Eun-Me Ahn Dance Company DragonsAlhambra Theatre, Bradford 22 Mar 2025 19:30
The phrase "Hic Sunt Dracones" (Here be Dragons) appeared on an early 16th-century globe to indicate unexplored regions. I mention it because the show is called Dragons. That early cartographer's term is apt to describe the performance of the Eun-Me Ahn Dance Company at the Bradford Alhambra on 22 Mar 2025 because it defied classification. It was presented by Dance Consortium as contemporary dance, but it was also a light show with holograms and special effects.
Eun Me Ahn, who was born in Seoul in 1963, is a South Korean dancer and choreographer. Her company consists of 7 Korean dancers. She describes her company's work in an interview for Dance Consortium on YouTube. For its tour of the UK, her company has teamed up with 5 young artists from other East Asian countries, all of whom were born at the turn of the millennium.
The show starts quietly with a single figure slowly crossing the stage, manipulating what seems to be a pneumatic tube. After exiting to the right, a second figure appears and then more. In the course of the show, still and moving images are projected onto a gauze screen at the front of the stage. These seem to mingle with the dancers so that it is impossible to distinguish between illusion and reality.
To describe the show as controversial would be an understatement. A couple from Skegness whom I had met in the bar before the show did not appreciate it at all. Others found it exhilarating. Like the unknown regions in the 16th-century globe, it was on the edge of expectations.
I wish I could say more about Eun-Me Ahn and her company. I could not buy a programme in the theatre and I found very little on the internet. My most intriguing find is a page of links to Dragons and other works on the Gadja Productions website. Some of these have very odd names like "Dancing Grandmothers" and "Dancing Middle-Aged Men". I recommend North Korea Dance, which combines marching with fan and other traditional folk dances.
asekhaya Standard YouTube Licence Birmingham Royal Ballet Giselle28 Sept 2019 Birmingham Hippodrome 19:30 Dasa Masilo Giselle12 Oct 2019 Bradford Alhambra 19:30
I have seen two fine productions of Giselle: David Bintley's for the Birmingham Royal Ballet at the Birmingham Hippodrome on 28 Sept 2019 and Dada Masilo's at the Bradford Alhambra last night. Both were impressive even though they could not have been more different.
Bintley's was a direct descendant of Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot's of 1841 with Marius Petipa's modifications. He created his version in collaboration with Galina Samsova who would have studied the lead role in Ukraine before performing it herself to great acclaim with the company that is now known as the English National Ballet in London. According to Susan Turner's note for Birmingham Royal Ballet's programme, Samsova found a tape in which Anton Dolin,Galina Ulanova and Alicia Alonso had recorded their recollections of the ballet which influenced Bintley too. Turner noted that he and Samsova set out to create a "proper Giselle" in contrast to Arthur Mitchell's for the Dance Theatre of Harlem, Mats Ek's for the Paris Opera or. now, Akram Khan's for English National.
With breathtaking designs by Hayden Griffiths and ingenious lighting by Mark Jonathan, Bintley succeeded spectacularly. The set for the first act with its apparently flowing waterfall was particularly arresting as the audience awaited Hilarion with his offering of game as well as Albrecht and his squire, Wilfred. For some reason, principals at the Hippodrome appear not to be applauded when they first appear. I experienced quizzical looks from fellow audience members when, instinctively, I began to clap Brandon Lawrence's entry on stage. I was more careful when Celine Gittens appeared at her door shortly afterwards.
Gittens was outstanding in the title role. An accomplished actor as well as virtuoso, it was hard to stay dry-eyed as she glided inexorably towards her fate. First, the plucking of the petals, the heart murmurs, the warning from her mother, feeling the hem of Bathikde's garment and finally the deception as Hilarion produced Albrecht's sword and Albrecht acknowledged his posh betrothed.
Lawrence also impressed me as he always does. He is a powerful dancer magnificent in his solos. I am not sure that Albrecht is his most natural role but he discharged it well. He came into his own in the second act with his soaring leaps and graceful turns.
Crucial to the success of any Giselle is a strong Myrtha for it is she who commands the wilis and indeed the audience. Her role is technically difficult requiring considerable strength and stamina. She must be tall, icy and aetherial. Yijing Zhang performed that role with flair.
I must also commend Matthias Dingmann and Yanquian Shang for their peasant pas de deux, Alexander Yap for his performance as Hilarion and Jonathan Pain as a worthy Wilfred. My companion who is a sports fan likes to choose a man or woman of the match when she watches a ballet and she chose Payn. Finally, I must also congratulate the corps for their highly polished performance. A lot is asked of them in Giselle and they gave their all. Bentley's was indeed a proper Giselle and one of the best.
I approached the Alhambra with a degree of trepidation for I love Giselle and would have hated to see it spoilt. While I am intrigued by innovation I detest change for change's sake. A choreographer who reimagines a classical ballet plays with fire so far as I am concerned. Ted Brandson got away with it with his Coppelia as did David Dawson with Scottish Ballet's Swan Lake. Others have been much less successful.
