Ballet Cymru's Shadow Aspect

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As a sign of increasing confidence of its special place in British Ballet following its Sleeping Beauty Moment at the Millennium Centre in Cardiff before Christmas and its triumphant launch of The Light Princess in Newport last month, Ballet Cymru has announced that it will stage Shadow Aspect a new evening-length work by Tim Podesta starring the Royal Ballet's guest artist Mara Galeazzi at the Riverfront Theatre in Newport on 3 and 4 Nov and at Sadler's Wells on 5 Nov.

According to the Riverfront's website

"Shadow Aspect refers to an unconscious aspect of the personality that the conscious mind does not identify in itself. In short, the shadow is the dark side.

'To know yourself, you must accept your dark side. To deal with others' dark sides, you must also know your darkside.' Carl Jung"

The Royal Ballet's website adds:

"Galeazzi was born in Brescia and from the age of ten trained at the school of La Scala, Milan. She was awarded a Cavaliere del Lavoro medal in 2009 and the Positano Prize in 2008. Signature roles with The Royal Ballet included Juliet, Anastasia, Tatiana (Onegin), the Firebird, Giselle and Mary Vetsera (Mayerling), the role in which she made her farewell appearance as a Principal. Since retiring she has returned to The Royal Ballet to create the role of Mother (Ludovic Ondiviela’s Cassandra) and to collaborate in Wayne McGregor’s Woolf Works. Further dance work since leaving the Company includes founding the dance group M&T in Motion with Australian choreographer Tim Podesta. In 2016 she created her first piece of choreography, Remembrance, performed with Covent Garden Dance Company in Hatch House, Wiltshire."

Galeazzi is one of the great ballerinas of our age and I am looking forward to seeing her interaction with the brilliant young artists of Ballet Cymru.

Ticket prices in Newport to see a star of this calibre are unbelievable:  Red seats - £14.50, concessions £12.50, dance schools £10.50, Yellow seats - £12.50, concessions - £10.50, dance schools £9. These are Eastern Europe - no Cuban - prices, people, in a leading British theatre in the second largest city of Wales. To bag your ticket before the Bristolians, Londoners and your neighbours at the Syddfa Batent cotton on click this link today. You won't get in to see anything like this at these prices in Llundain I'll be bound.

Ballet Cymru's Summer Tour

Darius James with Gwenllian Davies and Miguel Fernandes

Photo Gita Mistry
(c) 2016 Gita Mistry, all rights reserved

Ballet Cynru, Roald Dahl's Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs, Riverfront Theatre, Newport 21 May 2016

Last night I attended the opening of Ballet Cymru's summer tour at the company's home theatre in Newport. The works which they are taking on tour are revivals of Roald Dahl's  Little Red Riding Hood & The Three Little Pigs to celebrate the centenary of the writer's birth and Romeo a Juliet to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death.  Both ballets were created by Darius James and Amy Doughty whose work I admire very much indeed. Their Cinderella was outstanding. It was so good that it was my ballet of the year and their Tir was my number two (see Highlights of 2015 29 Dec 2915).

The work which the company performed last night was Lwhich I previewed in Hard not to have Favourites ...... Ballet Cymru's Little Red Riding Hood rides again 28 April 2016). These are dance dramas based on two of Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes which are connected by the appearance of Little Red Riding Hood as wolf slayer in both works. Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf are act 1 and The Three Little Pigs are act 2. The ballet is very short which makes it suitable for young children of whom there were quite a few in the audience last night but those stories have an ironic twist epitomized by the line "Ah, Piglet, you must never trust Young ladies from the upper crust" which appeals to adults.

The central figure in the show (or as Gita would say "person of the match") was Little Red Riding Hood danced last night by Lydia Arnoux who displayed her usual virtuosity with charm and humour but she was supported strongly by Mark Griffiths who told the story and also by Andrea Battagia who danced the wolf and Robbie Moorcroft who danced the dissolute alcoholic grandma in act 1. Yesterday was an opportunity to see Ballet Cymru's latest recruits two of whom appear with Darius James in the photo above. Gwenllian Davies, who is actually Welsh, danced the virtuous grandmother yesterday. Her companion, Miguel Fernandes, was part of a cow in act 1 and a pig in act 2. Dylan Waddell was the other half of the cow. Anna Pujol was a pig in both acts. They all performed well as did the whole cast.

