Jessica Wilson – Page 106 – Dance Direct Blog. News, Reviews & Advice About Dance

Martin Harvey – Wacky For Wind In The Willows

What better way to celebrate the festive period than with the Royal Opera House’s “The Wind in the Willows” at the Vaudeville Theatre. Martin Harvey joined this year’s production to take on the role of Ratty…

Harvey’s extensive dance career has included numerous principal roles with the Royal Ballet from Mayerling, Onegin and La Fille Mal Gardée, to Manon and Romeo and Juliet. Harvey’s acting credits include his award-winning performance as Johnny Castle in the West End production of Dirty Dancing, as well as multiple roles in New York, including Richard Eyre’s production of Carmen for the Metropolitan Opera, Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly Away and David Michalek’s Portraits in Dramatic Time.

What’s your dance background?

I started dancing at around four years old in a local school and then I went to the Royal Ballet School at the age of 11 where I trained until [I was] 16. I then started in the Royal Ballet Company at 16. That sounds like a lot of ballet but I did most forms of dance, but specialised in ballet.

What was a typical day like?

A typical day included three to four hours of dancing with ballet class, a pas de deux class, and loads of other forms of dance and choreography. It also included four hours of academic work every day. So that was eight hours a day, six days a week. We would also go Morris dancing on a Sunday. You usually had dance homework as well where you would do stretches and practice on your own. Dance cramming, like trying to do the splits until you split.

What’s a typical day like for you now?

So different. I live in Harlem, Manhattan in New York. On a typical day, I get up and spend time with my wife and our Yorkshire Terrier. I then meditate for about 45 minutes to an hour. I do it as part of my warm up as an actor; meditation spills into actor training but I also do general meditation. I then go and take a class at Steps in New York, normally an hour and a half of ballet or something physical. I will then go for an audition or do some voiceover work or a commercial. I then teach a ballet class for students and in the evening, I go to The Pit in New York and either do a three hour drop-in class or an hour and a half comedy improve.

Have you always wanted to be a performer?

I think that’s got to be true. When I was three (I don’t remember this but my Mum has told me) I used to bang on our TV, it was this little black and white TV and I would sit down next to it and bang on it and ask how I would get inside! So clearly I wanted to do something like that!

When did you start performing professionally?

My first professional gig was when I was seven. I played Michael Darling in Peter Pan at the Aldwych Theatre in London with Bonnie Langford. This production went on tour so I was travelling on tour when I was seven with Tinkerbell, The Lost Boys and Bonnie Langford! After that I worked every year until I went to the Royal Ballet School. I would say that acting was my first love before dance but I think that both arrived at the same time and you can’t distinguish between them as they are both necessary to each other.

What are your rehearsals like for Ratty?

Sweaty, detailed, exhausting and hilarious.

What are the best and worst parts of the creative process for you?

The best part of any creative process is the laughter. The worst part is when it’s not creative. When it’s going well and everyone’s laughing it’s brilliant, but when it’s not creative, that’s just it and the issue is it can’t always be creative.

What are you most looking forward to about the performances?

We get to see our audience quite a lot and seeing the kids really enjoy it and watching their parents so excited about the kids’ reactions is brilliant. It’s like a chain reaction and it is so brilliant to watch. For the actor in me, I get to spend two hours living in a fantasy land! I look forward to seeing kids’ faces light up and also I get to be a kid for two hours and be as wacky as Ratty!

What’s the best thing about performing?

That’s the best thing about performing, but the whole reason I do what I do is characters. Even when I am dancing, singing, performing, I am living and seeing through someone else’s eyes. It’s the ultimate escapism. Some people go swimming or running but for me, when I’m performing I’m completely in a moment, completely immersed in fantasy land. Spending time living life through someone else’s eyes.

What’s one thing you would change about the industry?

Omg, do I only get one?!

What is your advice to an aspiring dancer?

If you love it, don’t look back and don’t take no for an answer.

Musical Theatre Radio Station to Launch January 2015

Stage Door, an on-demand radio series presented by West End stars including Louise Dearman and Killian Donnelly, will launch in January 2015, it has been announced. The project was originally planned as a 24-hour service dedicated to musical theatre when it was first announced last year, however organisers failed to reach the set fundraising target of £145,000, which they had intended to raise through crowdfunding. It was always maintained that the organisers wanted to make a musical theatre radio station for fans of the genre, not for shareholders wanting to make money.