Masilo's reworking of Giselle succeeded for me in a way that Akram Khan's did not. I attended the premiere at The Palace three years ago have never been tempted back. By contrast, I have already booked my ticket at The Lowry to see Masilo again. Though transposed to the banks of a lake in rural Africa it was still recognizably Giselle. There were a few tweaks to the story. Obviously, Albrecht did not carry a sword. Instead, his smart trousers indicated his rank. Hilarion appears to have been Berthe's choice for an arranged marriage. She is nothing like the kind concerned mum in the traditional story. The mad scene is particularly poignant with Giselle reduced to nakedness on learning of Albrecht's betrayal. It is followed by her funeral to the haunting music of a beautiful Zulu hymn. The biggest change was with the wilis half of whom are men. Clad in identical raspberry costumes they are fiendish creatures. Myrtha, their leader, a sangoma, is danced by a man. In this version, Albrecht is shown no mercy. Giselle takes an elephant whip to him. The show ends with Giselle scattering white dust over his grave.
One of the reasons why I think Masilo's Giselle worked was her choice of score. She commissioned the South African composer, Philip Miller, to combine Western and traditional African instruments in a composition that was rooted in Africa but quoted Adam at many points. Sometimes it was just a chord. At other times a phrase or melody.
It was clear from their turnout and posture that all the dancers were classically trained but their steps were very different. There were hardly any jumps, precious few lifts, no pointework so far as I could see and not a single grand jeté. There were dialogues and soliloquies and plenty of grunts. But I think it would still be fair to call it ballet. And it was certainly gripping theatre. Unlike traditional Giselles, there was no break between act one and two, It was one of the tensest 80 minutes I can remember.
Masilo herself danced Giselle and like Gittens, she can act as well as dance, Her Albrecht was Lwando Dutyulwa. One of those most gripping moments of the show was a fight with Hilarion danced by Thshepo Zasakhaya. Also impressive was Berthe, nothing like the caring, considerate mummy in the traditional show. A three-dimensional character danced by Sinazo Bokolo. Though very different from the usual Myrtha, Llewellyn Mnguni commanded the stage at least as much as any other.
As I have seen nearly as many Giselles as I have had hot dinners I had no difficulty in following the libretto but that was not true of everybody in the audience. Even though I can understand why there was no interval I think it would have welcomed by the audience. There is only so much the senses can absorb at once. There were folk in the theatre who had never seen any other Giselle whose enjoyment would have been enhanced with a fuller synopsis and a better explanation of the cultural allusions. But Masilo is a remarkable dancer and choreographer and I can't wait to see her work again.
Any comparison between the work of one of our national companies and Masilo would be invidious and I am not going to try. I left both theatres on a high. Both versions of Giselle have their strengths. I learned a little bit about both works from seeing the other.
Standard YouTube Licence Rambert Triple Bill:A Linha Curva, Ghost Dances and Goat, 16 Nov 2017 Alhambra
One of the most memorable shows that I attended in 2017 was Rambert's triple bill at the Alhambra which I saw on Friday 16 Nov. The company presented three works:
Three very different works and it seemed to me that all had a loose connection with Latin America.
My favourite work of the evening was A Linha Curva. I had seen it at The Lowry the year before (see Red Hot Rambert1 Oct 2016). I loved it then:
"Rambert's party piece on Thursday was A Linha Curva. The stage consisted of percussionists in a box above the dancers. The work began with chants by male dancers in gigantic, reflective metallic collars which was answered by calls and screeches from the women. The stage exploded into a carnival of movement fuelled by the relentless beat of the musicians. The effect was quite hypnotic and the performers' vitality and vivacity were infectious."
I loved it even more the second time round for its colour and energy. I loved the chanting, the screeching and the rhythm. Such a contrast to the other two works which, while beautiful, were much more sobering.
Christopher Bruce created Ghost Dances in 1981 when Leopoldo Galtieri held power in Argentina and Augusto Pinochet. Both used death squads to remove political opponents. Spooks who visited opponents in the middle of the night and spirited their victims away. The faceless skeletons moving to panpipes could easily represent them at one level. At another level, they could represent the spirits of the dead in the belief systems of the Andean tribes that had been transposed only imperfectly into the religion of the Conquistadors. At either level it was a very disturbing work reminding audiences of their mortality and vulnerability. But at the same time it was also eerily beautiful with elegant jumps. I should like to see it again - but not in a hurry.
The last work was also disturbing. The "goat" in this piece had two legs not four. The human goat was chosen for much the same purpose as a scapegoat. Duke explained in the programme notes:
“In the village where I was brought up there was a tradition on New Year’s Eve of writing on a piece of paper two things you wanted to rid yourself of – it could be something bad that had happened to you, or something bad that you had done. The pieces of paper were placed inside a can which was tied to the tail of a goat. The goat was supposed to disappear over the horizon and take our sins with it. Usually it ran for five seconds or so then stopped to eat some grass. Some years it came running back towards us…”
There was a lot going on in this work. A running commentary from one of the dancers and dialogue from others. Some dance, of course, and a lot of singing on stage. According to Ben Duke's YouTube clip, rehearsals started immediately after the London Bridge terror outrage. It is in thus a commentary on the role of art in the politics of the times.