The recruitment of four new dancers with excellent credentials attests to the increasing strength and self confidence of the company. It is still relatively small in numbers but not in ambition for it will perform Little Red Riding Hood and the Three Little Pigs to the accompaniment of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in the massive Millennium Centre in Cardiff on 4 Dec 2016. That will be a great day and a coming of age for a great little company. Wherever you are in the country, nay Europe or indeed the world, it will be worth a trip to Cardiff for it will be a day to remember.

"The Pride of Newport and the Pride of Wales"

Ballet Cymru and Guests, Riverfront Theatre, Newport 6 Nov 2015

Author Gita Mistry

(c) 2015 Gita Mistry: all rights reserved

Ballet Cymru, TIR, Riverfront Theatre, 6 Nov 2015

Towards the end of her performance Cerys Matthews described Ballet Cymru as "the pride of Newport" and a little bit later as "the pride of Wales". The auditorium exploded and rightly so for indeed they are at least that.  Friday night was one of those very rare times in the theatre when something special happens. Something like the moment when Igone de Jongh and Casey Herd stepped on stage to dance Voorbij Gegaan which Rudi van Dantzig had created for Alexandra Radius and Han Ebelaar immediately after the presentation of the Alexandra Radius prize (see The best evening I have ever spent at the ballet 13 Sept 2015.) Or when Hans van Manen took a bow at the Stadsshouwburg at the Junior Company's opening performance (see The Junior Company of the Dutch National Ballet - Stadsshouwburg Amsterdam 24 Nov 2013 25 Nov 2013). Or when Northern Ballet danced A Midsummer Night's Dream  at the West Yorkshire Playhouse on 14 Sept 2013 (see Realizing Another Dream 15 Sept 2013). Or indeed Sir Frederick Ashton's retirement gala on 24 July 1970.

There were many reasons why Friday's performance was special.  The company was at home. In the magnificent Riverfront Theatre in its home town. The company's artistic director, Darius James, is a Newport man and his pride in his city and company is palpable. I watched Darius in the intervals as he greeted well wishers. There is real affection for James and his company in Newport very much as I found in Birmingham for Bintley and his company, or in Glasgow for Scottish Ballet or in Amsterdam for the Dutch National Ballet. Another reason is that the company is like a family - a family still in shock and mourning one of its finest dancers (see Mandev Sokhi 10 Oct 2015). Mandev was never far from our thoughts but  in Marc Brew's Traces Implanted and Matthews's setting of the Rev Eli Jenkins's prayer from Under Milk Wood it was as though he was still centre stage. Yet another reason which Friday was special is that the dancers seemed to be inspired. I have never seen them dance so well. I have rarely seen any company dance as well.

The evening was a triple bill consisting of Catrin Finch's Celtic Concerto. Traces Implanted and Cerys Matthews's TIR. As I got hopelessly lost in the one way system after encountering the notoriously, stroppy taxi driver who charges £50 if you're sick in the back seat in Newport State of Mind  which we were assured by our hotel reception we needed for the "enormous distance" (for a snail) between the Newport Travelodge and the Riverfront Theatre, we missed Celtic Concerto.  But we were in time for Traces Implanted which impressed me even more than Brew's other works and, of course, Matthews's glorious TIR. We also have the perfect excuse to see the triple bill again in another venue.

On his website Brew explains that "Traces Implanted explores the imprints and memories made and the traces left behind".  Gita tells me that she discussed that theme with Brew when she met him after the show. Gita confirmed that the subject matter is death and bereavement, something that we don't wish to mention about every day even though we are confronted with that reality constantly. The dancers must have found it particularly difficult as they had recently been bereaved themselves. But as Brew added, he doesn't always want to create conventional balletic beauty. Although there was beauty in this piece - particularly in the final duet with almost ethereal figures in the soft and subtle lighting - it was a compelling but not a comfortable work to watch.

