Thinking of Amsterdam

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A lot is happening in Amsterdam. Last weekend the Dutch National Ballet hosted the Positional Ballet International Ballet Conference which I previewed on 19 Jan 2017. The conference coincided with the premieres of Made in Amsterdam 1 and II which showcases the Dutch National Ballet's strengths. Today the Junior Company launches its tour of the Netherlands with Juniors Go Dutch at the Meervaart Theatre.

Team Terpsichore had intended to be there this weekend and we even bought return flights back in December but commitments here have prevented our departure.  I still hope to catch the Juniors at one of their other venues later in their tour and if I can't make Made in Amsterdam I should at least see Onegin. In the meantime, we wish the brilliant young dancers of the Junior Company chookas and toi, toi, toi for this weekend's performances and every success in their careers.

A film has been made of last week's conference and appears above.  There are voces populorum from directors of some of the world's leading companies including Ted Brandsen who indicated that this is the start of a worldwide conversation on the future of Ballet in which we all can share.

Positioning Ballet - International Ballet Conference

The Dutch National Ballet will hold a private working conference at its studios in Amsterdam called Positioning Ballet between 10 and 12 Feb 2017 to coincide with the opening of Made in Amsterdam. The Purpose of the conference is to give artistic directors, choreographers and dance journalists from around the world an opportunity to exchange ideas about the future of ballet. The UK will be represented by the Royal Ballet's Director Kevin O'Hare (who also sits on the board of Northern Ballet), Tamara Rojo and Judith Mackrell of The Guardian.

The timetable for the conference is as follows:
Saturday 11th of February
09:30 – 10:15 Walk-in
10:15 – 10:30 Opening
10:30 – 11:45 Talk & discussion: Heritage
11:45 – 12:45 Lunch
12:45 – 14:00 Talk & discussion: Diversity
14:00 – 14:30 Break
14:30 – 16:00 Talk & discussion: Identity
16:00 – 16:20 Short Break
16:20 – 17:00 Wrap up

20:15 Premiere: Made in Amsterdam 1

Sunday 12th of February
11:30 – 14:00 The next step! (guest speakers and lunch)
14:00 Premiere: Made in Amsterdam 2
16:00 Reception

The discussion on "Heritage" covers "the art of programming", "ballet as re-enactment" and "heritage and innovation," There is only an hour and a quarter to cover all that ground - less than the time required for a typical ballet class - and it covers such interesting topics as "Which works are kept in the archive, based on which criteria? When is something still relevant? And when should it be revived?" I for one would just to know the decision-making process by which works like the Royal Ballet's Anastasia and Northern Ballet's Swan Lake are revived. As for "heritage and innovation" I should love to learn whetherTamara Rojo has more to say about shillelagh-wielding wilis.

"Diversity" is a topic very dear to my heart. Only 75 minutes to discuss:

"How can ballet companies better reflect the diversity of the metropolitan society in which they operate? Which steps must be taken in order to make the ballet world more inclusive? It is a fact that the stark differences in our society run along the lines of ethnicity, culture, gender and sexual orientation. During the working conference, we will focus primarily on ethnic and cultural diversity. We will also take a look at some good practices – projects that are successful in diversifying dancers, choreographers, organisation and audience."

On my very limited experience of two galas and half a dozen shows, the audience at the Amsterdam Music Theatre or Stopera seems a little more typical of the population at large than the audience of a ballet night at Covent Garden and certainly The Grand.  But it may be wishful thinking and I have no statistics to back it up. It would be interesting to find out what if any sociological research has been carried out.

Incidentally, it is encouraging that Corinne Vigreux who helped to found Tom Tom sits on the National Ballet's supervisory board.  It is rare for a tech entrepreneur to show such interest in the performing arts - at least in this country.

The last top is "Identity" and includes a discussion on whether it is still possible for ballet companies to reflect their geographical location. The company notes:

"Companies are increasingly engaging in co-production, and choreographers and dancers travel all over the world. This requires individual companies to position themselves clearly."

But was it not ever thus? Petipa was a Frenchman and Pavlova danced everywhere.  Why should a ballet company be like a football team? I am not Welsh but I am a Friend of Ballet Cymru. Too much emphasis on place reduces choice. When was the last time Northern Ballet danced in Birmingham or Birmingham Royal Ballet at The Grand or Alhambra?

I congratulated the National Ballet on this initiative.   I hope they will consider making the discussions available to the public.