Not exactly a laugh a minute but life is brief for all and insecure for many and it does no harm occasionally to be reminded of that.
Happily, that is exactly what we can expect for Northern Ballet will dance three of Sir Kenneth's works at the Bradford Alhambra between the 5 and 7 Oct 2017. An excellent venue for the Alhambra is arguably Yorkshire's finest theatre by a country mile. The ballets that the company will perform are:
Concerto and Las Hermanas were originally created for German companies though Las Hermanas found its way into the repertoires of Western Theatre Ballet (now Scottish Ballet) and The Royal Ballet where I first saw it. Gloria was created for The Royal Ballet shortly after he had ceased to be that company's artistic director.
Nothern Ballet also plans to dance the triple bill in Leeds next year.
Standard YouTube Licence
In The Year of the Swans: My Review of 201627 Dec 2016 I wrote that two of the highlights of the year were the visits by NDT2 (see NDT2 at the Lowry 24 April 2016 andPrickling - NDT2 in Bradford 1 May 2016) and Alvin Ailey (see Alvin Ailey in Bradford 29 Sept 2016 and Alvin Ailey in Bradford 8 Oct 2016) to the Alhambra and Lowry. The Alhambra and Lowry are members of a group of theatres in Great Britain and Ireland known as Dance Consortium that collaborate to bring leading dance companies from around the world to the UK and Republic of Ireland. Their website is worth visiting not just for news of current tours but also for the vast accumulation of articles, videos and other resources on dance companies, choreographers and artists to be accessed through the Features page.
This year, the Dance Consortium will bring two Latin American companies to this country:
There are very interesting companies and I look forward to seeing both.
The Cuban company will present three works that have not yet been seen in the UK: Reversible by Annabelle López Ochoa, The Listening Room by Theo Clinkard and Matria Etnocentra by George Céspedes. Reversible is described by the Dance Consortium website as:
"Hot Cuban passions, sass and wit all meet in Reversible by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa. It delves deep into the path of gender matters, sudden changes in relationships, the games, rivalry and pleasure of being opponents and dissidents. To an eclectic soundtrack including music by Jean-Claude Kerinec & Staff Elmeddah, Kroke, Scanner and Eric Vaarzon Morel, Reversible is a captivating comment on gender, spoken in Lopez Ochoa’s trademark quirky style, this time with a Cuban accent."
The Listening Room was partly funded by the British Council as part of the Islas Creatvas collaboration between the UK and Cuba. The music is by Steve Reich and the work is described as "a celebration of expressive and instinctive dancing" with the dancers in headphones responding to an alternate soundtrack of wildly diverse music and text. Matria Etnocentra is said to portray "the tension between the fluidity of music and dance and the regimented nature of daily life in Cuba."
Having travelled extensively through Argentina in 1988 and 1998 I am particularly looking forward to Cherkaoui's m¡longa. According to Wikipedia
"Milonga dance incorporates the same basic elements as Tango but permits a greater relaxation of legs and body. Movement is normally faster, and pauses are less common. It is usually a kind of rhythmic walking without complicated figures, with a more humorous and rustic style in contrast with the serious and dramatic Tango."
Choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui consists of 10 tango dancers from Buenos Aires, two contemporary dancers and a tango band of five musicians. This dance form is enthralling almost hypnotic to watch. Its antecedents are unknown but it developed in the area of Buenos Aires known as La Boca (or "Mouth") which has a history as colourful as the decoration of its houses.
On World Ballet Day the video showed rehearsals for a new ballet called Le Songewhich was premiered yesterday at the China National Centre for the Performing Arts. The company will move on to Tianjin and Shanghai. The first performances in Europe will take place at the Théâtre National de Nice on 21 and 22 Jan 2017. This ballet is based on Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream and uses Mendelssohn's Midsummer Night's Dream as Ashton.
One of the ways in which maillot's Romeo and Juliet differed from other productions is the enhanced role he gave to Friar Lawrence and, as you can see from the first of those reviews, that role was danced very impressively by Isaac Lee Baker, Isaac has now joined Les Ballets de Monte Carlo (see his profile on the company's website) and I think I glimpsed him in the rehearsals for Le Songe, He is certainly on the Royal Ballet's video (1 hour 52 minutes) in its Chance to Dance slot. Sadly, we won't get to see Isaac as Friar Lawrence. Northern has not yet announced its cast list for Bradford but we should get someone good judging by the chaps who danced it in Sheffield, Belfast, Woking and Canterbury.
