballet. In the second interval, I spotted Bonelli standing on his own so I introduced myself. As I was telling him about my blog Janet Mclty of BalletcoForum joined us. She like me had been impressed by van Manen and she asked the director whether we could have more van Manen, ideally one of his ballets in every mixed bill. Bonelli did not think that would be possible but said that it was a very nice idea and I agree.
Joie de Vivre was light, fresh and exuberant - a perfect start to a triple bill. The score consisted of 8 violin and piano concertos performed live by Geoffrey Allan and Ewan Gilford. Ella described it as "a poem or epigram of human feelings, emotions or reactions." Three couples performed this work: Dominique Larose and Joseph Taylor, Sarah Chun and Harris Beattie, Kirica Takahashi and Jun Ishii. Finally, I should say a word for the costumes and lighting which were exquisite.
The last piece was choreographed to Leoš Janáček's String Quartet No. 2 Intimate Letters and again we had a live string quartet consisting of Geoffrey Allan, Helen Boordman, Rosalyn Cabot and Toby Turton. The music was plaintive and haunting. Peck explained in the programme notes that the composer wrote it with a love interest in mind. The piece requires a main couple, two soloists and three couples. Sarah Chun and Harris Beattie were the main couple. Aerys Merrill and Kirica Takahashi were the soloists. The couples were Julie Nunes and Stefano Varalta, Kaho Masumoto and Archie Sherman and Helen Bogatch and Bruno Serraclara.
Just before the show I watched the dancers in company class. They looked happy, energetic and motivated.
Just before the show I watched the dancers in company class. They looked happy, energetic and motivated.