Powerhouse Ballet on a Roll

The Cast of Elysian Moments at ChromaQ Theatre, Leeds 23 Nov 2024

 

Last year was Powerhouse Ballet's best ever.  We danced an extract from La Sylphide at KNT Danceworks' 15th-anniversary gala in July and contributed Emily Joy Smith Elysian Moments to Dance Studio Leeds's Celebration of Dance at ChromaQ Theatre in Leeds in November.  

We have now performed nine times in public, twice at the Manchester Dancehouse, 6 times at ChromaQ and once at York St John University.  We have held workshops on The Waltz of the Flowers with Jane Tucker,  The Fairy Variations with  Beth Meadway, Alex Hallas's Concerto Jenkins and Morning from Grieg's Peer Gynt with Yvonne Charlton,  We have hosted Ballet Cymru's workshops on Dylan Thomas and Giselle.  We have held company classes almost every month since we started including during the lockdown when we welcomed Maria Chugai, Shannon Lilly and Krystal Lowe as guest ballet mistresses.

Our next step is to hold our own show which will probably be a mixed bill or a complete act of one of the romantic ballets we have learned.   We shall probably need to do this in conjunction with one or more partners which could be a dance studio or even another small company.   That will require a lot of planning and corporate reorganization.   Right now the company is a group of friends who enjoy dancing but we shall put it on a more formal basis in the course of the year.   I am exploring the possibility of charitable status for the company and converting Terpsichore into a private limited company.

Up to now, the company has relied entirely on sponsorship.  That source of funding will not dry up but we need to supplement it with a Friends scheme whereby we shall invite the company's members and well-wishers around the country to make a modest annual contribution.  We shall also need to monetize some of our services which will include smartening the appearance of this blog, publishing a regular print version, reviving Stage Door and charging for workshops and some of our other activities.

In the longer term, we shall seek grant funding and commercial sponsorship.  I have already made contact with Arts Council England and the Arts Council of Wales.  While it is impractical to expect funding from that quarter in the medium term it is never too early to prepare the ground.   I have also put out feelers to organizations that already fund the arts to find out what we must do to qualify for their patronage.

Dancers need to train regularly with each other which is why every company in the world holds regular company classes.  However, our membership is spread over an area that stretches from Hull to Holyhead.  It is very difficult for members who have demanding professional and domestic commitments to travel long distances.  When I have tried to hold classes in outlying areas in venues like Bolton or Myndd Isa the response has been disappointing.   Obviously, the solution is to hold regular monthly classes in Leeds and Chester as well as in Manchester but these will have to rely on non-sponsorship funding.  If we get that right there is no reason why Powerhouse Ballet branded activities cannot take place anywhere in the UK or beyond and not just Manchester and Leeds.

Shake Your Tutu

© 2023 Mark Gowland: all rights reserved Reproduced with kind permission of the owner

Northern Dance Academy Shake Your Tutu 10 Dec 2023 19:30 Creative Centre, York St John University

Northern Dance Academy is a dance school in York.  It offers a wide range of classes in many styles of dance to both adults and children.  Its classical ballet and lyrical teacher, Christie Barnes, is a founder member of Powerhouse Ballet.  Christie introduced me to Sarah Dickinson, the Director of the Northern Dance Academy.  She invited our company to dance the extract from La Sylphide that we had performed in Dance Studio Leeds's Celebration of Dance on 25 Nov 2023 in Shake Your Tutu, Northern Dance Academy's Christmas show.

The show took place in the Creative Centre of York St John University on 10 Dec 2023.  It is a magnificent auditorium with 170 seats, a massive stage, excellent acoustics and the latest sound, lighting and projection equipment.  I attended the technical rehearsal which was an opportunity to see the capabilities of that equipment in action.