Alvin Ailey founded Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre in 1958. He contributed nearly 80 works to that company before he died in 1989. I was introduced to his work by American Ballet Theatre which danced The River when when ABT visited London in the early 1970s. I have been an admirer ever since. In creating his work Ailey drew on all sorts of dance and musical traditions that flourished in the United States in his time including ballet and modern dance. "What I like" he is reported as saying "is the line and technical range that classical ballet gives to the body. But I still want to project to the audience the expressiveness that only modern dance offers, especially for the inner kinds of things." The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre continues that approach which was reflected in yesterday's programme that included a classical pas de deux by Christopher Wheeldon and hip hop by Rennie Harris as well as two of Ailey's best known works.
The evening began with Exodus which was an explosion of sound and movement. It continued after a short interval with Ailey's Night Creature which he created to the music of Duke Ellington in 1974 for television and launched on stage the following year. A graceful work with swirling couples, jazz rhythms, balletic steps, gorgeous costumes - classic Ailey. The lights dimmed for a few minutes before Sarah Daley and Jamar Roberts performed After the Rain pas de Deux which was my favourite work of the evening. A classical piece with soaring lifts by two beautiful and well matched dancers to Arvo Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel. Wheeldon created the work in 2005 for an evening to honour Balanchine but had I been asked to guess the choreographer I would have attributed it to Balanchine himself. The show finished with Revelations which like the first work is inspired by African-American spirituals. It consists of 10 separate works each created on a different spiritual. I liked them all but Sinner Man danced by Jeroboam Bozeman, Sean Aaaron Carmon and Renaldo Maurice impressed me particularly. Even though the Alhambra was less than full the applause was deafening. The dancers were cheered back for an encore which they delivered exuberantly.
As there is so much dance in the North this Autumn I had planned to see the company only once but I can't possibly leave it at that. They will be at the Lowry very soon where they will perform a different programme. As soon as this review is published I will be on the blower for tickets. The company's next stops will be Nottingham, Cardiff, Salford, Southampton, Canterbury and Edinburgh. Whatever else you see this year you must not miss Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre.
(c) 2016 Nederlands Dans Theater, all rights reserved Reproduction licensed by the company
NDT2, Mixed Programme, Alhambra, 30 April 2016
I saw Nederlands Dans Theater 2 at the Alhambra last night and enjoyed their performance in Bradford even more than their show at The Lowry (see NBT2 at the Lowry 24 April 2016). Yet again my favourite was van Manen's Soloand once again I was dazzled by the virtuosity of Gregory Lau but I also appreciated the other works a little more, particularly Sad Case, Mutual Comfort and Cactiand I was impressed by the other dancers, especially Katerina van den Wouwer and Alice Godfrey. Some Other Time was omitted from the Bradford programme but otherwise it was the same as the one in Salford.
Despite its title there was nothing particularly sad about Sad Case. The Latin American music was exuberant and the pace fast. Voices could be heard speaking Spanish: a count down, then something that sounded like a dialogue from one of the Spanish language TV soaps of the kind you often find on the hotel telly when you have just landed from a Transatlantic flight, an ecstatic "Ay, yai, yai, yai" and finally an "ay, yai, yai, yai" with the stress on the final "yai". The audience exploded in mirth. Thoughts of the breakfast scene from When Harry Met Sally perhaps. This was a work that involved the whole company. It was vibrant and fast. I wish I could see it again soon.
Edward Clug's Mutual Comfort followed after the first break. close intense dancing by van den Wouwer and Godfrey with Benjamin Behrends and Lau. I particularly liked Milko Lazar music with its incessant, compulsive beat. It was a short but powerful work. I had not fully realized just how good it was first time round as I had been waiting for Solo. This time I think I did it justice.
Solo was as exciting in Bradford as it had been in Salford and it raised the biggest applause. The house was less than full yesterday but you would never have guessed that from the noise that they made. Yet again it was Lau who raised the biggest cheer.
As is Salford, the whole of the last part was taken up by Cacti. It was introduced by the droning of an American male voice which might have come from an anthropology lecture at a US junior college or, worse, a low budget TV show. I could not make head or tail of what he was saying but that was probably the choreographer's idea. There were scenes of the whole company on wooden platforms conducting what seemed to be some meaningless ritual. Then a cackle of laughter, more simian than human. Then a dialogue between a man and a woman on dividing their assets including a lifeless cat which fell from the ceiling, The American voice could be heard at the end. "This is the end", "I know this is the end", "I know" with added frustration as the dancers kept dancing. It was a fine work to a fine score - particularly the Beethoven - and some dramatic scenes such as this one towards the end.
(c) 2016 Nederlands Dans Theater, all rights reserved Reproduction licensed by the company
Sadly, the company has finished its run in the North and is now moving on to the Hippodrome, Plymouth, Nottingham, Brighton and Sadler's Wells. Most of the young dancers in NDT2 will graduate to the main company soon but they will be replaced by a new intake whom I look forward to seeing soon.
Standard YouTube Licence Northern Ballet, Wuthering Heights, Alhambra, Bradford 21 Nov 2015
I inserted a photo of Top Withens near Haworth into my review of Northern Ballet's performance of Wuthering Heights at the Sheffield Lyceum as it is said to be the inspiration for Emily Brontë's novel. Haworth is in the metropolitan district of Bradford and the Alhambra is the nearest theatre to that township. No doubt that is one of the reasons why Northern Ballet premièred David Nixon's ballet in that theatre to less than ecstatic reviews at the time (see Ismene Brown's Lost in the Moors25 Sept 2002 in the Daily Telegraph and Judith Mackrell's Wuthering Heights25 Sept 2002 in the Guardian).
