Children's Favourites

This Easter weekend my home has been full of laughter as I have been entertaining Vlad the Lad and his mum and dad.

As I've said many times before Vlad likes ballet and he got more than a little this weekend. On Good Friday he watched Darcey's Ballerina Heroines bounding around my sitting room attempting grands jetés and tours en l'air. On Saturday he watched Ballet Theatre UK's Aladdin at The Atkinson in Southport. And yesterday I was even more excited than he was when I recognized Quarry Hill on Mr Tumble. "Ooh look Vlad" I squealed, "This is where you saw me dance when you last came to visit me" (see The Time of My Life 28 June 2015).

But Vlad's favourite ballet by a country mile is Ballet Black's Dogs Don't Do Ballet which he saw at Harlow on 11 Oct 2014 where he was also lucky enough to meet Chris Marney and Cassa Pancho (see Woof 12 Oct 2014). Ballet Black and their beautiful dancers are bringing that show to Leeds the weekend after next and North London on 22 May 2015.

Although Ballet Back come from London they are very much at home in Leeds as I noted the last time they paid us a visit (see Ballet Black at Home in Leeds 7 Nov 2014). One of the reasons for that is that Northern Ballet has grown an audience for ballet in Yorkshire and they start them off young. Northern Ballet is about to tour Yorkshire and the rest of the country with Elves and the Shoemaker. 

Vlad's first ballet was English National Ballet's My First Coppelia which he saw at The Peacock this time last year. This year I have promised to take him to My First Swan Lake.

Vlad's mum has seen a lot of ballet with me and my late spouse over the years and she loves it. Her husband has only seen a few but his favourite to date was Ballet Black's triple bill at the Linbury on 14 Feb 2015 which happened to coincide with my birthday. That was a great performance.  I don't think I have ever seen a better one from that company (see Ballet Black's Best Performance Yet 17 Feb 2015).

Another Ballet Company in Essex

Harlow Playhouse

Photo Wikipedia

On 11 Oct 2014 I attended one of the first performances by Ballet Black of Christopher Marney's Dogs don't do Ballet at Harlow Playhouse (see Woof 12 Oct 2014). The theatre must have recorded my interest in dance against my email address in its database for I received an email from The Playhouse yesterday advertising a performance of The Nutcracker by the Harlow Ballet between 16 and 19 April 2015. Now I have never heard of the Harlow Ballet but then I had never heard of the Chelmsford Ballet either until the 14 Dec 2013 (see The Chelmsford Ballet 15 Dec 2913) and they turned out to be very good (see A Delight Indeed 22 March 2015).

According to its website The Harlow Ballet consists of two separate organizations:

"The Harlow Ballet Association is a democratic organisation that "exists to enable the presentation of dance performances in which those appearing shall principally (though not exclusively) be students of the Harlow Ballet School".

The Harlow Ballet School is a legally constituted Partnership that teaches children and adults to dance. The Harlow Ballet School has had its home in The Playhouse, Harlow since it opened in 1971.

The Harlow Ballet Association and Harlow Ballet School join forces from time to time to provide intensive courses culminating in special Gala performances at The Playhouse."

The "Performances, Special Courses, Workshops & Master Classes" page states that the Harlow Ballet performs a classical ballet every Easter. Its first production was The Sleeping Beauty in 2000 and it has performed Giselle "in a version close not only to the original choreography, but also to the original libretto by the Marquis de Saint Georges and Theophile Gautier."  Towards the end of that page there is a review by Rosemary Caswell of Les Sylphides and other ballets for the Harlow Star. Its News page reproduces a review by one Bridget McAlpine of a gala that seems to have taken place last November.

The School seems to teach adults as well as children (see Classes). Indeed, they seem to be encouraged (see Calling All Adult Dancers - and "would-be" dancers by Bridget McAlpine. Students are taught in the Cecchetti method and an interesting article entitled STILL VALID? An examination of whether the methodology of MAESTRO ENRICO CECCHETTI is suitable for teaching adult dance students in the twenty first century can be downloaded from its website. The Further Training page states that pupils from the school have continued their training at leading ballet schools and some of them have danced with the Royal Danish Ballet, English National Ballet and Scottish Ballet.

Harlow is not a big town. With a population of just over 82,000 it is about the same size as Halifax and much smaller than Chelmsford or Huddersfield. To sustain a show over 4 days in the very theatre where Ballet Black launched its popular children's ballet is no mean achievement. I am not sure that I will be able to see The Nutcracker but I will certainly get to one of Harlow Ballet's shows. Some folk are snooty about Essex. I don't know why. Two ballet companies (and for all I know there may well be more) in one county so close to London is something to celebrate.

My T-Shirt says it all

Yesterday I bought tickets for the 14:00 performance of Dogs don't do Ballet  in Harlow on the 11 Oct 2014 and Ballet Black's Mixed Bill in Leeds on the 6 Nov 2014. I have already seen the Mixed Bill in London, Southport and Nottingham and I love it - particularly Christopher Marney's Two of a Kind in which I see new layers every time - and this may be my last opportunity to see it for some time. Dogs don't do Ballet, also by Marney, is new. I've read Anna Kemp's book to my grandson manqué and neither he nor I can wait to see it on stage.

To celebrate the new production Ballet Black are running a photo competition. Members of the public are invited to send a photo of their dog (or cat, or hamster, or any pet!) doing ballet to Ballet Black! Woof! The winner will receive two tickets to the "Dogs Don't Do Ballet" performance of their choice, a signed "Dogs Don't Do Ballet" poster and a backstage visit to meet the cast.

I don't have a dog or other pet so I can't enter but I am going to the show anyway and have already met several members of the company briefly, They were as gracious off the stage (even though they must have been tired) as they are graceful on it.

Ballet Black has already posted pictures of some dogs and at least one cat to their Facebook page. The closing date for entries is 9 Oct 014.