The performance began at 19:30.  It consisted of the following pieces in two acts with a 20-minute interval:

Act I:

• Rogue Raimdrops by the NDA Adult Dance Company choreographed by Christie Barnes 
• Snowdrops by Christie Barnes and Soraya Noumen 
• Once Upon A December by the Adult Ballet Beginners choreographed by Esther Wilson 
• Running with the Wolves by Anjuli Trace 
• Inner Voice by Esther Wilson and Hortensia Szalay 
• Underneath the Christmas Tree by the Advanced Tap Class choreographed by Stacey Young
• L'Enfer by Vera van Cool and supporting dancers 
• Round Round by the Junior/Youth Contemporary class choreographed by Julia Pittock 
• Flores by the Lyrical troupe choreographed by Christie Barnes  

Act II

• When the Land Meets the Sea a film by the NDA Adult Dance Company choreographed by Christie Barnes and filmed and edited by Mark Gowland 
• I wish it could be Christmas Every Day by the Grade 3 Tap Class choreographed by Stacey Young
• O Holy Night by the Advanced Pointe dancers choreographed by Christie Barnes 
• Make Believe by Natasha Young 
• Hallelujah by the Advanced/Intermediate Ballet class choreographed by Christie Barnes 
• A Contemporary Christmas by the Youth Contemporary class choreographed by Julie Pittock
• La Sylphide by Powerhouse Ballet choreographed by August Bournonville, Marius Petipa and Jane Tucker and staged by Jane Tucker 
• Tough Lover by Amber Yeoman 
• Runaway by Christie Barnes and Julia Pittock, and 
• A Night at the Ball by the Adult Contemporary class choreographed by Julia Pittock.

I enjoyed all the pieces.  It was clear that a lot of work had been done for each and every one of them.  It was one of the best student shows that I have ever seen.  

However, there were some personal highlights  Snowdrops was enchanting.  Two young friends frolicked as if in a garden.  Just before the end, winter clothes appeared on stage which the dancers donned.  Their winsome wave as they left the stage was quite charming.  I liked Anjuli Trace's solo Running with the  Wolves and the duet Inner Voice Esther Wilson and Hortensia Szalay.  Anjuli and Esther are also members of Powerhouse Ballet.  The children and young women in Round Round were delightful. Especially the little boy and the girl who carried him on her back for a while.

The second act began with the film.  Christie has posted it to her Facebook feed.  It is set on one of the big wide  North Sea beaches.  It happened to be Fraisthorpe but it could have been Northumberland, Berwickshire or Fife.  Mark applied some very interesting camera techniques including mirroring. In Max Richter's In The Garden Christine chose the perfect score.  The scene was idyllic. The East Coast is not exactly known for its balmy weather.  Although probably unintended one of the artists was a black dog which made a couple of appearances.  The animal appeared to be dancing.   I was also delighted to recognize several members of Powerhouse Ballet in the film.   I hope our company can collaborate with Mark and Christie in making dance films in the future.

Although obviously not impartial I was bowled over by Powerhouse's performance of an extract of La Sylphide.  The scene was set in a forest after James has left his wedding guests to pursue a sylph who has vanished up a chimney with Effie's ring (see La Sylphide resource page).   He meets the sylphs and is quite overcome by them.  Frank Lee danced James and the syphs included several members of the Northern Dance Academy.  I had seen the company rehearse the scene many times.   Indeed, I had actually taken part in some of the rehearsals.  I had also seen their performances in Leeds.  This was by far their best yet.  They danced with energy, flair and passion.   I felt compelled to rise to my feet to bellow "bravi".   I have never been more proud of them.

I have to congratulate everyone involved in planning and participating in the show.  Particular credit belongs to Christie who directed and produced the show and choreographed and/or danced in many of the contributions.  There seems to be no end to her skills and talents.   She even found time to make sleeves and wings for our sylphs costumes.   Even attending class with her is a pleasure for she has the most infectious laugh and a very ready wit.   It has been great to work with her on La Sylphide and I look forward to doing so again very soon.