"I could well be alone in my commentary of this ballet. I cannot be representative of the good ladies who rushed to the front of the stage to offer a standing ovationat the close of this performance. Then perhaps this review be considered a response rather than critique – and here is the enigma of Wuthering Heights and the creative challenge of this particular story ballet."
And concludes:
"I know it: I have been unduly harsh on Northern Ballet’s Wuthering Heights – a ballet that may please many, many people. I hope it does. My response is indeed less critical judgement than personal experience. That is the thing with Wuthering Heights and with Heathcliff, who we really shouldn’t try to tame."
A lot of choreographers other than Nixon have tries to tame Wuthering Heights. Cathy Marston has created one for the Berne Ballet which you can see in this YouTube video. Deborah Dunn has created Nocturneswhich is said to be based on the novel (see Paula Citron's Cathy and Heathcliff in dance12 Jan 2011 The Globe and Mail). Kader Belarbu made Hurlevent for the Paris Opera Ballet in 2002 which was reviewed by Patricia Boccadoro for Culture Kiosque 22 April 2002. Although Northern Ballet's version seems to do well enough in the English regions, none of those productions have really taken off.
Like Carmen which I discussed in Au Revoir but not Adieu19 Nov 2015 Wuthering Heights has been very difficult to transpose into dance and probably for the same reason. Everyone loves Bizet's score and Mérimée, Each has his or her own interpretation of those works which seem to be violated by the choreography even of the calibre or Petit, Alonso or Acosta. It is the same with Brontë:
"The foundations of music, structure, costume, and above all, choreography, bore atone I disagreed with. This was not my Wuthering Heights. They lent to a feeling of romantic melodrama in classical gowns – when everything about Wuthering Heights for me is about being hungry and not having washed for days. Heathcliff – my Heathcliff – is full of dominance, violence and childhood hurt – yet the worst he does in Act I is knock a shuttlecock off play and drum on the table."
My own review of Nixon's work was much kinder than Emma's and I think that is because I am not really a fan of the novel and had no preconceptions for him to knock. I prefer Jane Austen, Elizabeth Gaskell, Sir Walter Scott and William Makepeace Thackeray to the Brontës any day of the week and if Nixon had made a ballet out of Emma or Persuasion my reaction might well have been the same as Emma's.
All that circumambulation is an introduction to the fact that I was at The Alhambra yesterday for the last performance of the current revival of Wuthering Heights with the same cast that I had seen in Sheffield. That was Northern Ballet's A Team: Tobias Batley as Heathcliff, Martha Leebolt as Cathy, Hironao Takahashi as Edgar, Hannah Bateman as Isabella and Pippa Moore as Ellen. The last performance of a flagship work by the company's stars after a successful provincial tour should have been brilliant and it was certainly OK. Bateman, now perhaps the strongest female dancer in the company, showed her considerable talent and expertise as a dancer and actor as the injured Isabella. It is a complex role that perhaps only she could do well. Takehashi showed his experience and authority in his role. Light, energetic and effervescent, Rachael Gillespie was a delight to watch and she was aptly rewarded in the reverence including a "brava" from me roared from the back of the stalls. Those three dancers made my evening.
Batley and Leeboilt were good too as they always are but their performance lacked fire. It was like watching World Ballet Day or even company class. Old ladies like me who sacrifice their widow's mite for ballet (now increased by 133% - see The Increasing Prince of Friendship14 Oct 2015) expect to float when we leave the theatre as I did on Friday when I saw Ballet Black (see Ballet Black's Return to Leeds21 Nov 2015) or on 12 Nov 2015 when I left the Linbury after seeing Phoenix (see The Phoenix Soars Over London13 Nov 2015). The reason I floated was that Ballet Black and Phoenix danced as though they were inspired as did Bateman, Takehashi and Gillespie yesterday. I swapped a ticket in the centre of row B of the Stanley and Audrey Burton for yesterday's performance of Ballet Black for one at the side of the top of the auditorium for Friday so that I could see the last performance of Wuthering Heights in Bradford. Had it not been for Bateman, Takehashi and Gillespie I think I would have regretted the exchange.
coordinating the provision of development, training and support for aspiring professional dancers, and
ensuring opportunities for community dancing as a tool for empowerment, fun and well-being.
Members of the network meet on a regular basis to exchange information and opportunities, cross-promote each other’s work and also to participate in large scale dance events.