As a result, just over £3,000 was donated to the fundraising initiative and plans for the station were scaled back. The project will now comprise of a series of individual programmes hosted by West End talent such as Richard Fleeshman, Lauren Samuels and Alistair Brammer. The presenters will play tracks from shows they have appeared in, and talk about their experiences working in musicals.

This resource for musical theatre fans will provide a wealth of knowledge and anecdotes for listeners as a welcome addition to their interest in musical theatre. Despite being a small one, Stage Door is a positive step towards bringing the musical theatre world into the limelight and championing all it does for fans old and new alike. Making the content readily available will also ensure there is easy access to learning more about musical theatre and its stars.

The content will be available on internet site Mixcloud or through Stage Door’s Facebook page. Stage Door is a partnership between production company Wise Buddah and management company Mothership Management.

Scott Cupit – Swing star

Scott Cupit has the rare skills of having a banking and finance background as well as a love for swing dancing. He has combined the two skills and created what is now considered the largest swing dance school in the world.

Summer 2014 saw Scott secure investment from Deborah Meaden via the BBC’s Dragons’ Den. Strictly Come Dancing’s primary charleston choreographer, Jenny Thomas, recruited Scott as assistant Charleston choreographer for the show in autumn 2014.. Scott has built an incredible Swing Patrol team composed of first-class teachers, two dazzling troupes that perform around London each week and committed administrators. Scott’s drive and personality has helped to build a very large community of swing dancers. The community element of Swing Patrol is the solid business foundation which supports all the fun.

Have you always wanted to be involved in dance?

I have always loved swing music and grew up playing the saxophone in big bands. I stumbled across dance while backpacking across the USA in 1997 and fell in love with it.

Did you train in dance? What was it like?

I trained hard and loved it. I loved the focus, the sense of accomplishment and the physical fitness of it all.

How did Swing Patrol come into being?

I just wanted to share my passion as almost no one was dancing the Lindy Hop in Melbourne back in 1998. A small group of maybe six dancers were dabbling in it only.

What is a typical day like for you?

Coffee
Training
Meeting my teaching team
Lunch with my wife
Planning classes
Venue appointments
Teaching

What’s the best part of dance for you?

The music. For me it’s all driven by the great swing music that this dance is driven by.

How have you found the event organisation side of Swing Patrol?

It’s far more challenging and hard work than people realise. Hall hires and rents in London make many of our events financially crazy but one day we will have our own space!

What is the hardest part of the job?

I can’t think of anything but Dragons’ Den resulted in an avalanche of attention and it felt hard to breathe. Summer was a stressful time for myself and my team as we had so much attention.

Do you have any advice for aspiring performers?

Rehearse as if this was the actual moment. Don’t shirk full dress rehearsals.

What are you most looking forward to about the events?

I love the Swing Patrol community. Standing back and watching a full room of Lindy Hoppers always gives me a buzz. I never take it for granted as five years ago I couldn’t pay my rent and it was tough.

Degas “Little Dancer” Becomes A Musical!

Edward Degas’ sculpture ‘The Little Dancer’ is one which every dancer is familiar with. Created in 1881, the model was a 14 year old student at the Paris Opera Ballet School named Marie van Goethem. The figure of the girl, standing in a casual fourth position, arms clasped behind her, has appealed to people – not just dancers – everywhere. It is also largely admired by dancers for its correct depiction of turned out limbs.

Now the story of the model and the artist has been brought to the stage in a new musical, directed and choreographed by the legendary Broadway choreographer Susan Stroman. It is now running at the Kennedy Centre in Washington DC until the end of November, with the expectation that the new musical will transfer to New York in the near future. The lead role of the young Marie has been created for Tiler Peck, a principal dancer of New York City Ballet who has recently been trying her hand at musical theatre. It has been maintained that this will be one of the rare Broadway musicals not based on a film.

In more news for NYCB, Christopher Wheeldon will be directing and choreographing a stage version of one of the most iconic musical films of all time: An American in Paris. NYCB principal Robert Fairchild, an exceptionally versatile performer, will take on the Gene Kelly role as the leading man.

The much-loved Gershwin songs guarantee a first-rate score, and it will be exciting to see how Wheeldon handles the pressure of a big Broadway musical, bringing the film’s characters to life in the 21st century, despite being much better known as a classical ballet choreographer. An American in Paris opens in Paris at the Théatre du Chatelet in December and arrives on Broadway in April next year.

