Dance for Parkinson's in the Pontio Centre

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I remember an interview with Tamara Rojo in which she said that one of English National Ballet's achievements of which she was particularly proud were its Dance for Parkinson's class.  I blogged about them in English National Ballet's Appeal for Funds for its Parkinson's Classes on 14 Dec 2014 and I have supported them ever since.

I have recently learnt that the National Dance Company Wales runs Dance for Parkinson's classes at the Pontio Centre in Bangor as well as Blackwood, Cardiff and Wrexham.  The Pontio Centre is an initiative of Bangor University that houses a theatre, cinema, gallery, fabLab, bars and restaurants as well as the dance studio where the classes take place.  I described its importance in How the Pontio Centre and M-SParc complement each other in the Social and Economic Development of Northwest Wales in NIPC Wales on 5 June 2020:

"Like M-SParc, the Pontio Centre is an initiative of Bangor University and they complement each other. While the science park provides facilities for new knowledge-based businesses the Pontio is a venue for the performing arts. Both are essential for the economic and social regeneration of Northwest Wales. The new businesses in or clustering around M-SParc already provide employment for the region's graduates and young professionals. The arts will nourish their minds and spirits."

I have reviewed three shows at the Pontio by Ballet Cymru:  Dylan Thomas – A Child’s Christmas, Poems and Tiger Eggs on 1 Dec 2018, Wired to the Moon, Divided We Stand and Celtic Concerto on 30 Nov 2019 and A Child's Christmas and Terms and Conditions on 2 Dec 2022.

According to the National Dance Company's website classes at the Pontio take place every Tuesday at 13:30 and cost £3.50.  The Centre is on Deiniol Toad not far from the town centre.  There is a car park almost opposite.

The National Dance Company Wales is one of the UK's leading contemporary dance companies.  It is based at the Dancehouse in Cardiff   It is about to take its mixed bill Pulse which will start at the Pontio on 23 March 2023 and will take in London, Derby and Huddersfield as well as venues throughout Wales.  I am looking forward to seeing the show at the Lawrence Batley on 18 May 2023.

How Nikiya must have felt when she saw a snake

Gutted for @BRB having to pull staging of #LaBayadere due to funding cut of 62% by @BhamCityCouncil this is tragic news for the arts world😢😢

— Scarfie (@Scarfie1) January 21, 2017

I want to make clear that I have not been able to confirm this news. Nobody from the Birmingham Royal Ballet has been in touch with me about the cancellation of La Bayadѐre even though I encouraged readers to donate to The Big Give appeal to stage that ballet in A Birmingham Bayadere on 28 Nov. There is nothing about the cancellation on Birmingham Royal Ballet's website.  Indeed, the Big Give page on its website still bears a picture of the golden idol with the words

"La Bayadère to Birmingham, and beyond...
In autumn 2017 we will be performing Stanton Welch's amazing staging of La Bayadère. Featuring a fire god, fantastical dream sequences and a collapsing temple, La Bayadère is a classical ballet with a touch of Bollywood flair. This exciting ballet tells the story of Nikiya, a temple dancer, her lover Solor, and the terrible vengeance that keeps them apart. La Bayadère sits alongside Swan Lake and Giselle as one of the great 19th-century classics and one not so far performed by Birmingham Royal Ballet. This Christmas, please make a donation to help us bring this cornerstone of the repertory to Birmingham and our wonderful tour venues."

However, several subscribers to BaletcoForum seem to have received letters from the company advising them that La Bayadère has been cancelled owing to an unexpectedly large cut in Birmingham City Council's grant and that Birmingham Royal Ballet intends to revive Aladdin (which I reviewed in Birmingham Royal Ballet's Aladdin on 1 March 2013) instead.

If the story proves to be true I apologize to any reader who was persuaded to donate to BRB's Big Give appeal by my article. I am acutely aware that BRB competed for funds with English National Ballet and BalletBoyz who were raising money in the Big Give for their classes for patients suffering from Parkinson's disease (see ENB's Big Give to Dance for Parkinson's 25 Nov 2016) and also with Ballet Cymru which sought contributions for a new roof for its premises in Newport (see Ballet Cymru's Big Give Appeal 29 Nov 2016). Scottish Ballet was also appealing for funds for its young dancer mentoring scheme though not in the Big Give (see Scottish Ballet's Young Dancer Mentoring Scheme 10 Nov 2011). Northern Ballet had a Christmas appeal too.

I am glad to say that ENB, BalletBoyz and Ballet Cymru all met their targets as did BRB with a generous surplus so no harm would have been done. I contributed to ENB's appeal in the Big Give because it was the only cause that still had match funding just before the Big Give closed. I seem to remember from my classes at law school that gifts to a charity differ from contributions to other good causes in that they can be applied to the charity's other work by a doctrine known as cy près.  Such gifts do not have to be held on resulting trust for the contributors. I am sure that everybody in BRB acted with the best of intentions and in good faith. I will see and review Aladdin when it comes to the Lowry and BRB remains one of my favourite companies. But that does not stop me feeling very sad and not a little embarrassed about the cancellation of La Bayadѐre. I do wish the company would make a public announcement about the cancellation and not just write to some of its supporters. Above all, I do wish it would remove references to La Bayadere from the Big Give page of its website.

Postscript 23 Jan 2017

I am glad to report that Birmingham Royal Ballet has removed the reference to La Bayadère from its Big Give page. In fact, it has taken down the page altogether.

ENB's Big Give to Dance for Parkinson's

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Every year English National Ballet holds a Big Give to raise funds for its Dance for Parkinson's programme. I mentioned the event last year in English National Ballet's Appeal for Funds for its Parkinson's Classes 14 Dec 2015, which appeared just at the tail end of the fundraising drive.

This year I am on time.   The target is to raise £20,000 for Dance for Parkinson's. This is a programme of high-quality dance classes and activities based on ENB’s repertoire for people living with Parkinson’s. The company explains:

"By giving during the Big Give Christmas Challenge , 29 November – 2 December, your donation will be matched by gifts already pledged to English National Ballet. This means your donation will be worth twice as much."

Here's what contributors need to know:

• "The Big Give Christmas Challenge 2016 takes place on Tuesday 29 November, 12pm – Friday 2 December, 12pm.
• Start the donation process at 12pm on Tuesday 29 November when you will see a clear message to indicate the Challenge has started. If you start the donation process before 12pm and pre-fill the donation form, your donation will not be matched.
• You may donate any amount from £5 to £5,000.
• All major debit and credit cards (including American Express) are accepted.
• If you are a UK tax payer we would be very grateful if you tick the gift aid box so that we also receive the tax paid on your donation.
• Remember: your gift, whatever the size, will make a difference, and we are very grateful whatever you give.
• We will share the link to donate on 29 November."

ENB holds Dance for Parkinson's classes at its studios in London and also in Cardiff, Ipswich, Liverpool and Oxford with local partners.

These are part of a national network of dance classes for persons suffering from Parkinson's disease known as Dane for Parkinson's in the UK. That organization lists classes for sufferers in every part of Great Britain from Cornwall to Scotland.  In Yorkshire, for instance. there is a class in Shelley village hall which is the next village to mine and others in Halifax and Sheffield.

Dance for Parkinson's in the UK is part of a global network that started in the USA in 2001 when a body known as the Brooklyn Parkinson Group started to work with the Mark Morris Dance Group (see "Our History" on the Dance for Parkinson's website). It is the Brooklyn Parkinson Group and the Mark Morris Dance Group's video that appears above. The US national network is Dance for PD. Let's wish all those folks a belated Happy Thanksgiving and a happy Black Friday.