On 29 Sept 2013 dancers from most of the major companies of the United Kingdom performed in a gala at Sadler's Wells for Yorkshire Ballet Summer School (see More Things I do for my Art - Autumn Gala of Dance and Song30 Sept 2013). Rambert's contribution was Inala danced by Dane Hurst to the music of Ladysmith Black Mambazo. On that occasion Hurst performed to a recording of the ensemble's music. I remember that it was one of the highlifghts of the show. Less than a year later Hurst and other dancers from his company and elsewhere together with Ladysmith Black Mambazo itself and accompanying musicians appeared at the Edinburgh Festival in a full length performance of song and dance also called Inala.
The full length work was received very well. The artists were invited to the Royal Variety Performance on 13 Nov 2014. They also performed to full houses at Sadler's Wells and other venues in the UK (see About the Show on the Inala website), Earlier this month they performed in Moscow and they are now on the second leg of another UK tour which started in Oxford on 23 June 2015 (see "Tickets and Tour"). Last night I was them at the Bradford Alhambra. I hope to catch them again at Sadler's Wells on the 10 July 2015.
They certainly seem to be very popular. On Tuesday I caught a feature on Inala: Combining music from Ladysmith Black Mambazo and contemporary danceon Radio 4's Front Row in which Albert Mazibuko said that the company received standing ovations "most of the time." In the same interview Pietra Mello-Pitman, the show's executive producer who had danced in the Royal Ballet said that was something she had never received in The Sleeping Beauty no matter how beautiful.
So, what is this show like? You can get some idea from the YouTube trailer and a little more insight from Introducing INALA - A Zulu Ballet. Singers, musicians and dancers share the same stage. There is a very simple backdrop of a wide sky against a parched landscape with three clouds that reminded me of aircraft vapour trails. The costumes are also simple. The singers appear in long shirts or tunics with geometric dancers. The male dancers are in black. The women are in black tops with different coloured skirts. There were changes of head dress. There were feathers in the head gear that seemed to indicate different types of fowl. The backdrop changes were generated by the lighting and I have to single out Ben Cracknell for praise for some impressive lighting design.
I can't tell you much about the story because there were no programmes and hence no cast sheets. In an effort to find out why and how I could get one I introduced myself as a blogger to a chap with a North American accent who was selling DVDs in a concession booth. He told me that the programmes had been sent to Oxford. "Well Oxford, Bradford, what's the difference?" remarked my companion ironically, "They are both 'fords'." So far as I could see the show charted a day in rural South Africa with a trip to the city for there was a scene with car horns and searchlights. It ended with a sort of lullaby as the lights dimmed with the singers waving to the audience followed by a final few minutes when each of the dancers did a turn.
I have the same problem in telling you who took part in last night's show though I think I recognized Dane Hurst and some other dancers from Rambert. The best I can do in that regard is to refer you to the "Cast and Creatives" page of the show's website. I hope that the company recover their programmes from Oxford by the time I see the show again in London. I have to say that had I not seen the Yorkshire Ballet Summer School gala or heard Front Row I would have been able to say very little about this show.
The show is advertised as a "Zulu ballet" and there are indeed some balletic jumps and pas de deux but there seemed to me to be rather more contemporary dance than ballet. There was, for example, no pointe work. That is of course what I would have expected from a show that was choreographed by Mark Baldwin, Rambert's artistic director. Some of the biggest "oohs" and "ahs" from the audience were for jumps and lifts which you see in almost any ballet. They were well executed but not exactly out of the ordinary.
As had happened the previous night in Sheffield for The Car Man (see Motoring25 June 2015) there was a standing ovation and a lot of whooping and cheering with which I did not join in. I thought it was good but not all that good. The idea of combining singing and dancing is not new. Bintley's Carmina Burana last Saturday - which I have still to review - was miles better in that regard (see In Praise of Bintley21 June 2015). Neither is putting the musicians on stage. MacMillan did it more elegantly with Elite Syncopations. I think that this was the first time many members of the audience had seen grands jetés and tours en l'air and ballet could generate that sort of enthusiasm with the public if it were better marketed.
The element of the show that I most enjoyed was the singing which was magnificent. I recommend the show for that alone. There were also touches of humour. There was a sequence when the dancers attempted a jump. One pretended to clutch his thigh in agony. Another just gesticulated his refusal to try something so unwise. It was good entertainment and I shall report on the show again after I see it in London next month.
The last of these is a is a new creative space located at 108 - 114 Sunbridge Road which is very close to the Westfield and the Odeon and will open in August 2015.
According to the Centre's website it will provide a professional, dedicated dance space and creative hub with the primary aim of advancing, encouraging, promoting and facilitating learning, education, training and personal development in dance. To be more specific
"Bradford Dance Centre has 4,500 square feet of dedicated dance space, with three professional dance studios, changing facilities, a kitchenette, office and meeting room space and a large, open communal reception area, perfect for informal gatherings and networking."
New Adventures' Lord of the Fliesclosed in Bradford to a standing ovation though it has to be said in an auditorium that was a good deal less than full. I was one of the few members of the audience who did not stand up on Saturday evening. Neither did I cheer. But I did clap. For although the show was not quite my cup of tea it was good.