Returning To Dance From A Break

Returning To Dance? Can you imagine a life in which you did not dance? This might be incomprehensible to some dancers, but for many, a break from the passion is exactly what they need.

Stopping dancing for any period of time could be due to a number of reasons, the most common being injury. Another common reason is the fact there are simply not enough jobs to go around all the dancers, or that moment may have come where you realise the dancing life isn’t for you, and you’d like to pursue a different career altogether.

You may not miss dance at all but if you do, it is possible to return to the profession and live as you did before. It may begin by taking on a little bit of freelance teaching or even returning to dance by chance. If you are planning a return to dance, the most important thing is to take it slowly: gradually increase your flexibility, strength and fitness to achieve the level you were at previously.

Your body never forgets due to the muscle memories created through dance: if you’ve stayed active during the break you may not find the return too strenuous, but it is important to listen to you body and take it slowly. If you haven’t been particularly active, start with simple activities like brisk walking, swimming or gentle yoga classes to improve core strength, flexibility and overall conditioning. Pay attention to any pains before they get out of hand and make sure you warm up and cool down correctly.

If your goal is to work as a dancer again, start making contact with as many people as you can in the industry. Go to classes, performances and workshops, join professional networks on Facebook and, once you’re feeling fit, ask to take class at your favourite companies.

£1 Million Announced For Scottish Youth Arts

Scottish youth arts have benefitted from £1 million from the Scottish government. The Scottish Government has helped secure the future of Scottish Youth Theatre with the announcement of the money, to be used over three years for the youth arts in Scotland. Following so many funding blows for the arts in recent years, the announcement that the Scottish government is to give such a substantial sum is extremely good news.

The funding, £250,000 of which comes from the private sector, will be used to support Scottish Youth Theatre, the National Youth Choir of Scotland, National Youth Orchestra of Scotland and YDance, the Scottish youth dance organisation. Scottish Youth Theatre was one of the unsuccessful applicants for funding in Creative Scotland’s recent creation of a tier of Regularly Funded Organisations, after previously being a “foundation organisation”, receiving £220,000 a year. However, the other three national youth companies were on similar amounts and successfully applied for RFO status.

The positive announcement for Scottish Youth Theatre comes after a period of time in which there has been increasing public condemnation of the monetary decision by Creative Scotland, criticised by Scottish Youth Theatre alumni. However, the two organisations continue to be in negotiations about alternative routes of support, which is positive news for Scottish theatre too.

Creative Scotland has made it clear that the new funding package had evolved quickly as a government initiative, and has maintained that Scottish Youth Theatre is an important organisation that would be able to apply for project funding. Despite this, there is no indication of how the £1 million package will be split between the four organisations.

New Research Project Into Dance Psychology

A new research project that aims to analyse the mental processes used by dancers while they are performing has been launched in order to develop a better understanding of creative techniques. The three-year project, funded by the Leverhulme Trust, is being led by Plymouth University and will work in collaboration with Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London and Coventry University.

The project will assess contemporary dance students throughout their training, examining how creative decisions are made and attempting to speed up the process by which dancers can recognise if an idea is “new and useful” for them. Often dancers think they are moving intuitively or spontaneously, without being aware of the hard, mental work that goes into being creative. Ultimately here is a lot of memory involved in movement of this kind, using existing inspirations rather than innovating. It is difficult to see if such a subjective process can be uniformed in such a way at this early stage.

The first stage of the project, which began in November, will observe dancers over a period of a year and a half to understand the mental process that goes into movement. A second stage of the research project will take another set of trainee dancers, over the same amount of time, and provide them with workshops to see if that particular training will affect their experience of “making movement”.

Part of the analysis comes from asking dancers to write down what is at the forefront of their minds at various points during a movement session. This is in order to develop a more strategic use of mental imagery for teachers and dancers: if they are more conscious of how they use imagery in their teaching or how they learn, this could dramatically affect dance teaching across the country.

Washington Ballet’s Swan Lake debut

Washington Ballet is set to make a historic debut when it presents iconic ballerina Misty Copeland at the helm of its production. In April 2015, many firsts will be seen for the 70 year old company, none more prominent than the premiere of star ballerina Misty Copeland in the leading roles of Odette/Odile. The production will also launch performances by musical artists of S&R Foundation’s Evermay Chamber Orchestra in Washington Ballet’s first-ever full length production of this quintessential ballet.