Double Dutch Delights

The Stopera, Home of the Dutch National Ballet

Photo: A J Haverkamp

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As well as seeing Mata Hari and Ballet Bubbles on Saturday and Sunday (see Ballet Bubbles 16 Feb 2016 and Brandsen's Masterpiece 14 Feb 2016) I attended a presentation on the new opera and ballet season on the 13 Feb 2016 and a tour of the Dutch National Ballet's premises the following morning. Both events were arranged for the Friends of the Dutch National Ballet.

The presentation took place on Saturday afternoon and consisted of interviews with officials from both companies and performances of scenes from the forthcoming shows.  The ballet season starts with an opening gala on 7 Sept 2016 and consists of excerpts from the company's repertoire followed by a party. I was there last year (see The best evening I have ever spent at the ballet 13 Sept 2015) and I certainly hope to be there this year.  A list of the forthcoming productions has now been published on the Dutch National Ballet's website and they include some real treats:

• Dutch Masters to mark Toer van Schayk's 80th birthday with works by Hans van Manen and Rudi van Dantzig as well as by van Schayk himself between 14 and 25 Sept 2016;
• Makarova's La Bayadère between the 5 Oct and 13 Nov 2016;
• Ted Brandsen's Coppelia which was last produced in 2008 with modern decor and costumes between 10 Dec 2016 and 1 Jan 2017;
• Made in Amsterdam with a new work by Ernst Meisner as well as ballets by Alexei Ratmansky, Christopher Wheeldon, Krzysztof Pastor, David Dawson and others between 11 Feb  and 4 March 2017;
• Onegin from the 29 March to 16 April 2017; and
• Best of Ballanchine from the 2 to 20 May 2017.

Also, the Junior Company which should have some new members by next year will tour the Netherlands with Juniors Go Dutch and Ernst Meisner's The Little Big Chest.  No plans have been announced for a visit to England but we live in hope. The ballet interludes included pas de deux from the last act of La Bayadere with Anna Ol as Nikiya and Young Gyu Choi as Solor and from Apollon Musagete with Sasha Mukhamedov and Artur Shesterikov.

La Bayadere is one of my favourite ballets. I have actually had a go at the descent of the shades in class at Northern Ballet with Jean Tucker. It is not performed all that often here though I did catch the St Petersburg Ballet Theatre's production in London last summer with Denis Rodkin as Solor (see Blown Away - St Petersburg Ballet Theatre's La Bayadere 24 Aug 2015). I long to see it done by a great national company. I am now Mr Brandsen's #1 fan so there is no question of my missing his Coppelia and as I have now been Mr Meisner's #1 fan for some time wild horses won't keep me from Made in Amsterdam. The same is true of Onegin especially if Matthew Golding dances the title role as he did last year in London (see Onegin: the most enjoyable performance that I have seen at the House since Sibley and Dowell 21 Feb 2015). The airlines, railway companies and Amsterdam hoteliers will get a lot of business from me next year.

I missed the start of the Stopera tour because I had to polish off my review of Mata Hari and was then directed to the wrong place. I caught up with the crocodile in the laundry as a lady was washing the dancers' underwear and hosiery in an outside washing machine. We proceeded to the wig department where we saw some of the creations for the Moulin Rouge scene in Mata Hari, then wardrobe and shoes. We were shows a whole cabinet of pointe shoes, one for each dancer. There is a young lady of my acquaintance who makes a point of asking woman dancers the supplier of her favourite pointe shoes. "Well, Miss, I know that answer in respect of all the members of the Dutch National Ballet". We were shown the dressing rooms, gym, rehearsal studios (very like Northern Ballet's) and were actually allowed to watch the barre session of company class. All the big stars were there as well as the soloists, coryphees and corps de ballet.  I sat a few feet away from Michaela DePrince. It was she who had led me to the Junior Company and from there to HNB as I had started to follow her career even before she came to Amsterdam (see Michaela DePrince 4 April 2015).  The highlight of the tour for me was to be allowed on stage. The Stopera is a massive auditorium but the seats are arranged on levels so that everyone has a good view of the stage. From the audience's perspective the theatre is massive but from the performer's it has quite an intimate feel.

The tour finished at 13:00 and I had to get to the Meervaart theatre by 14:30. From the moment I set foot in the Stopera (minutes after the train pulled into Central Station it was wall to wall ballet. I had a lovely weekend. I just can't think of a better way of spending it. Dank U HNB!