Based closely on the novel by William Golding about a group of schoolboys on a desert island who descend into savagery when left to their own devices. it was far from comfortable to watch. The cast was of course all male and many of the dancers had been recruited from local schools. An on-line form on New Adventures ' website explains:
"Lord of the Flies is a unique project that will bring together professional dancers from our company and young male dancers from the regions in which we will present the production. Over the coming months each regional venue will be launching large-scale community outreach programmes to find the young men to be in the show. We are interested to hear from young men aged between 10 - 25 year old. No previous experience of dance is necessary. "
The main characters were Ralph, Piggy and Jack danced respectively by Sam Archer, Sam Plant and Danny Reubens of New Adventures. They all performed well and I think I would have liked to have seen more of those principals had the story and choreography permitted.
The score by Terry Davies fitted the story very well. There was a lot of percussion and rhythm. The choreography which had to be within the capability of schoolboys with no previous experience of dance while allowing the principals to shine was devised cleverly by Scott Ambler. Lez Bretherson made ingenious use of hampers and clothes rails as props.
The show was dramatic, well produced and well danced. For the children who took part it must have been a wonderful experience. Nureyev, Acosta, Polunin and indeed Bourne himself had already eroded much of the the prejudice against dance for boys. Shows like this bury it for ever and for that alone it deserves to be commended.
Northern Ballet "The Great Gatsby", Bradford Alhambra, 18 Nov 2014
I saw David Nixon'a The Great Gatsby for the first time on 7 March 2013 ("Life follows Art: The Great Gatsby"8 March 2013). It was good then. It is even better now.
The cast that I saw at the Bradford Alhambra last night were almost the same as last time: Martha Leebolt danced Daisy Buchanan, Tobias Batley Jay Gatsby, Kenneth Tindall Tom Buchanan and Giuliani Contadini Nick Carraway. On the last occasion I had seen Benjamin Mitchell and Victoria Sibson dance the Wilsons. Last night those roles were performed by Isaac Lee-Baker and Jessica Morgan respectively.
Each of those dancers excelled in their roles. They had danced those characters well in 2013 but this time they seemed to live them. Isn't that supposed to happen in every narrative ballet? Well yes and no. Every landscape is supposed to reflect the scene before the artist's eyes but it takes a work of genius to come to life. Well, yesterday I felt involved in the tragedy as though I was in Long Island and New York City all those years ago and in a way that I didn't before. Not for the first time several members of the audience rose to their feet for the curtain call including me.
Having seen the work before I concentrated on the detail. The choreography is very clever. For example, Nixon did remarkable things with tyres incorporating one into Wilson's dance as though it were a partner. He slid along it and then hugged it as his wife slipped out of the garage for her liaison with Buchanan. The choreography is also very beautiful - particularly the final ecstatic pas de deux between Gatsby and Daisy which is shown on the clip above. All of this is set to a magnificent score, ingenious scenery and gorgeous costumes - all of which I mentioned in my previous review.
Yesterday I reflected on the treasure that we in the North have in this company. It deserved to win the Taglioni award for best company and it is right that it should be nominated for the National Dance Awards 2014. It has outstanding dancers in Batley, Leebolt, Moore and Tindall with more on the way at every level. A personal pleasure for me in that regard was to see Gavin McCaig on stage for the first time. I had first met this talented and personable young man in the audience for the mixed bill on the 21 June 2014 and again for Draculaon the 13 Sept 2014. On the 3 Sept 2014 Gavin gave me an interview which has proved to be the most popular article in this blog.
A few months ago in London Christopher Marney, my favourite living British choreographer, was asked by a young student to name his favourite dancer. He thought for a moment. "Lauren Cuthbertson" he mused but then the answer came to him "Northern Ballet" he replied "and Martha Leebolt in particular." I was so proud. I don't think Marney has ever worked with Northern Ballet but I hope that one day he will for I am sure that they would create something wonderful between them.
Yesterday I spent one of the most enchanting evenings ever in the theatre. The Brazilian dance troupe Grupo Corpo performed Sem Mimand Parabeloat the Alhambra theatre in Bradford. Both works were choreographed by Rodrigo Pederneiras. The dancers' bodies clad in gorgeous costumes created wonderful shapes and patterns to hauntingly beautiful sounds. An impression of the performance can be gained from the YouTube video above and the video and sound clips on the company's website.
The works that they chose for us exemplified the history and cultural diversity of Brazil. Sem Mim was inspired by the 13th century Galician minstrel Martin Codax while Parabelo was based on folk songs from the interior. At one point I thought I heard bagpipes and later the men appeared in tartan kilts. In a question and answer session with the director and two of the dancers after the show I asked: "Why the kilts and bagpipes". I was told that they are part of the culture of Galicia. I googled "Galicia" and "bagpipes" and discovered a clip of pipers in Santiago de Compastela. "Such a sweet sound", I thought, "so different from the Scots and Irish instruments". Until the show I never knew that kilts were worn in Spain but there is actually a website about Galician kilts and tartans. The Celtic influence was just one of many. My companion whose heritage is Indian was reminded of the rhythms of Gujarat in another part of Sem Mim.