Recently Copeland has been on the rise to stardom as one of the US’s most celebrated ballerinas, only the second African-American ballerina to be promoted to soloist at American Ballet Theatre. Recently she was a guest judge on the television show So You Think You Can Dance, and was appointed by President Obama to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition.

As an artist, Copeland is changing the paradigm as to what a ballerina should look like, with delicate physicality, fantastic technique and a natural stage presence to make her one of the most important female dancers in the US today. As a classical dancer she is now redefining the typical notions of what a ballet dancer should look like, and is a model for where classical ballet is going, ultimately artistic and physically powerful.

Washington Ballet will be dancing Kirk Peterson’s adaptation of Swan Lake, which draws heavily on the 1934 adaptation of the 1895 original Petipa/Ivanov Swan Lake. Peterson is widely regarded as a specialist in re-staging full-length classical repertoire such as The Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Giselle and Coppélia through years of research and dedication to ballet. For Swan Lake, Peterson aims to revive the original intent of Swan Lake and breathe new life into what he calls “a damaged icon.”

London Book Launch Of Irina Baronova And The Ballets Russes De Monte Carlo

Victoria Tennant, acclaimed actress and daughter of Russian prima ballerina Irina Baronova, is set to launch a new book on her late mother, Irina Baronova and the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, on Wednesday 10 December at the Royal Academy of Dance in London. Baronova is renowned as one of the iconic choreographer George Balanchine’s protégés, one of his Baby Ballerinas.

In conversation with dance archivist Jane Pritchard, Victoria Tennant will deliver a presentation on the book as well as showing previously unseen film footage of her mother, followed by a Q&A session and book signing. Tickets are available at £15 for non-members, £10 for RAD members and £7 for enrolled RAD students. Your ticket will include a glass of wine and the chance to buy a signed copy of the book at a greatly discounted price of £30 (RRP £38).

This sumptuous, illustrated history tells the story of Irina Baronova (1919–2008), prima ballerina for the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo and later for Ballet Theatre in New York. She was also Vice President of the RAD and was honoured with the QEII Coronation Award in 1996. Drawing on rare photographs, letters, correspondence, oral histories and interviews, Victoria Tennant warmly recounts her mother’s dramatic life.

The launch takes place from 7–8.30pm in the Genée studio at RAD headquarters, 36 Battersea Square, London SW11 3RA. To book your place at what is sure to be a fascinating event, promising to tell the story of one of ballet’s most glamorous stars, contact Sarah-Jane Lewis at [email protected] or call 020 7326 8051.

The Hunger Games Is Coming To London

The Hunger Games Stage Show The Hunger Games phenomenon is heading to the London stage. The unique theatrical experience based on the popular young-adult novels and Lionsgate film franchise will launch in summer 2016 in a new purpose-built theatre next to Wembley Stadium in London. The company is partnering with Dutch media company Imagine Nation and US-based Triangular Entertainment, who will use innovative and immersive staging techniques to bring the dystopian story to the stage.

The theatrical experience – as it is being referred to – will be produced by award-winning Broadway producer and Imagine Nation co-founder Robin de Levita, UK promoter Harvey Goldsmith, Triangular Entertainment’s Warren Adams, Brandon Victor Dixon of WalkRunFly Productions and entertainment executives Robert Harris and R&R Media’s Gary Ricci.

De Levita recently created groundbreaking presentations for two Holland stage shows. For the sold-out Dutch musical Soldier of Orange, the audience sits in a 360-degree rotating auditorium that turns from set to set. ANNE, the first authorised play in 55 years based on The Diary of Anne Frank, uses rotating life-size stage sets. As a result it seems de Levita and the rest of the production team are the perfect partners for extending The Hunger Games into a live experience.

Creative genius, world-class production values and state-of-the-art technology will combine to provide a uniquely immersive experience for fans around the world, with a tale that resonates so deeply with global audiences, now for an innovative next-generation studio.

The first two installments of the Hunger Games film franchise have grossed more than $1.5 billion at the worldwide box office. Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1, the first of the two-part final installment, will hit cinemas in late November. The stage show is just the latest extension of Lionsgate’s popular, Jennifer Lawrence-starring story, with the company considering a theme park among other business opportunities.