TIR was quite a different work. Matthews has a lovely voice which is admired everywhere in the UK but when she sings in Welsh to a Welsh audience she is adored. Darius James and Amy Doughty have created dances for some of her best known works. Works that I was relieved to find are almost as well known on this side of Offa's Dyke as on the other. I caught myself clapping to Sospan Fach and rooting for a tissue for Myfanwy. Half concert, half ballet it was a thrilling experience. The company were joined by Daisuke Miura and Emily Pimm-Edwards who had delighted us in Romeo a Juliet (see They're not from Chigwell - they're from a small Welsh Town called Newport 14 May 2013) and Suzy Birchwood who had amazed us in Llandudno (see An Explosion of Joy 21 Sept 2014).

After the show Gita and I were invited to meet the dancers and creative team over drinks and canapés. It was a privilege to shake their hands again - particularly Krystal Lowe's who never fails to move me. I got to meet Jack White the gifted young composer of Cinderella and Stuck in the Mud and many of the the creative and technical team who have worked with the company  though sadly not Matthews on this occasion. Still, I have seen her perform live for the first time and that was more than enough.

Ballet Cymru at Home

The Riverfront Theatre, Newport

Photo  Gif absarnt

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After the State of the Art Panel Discussion: Narrative Dance in Ballet earlier this year I exchanged a few words with The Herald's dance critic Mary Brennan, Brennan had spoken very warmly of Peter Darrell whom I greatly admired and once had the honour of meeting. Darrell was artistic director of what was then Western Theatre Ballet and it was he who took the company to Glasgow shortly after I went up to St Andrews. "He gave us our national dance company" Brennan enthused. "But at the expense of the West Country and South Wales" I replied. Being a native Mancunian I know how it stung when Northern Ballet crossed the Pennines even though it never affected me personally as Leeds is no further away from my home than Manchester. The departure of Northern Ballet diminished our city even though we still have Northern Ballet School, The Lowry and Manchester City Ballet.

Well, South Wales and the West Country have had to wait a very long time but they now have a first class ballet company again in Ballet Cymru. Actually the company has existed  for nearly 30 years but it is now receiving the recognition and funding that it needs to go places. It is still quite small. It reminds me very much of Scottish Theatre Ballet when I first knew it. Although James is very different from Darrell he has similar drive and similar sense of vision. Nearly half a century ago I envisaged Scottish Theatre Ballet as it is now - one of the world's great companies. I have the same feeling about Ballet Cymru and I hope that I live long enough to see it

On Saturday 3 Oct 2015 I joined the London Ballet Circle's visit to Ballet Cymru's premises in Newport. In order not to pre-empt the official write up I will say that we met James, Amy Doughty, Patricia Vallis and Mike Holden as well as the dancers. We watched the company class and a rehearsal of Cinderella. We toured the company's building which is on an industrial estate in Rogestone a few miles to the north west of the city centre.  Darius James told us about the history of the company and his plans for the future which are very ambitious indeed.

The London Ballet Centre's transactions are subject to a a regime very similar to the Chatham House rule so I can't say too much about what was said and done during our visit. I will however mention two things that I knew already. The first is that there is now a magnificent theatre in Newport for the company to showcase its work. That is the Riverfront arts centre on the banks of the Usk. The second is that the company provides great opportunities to local dancers.  It runs workshops, intensives and associates programmes in conjunction with the Royal Ballet and the RAD. On the 18 Oct it is hosting a "Creative Spaces" event in conjunction with the RAD and on the 30 Oct a Junior Associate Experience Day for the Royal Ballet School. It also offers body conditioning and ballet classes to the general public every Monday for a very reasonable fee. Details of these outreach programmes can be obtained from the education officer Mandev Sokhi on mandevsokhi@welshballet.co.uk.

Newport lies at the heart of the Great Western Cities with a combined population of 2.5 million and a GVA of £58 billion. This is South Wales and the West's answer to the Northern Powerhouse. The initiative aims to improve transport links and attract investment to the region.  If it succeeds it will greatly expand Ballet Cymru's market. It will also provide opportunities for attracting sponsorship and funding of other kinds. After the visit I toured some of the city's landmarks and did a little shopping in a local supermarket. I got the impression that things are beginning to buzz around the Severn estuary.