Founded in 1975 the company seems to have created its own unique dance style which is not quite ballet and not quite contemporary but blends the two. They dance in shoes with legs turned out as in ballet. There choreography incorporates the jumps and turns of classical ballet but rarely, if ever, en pointe. In the pas de deux in the above clip I believe I saw the woman en pointe but the stage was dimly lit and she may well have been en demi. The most remarkable feature of their technique is that their bodies seem to ripple and shimmer with the sound and light their feet and hips moving forward, their legs and upper bodies going back and their heads loose. Almost like shadows flickering in the light. My companion asked them how they achieved that effect in the Q & A and one of the dancers rose to her feet and demonstrated it. Another member of the audience asked whether they had rehearsed Sem Mim under water for that was the impression they had created.
In the Q & A another of the questioners asked them whether they dance the ballet classics. They answered "no, Ballet is not their "language" though it is part of their training. One of the dancers explained that she had been attracted to dance by Michael Jackson but she learned ballet in the course of her training and they still do class each day. Certainly they have the grace and show the precision of classical dance.
Grupo Corpo is approaching the end of a gruelling nationwide tour which began at Sadler's Wells at the beginning of the month and which has already taken them to Southampton, Cardiff, Salford and Plymouth. Their appearance in Bradford was the company's only visit to North East England. Although the audience greeted them enthusiastically with several members rising to their feet at the end of the show, our seats in the front stalls and there were more than a few empty seats in the auditorium. Their next stop is the Hippodrome where Birmingham Royal Ballet is based. Then on to Belfast which is their only appearance in Ireland and finally the Festival in Edinburgh where Scottish Ballet perform. I do hope they draw the crowds in those cities. If you live anywhere near those venues you will be richly rewarded if you see the show,
Bringing them to Bradford was quite a coup for the theatre management as they might easily have gone to Leeds or Newcastle instead. In the Q & A a young Brazilian woman expressed her pride in her nation's artistes but I have to say that I am also proud of the Alhambra theatre of which I am now a Friend. It has brought some top notch shows to West Yorkshire in the past and I hope that it continues to do so. Its manager is clearly a dance fan. I very much appreciate the chance to meet the dancers and director after the show which has been done at least once before.
Northern Ballet A Christmas Carol Alhambra, Bradford, 16 Nov 2013
The Bradford Alhambra is a lovely theatre in a magnificent position: just across the road from the National Media Museum, a few minutes walk from St George's Hall and overlooking the City Park with some of the finest 19th century architecture in the world. Bradfordians love to dis their city. I don't know why. "Try living here!" is their usual response when challenged. Well, perhaps. But I am glad to see when something important happens to their community they unite whether it is something bad like the anniversary of the disaster at Bradford City football ground in which 56 spectators died or something good when that same football club played triumphantly at Wembley a few days later.
A Christmas Carol is one of the oldest works still in the repertoire of Northern Ballet. Created by the great dancer and actor Christopher Gable who was Northern Ballet's artistic director and also founder of Central School of Ballet with a magnificent score by Carl Davis, a spectacular set by Lez Brotherston and sparkling choreography by Massimo Moricone it was one of the ballets that made the company's reputation (another being A Simple Manwhich I discussed on 14 Sep 2013).
Based on Dickens's novel there are tugs for every emotion from Tiny Tim's song (a prodigiously talented Oscar Ward who is still at Sara Packham Theatre School) to the joy of Christmas morning when Scrooge doles out the goodies to the Cratchit family. Everyone has his or her favourite bit and for me it was the pas de deux between young Scrooge (danced by Batley) and Belle (danced by Leebolt).
The production is now at the Palace in Manchester until the 23 Nov. The company was founded in Manchester and has at least temporarily come home. Do welcome them back!
I have mixed feelings about Matthew Bourne. He has won so many awards. His ballets are dramatic. His choreography spectacular. I have seen Cinderella and Nutcracker as well as Sleeping Beauty. Two of those performances were at the Alhambra and the third was at the Wells. On each occasion the crowd went wild. And the crowd is part of the ballet. And yet......
The trouble is that one can sometimes be too clever by half and Matthew Bourne is very, very clever. He knows how to raise a laugh from the audience with the puppet baby Aurora. And then to make them shiver as she climbs the curtain. Brilliant! But is it ballet?
Well in a sense yes. There is Tchaikovsky's score. The ballet opens with the Princess Aurora in her cradle in 1890. An homage to Petipa since that was the year of the première in St. Petersburg. It continues with her coming of age, awakening and wedding.
But there was no Puss in Boots. No Bluebird. No divertissements at all in fact. I missed them so much and I can't wait until I see them again which will probably be the Birmingham Royal Ballet's Beauty at The Lowry
No Lilac Fairy though there was a Count Lilac powerfully danced by Christopher Marney. There was a Carabosse but she died and left a son called Caradoc. There were suitors called Rupert and Aubrey, tourists and as for the wedding .........blah!.
But the dancing was spectacular which is why Bourne packs in an audience even in Bradford which can't be bad.
