World Ballet Day Live will return in 2015 with a 23-hour live stream hosted by five of the world’s leading ballet companies on Thursday 1 October. Following last year’s collaboration for the first World Ballet Day, streamed footage will be available again from The Australian Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, The Royal Ballet, The National Ballet of Canada, and San Francisco Ballet.
The day will be a celebration and an opportunity for audiences to see behind the scenes. It will also include pre-recorded footage from a wide range of dance organisations close to the five participating companies; those confirmed include American Ballet Theatre, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Boston Ballet, English National Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, Houston Ballet, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal, National Ballet of China, Nederlands Dans Theater, Northern Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Royal New Zealand Ballet and Scottish Ballet.
The Australian Ballet once again kicks off from its Melbourne headquarters. This presentation includes a day in the life of the company; from the universal ritual of daily class, to rehearsals of Artistic Director David McAllister’s new production of The Sleeping Beauty, and four other productions that will tour to China later that month.
Next, the Bolshoi will present the company in its daily routine with highlights of the 240th season. The day will begin with morning class and rehearsals, followed by a report on two world premieres from last season—Radu Poklitaru’s Hamlet and Yuri Possokhov’s Hero of Our Time—as well as special projects which were announced last year.
The Royal Ballet will follow, airing exclusive backstage footage from London. As well as morning class, filming will follow the preparation of a matinee performance of Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet featuring Federico Bonelli and Lauren Cuthbertson. Rehearsals for the world premiere of Carlos Acosta’s Carmen which opens in October will be broadcast too.
Audiences will see The National Ballet of Canada on tour at the Place des Arts in Montréal, Québec, including a rehearsal of Christopher Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale. Following will be a dress rehearsal of works by William Forsythe, Marco Goecke and Wayne McGregor, focusing on how ballet companies prepare for performances while on tour.
Lastly, San Francisco Ballet will stream company class and rehearsals of the works the company is preparing for the 2016 Repertory Season, and a autumn tour to China. The broadcast will also feature live interviews with Artistic Director & Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson and The Royal Ballet Artist in Residence Liam Scarlett about his Frankenstein, a co-production with The Royal Ballet which SF Ballet will perform during its 2017 Repertory Season.