Category: News

Advocated by dance teachers all over the world, perhaps one of the most important reasons to take ballet lessons is because it provides dancers with the ultimate groundwork for the rest of their dance technique. Ballet forms the basis of every other dance style, and is imperative for the dancer to secure strong technique. Purely jazz, lyrical and contemporary dancers can still be successful in these techniques, yet having training in ballet first and foremost gives a greater quality of the movement, and added technical security.

Taking ballet classes simultaneously with other dance techniques forms a well-rounded dancer. The difference in the dance techniques consequently comes from the quality and the stylistic elements, with ballet enhancing this training. Dancers who are classically trained always stand out with polished, clean technique and long lines. Ballet also promotes excellent posture and grace; even if you no longer dance it is often easy to spot ex-dancers walking along.

Ballet also aids dancers’ rhythm and musicality; a background in ballet aids the musical elements of other techniques as they are more easily understood, in areas such as rhythm, structure and music quality. In physical terms, ballet – and dance in general – also encourages dancers to understand their bodies better, due to the particular use of the body. It also promotes learning about anatomy and particular strengths and weaknesses as a dancer.

It is inevitable that ballet can be a favourite or a foe for aspiring dancers. No matter what your opinion of ballet, it is an integral part of dance, both in terms of history and the technique of today. Many young dancers begin with ballet classes when they are starting to learn to dance; some gravitate towards other dance styles whereas others excel further in their love for the discipline.

Running from 9 January-6 February 2016, London’s annual celebration of contemporary visual theatre will form the London International Mime Festival, featuring some of the most eclectic and jaw-dropping theatre audiences are likely to see on a British stage. The Festival is a unique event in the theatre calendar, with the chance to see the very best and newest contemporary visual theatre, including cutting edge circus-theatre, animation and puppetry, mask, physical and object theatre.

Over 29 days once a year, 18 invited companies will give 112 performances of productions that are almost all UK or London premieres, at the Shaw Theatre, Barbican, Central Saint Martin’s Platform Theatre, Jacksons Lane, Soho Theatre, Southbank Centre, The Peacock, and, for the first time in 2016, Tate Modern. Artists from Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Holland, New Zealand, Spain and Sweden will be joining some of Britain’s fast emerging talents, as well as established names.

The Festival line-up will be complemented by workshops, films and artists’ talks, and there are notable festival highlights to anticipate. The 2016 festival opens with Marcel performed by Complicité original members, Jos Houben and Marcello Magni. A tender and witty exploration of how to get round ageing, these two distinguished performers revisit their early days with Complicité in celebrating the art of physical comedy and the beauty of the ‘gag’. Houben will also reprise his acclaimed performance-demonstration The Art of Laughter, explaining and illustrating what makes people laugh.

Belgium’s BabaFish combines circus, dance theatre and ingenious stage design in Expiry Date, a heartwarming story about the passing of time and the fading of passion. BabaFish was a winner at Europe’s prestigious Jeunes Talents Cirque competition. Australia’s world-famous acrobatic troupe Circa re-imagines Il Ritorno, Monteverdi’s great opera about loss, war and the longing to return home. This will be a spectacular fusion of show-stopping physicality, live opera and the ancient Greek story of Ulysses.
In addition to beehive hairdos, full mask theatre companies, poles balanced on fingertips, and a military orchestra, the festival looks set to delight audiences from every walk of life.

Now students are well and truly stuck into their autumn term, ballet teachers may want to introduce pointe work to regular ballet classes, taking into consideration the strength and ability of their dancers. It is essential pointe shoes are fitted correctly by an experienced and reputable fitter, especially if the dancer’s feet are still growing. The feet should be adequately supported in the shoes and suit the shape and flexibility of the foot.

Before young dancers begin pointe work, they must achieve an adequate amount of strength and mobility in the feet. This will mean they are working with correct technique and this also works to prevent injury. Teachers therefore have a responsibility to guide the students before and while they are attempting pointe work, educating the dancers in how to improve strength ‘en pointe’ and how to articulate the foot properly to avoid incorrect technique.

It is important to note that working in the correct way means pointe work can be pain free. Whether the dancer wearing pointe shoes is a professional or a beginner, a significant amount of pain when on pointe indicates that there are problems that need to be rectified, whether it is to do with the shoe or the technique. Naturally ballet dancers must work hard in pointe shoes, and a teacher is paramount to this process.

To prolong the enjoyment of pointe work it is equally as important to look after both the feet and shoes, otherwise dancers could risk blisters, ingrown toenails and fungal infections. Toe pads should be dried out properly and washed frequently as dancers sweat a lot through their feet and this may soften the glue, which weakens the shoes. Always dry out shoes thoroughly between each use to ensure they are as healthy as the feet within them.

For many dancers, a cruise ship gig could be your perfect job. If you have considered backpacking around the globe, or even just soaking up the sunstone where exotic, combining your dance talents with this could be the perfect partnership. There are many reasons why working as a dancer on a cruise ship is a dream come true for many, with seeing the world and dancing different shows every day just two minor reasons!

Whilst the rehearsal period can be demanding, both this and the daily performance schedule on board can help you become an experienced performer very quickly. Dancers are thrown in at the deep end and often rehearse far away from home, perhaps even abroad depending on the cruise line. Having a number of different shows to perform on rotation suits the majority of dancers, as there is less repetition than being cast in a production in a town. Look to the sea for liberating opportunities!

Travelling around the world while performing is fantastic, however also being paid to do so is almost too good to be true. Dancers may become homesick, however with a cast of other performers around you, this doesn’t last long. Working in such close proximity with other like-minded, talented performers means you will have a lot of fun making friends for life. Talent rubs off so use cruising as an experience to make valuable contacts and friends in the industry.

Not every cruise line employs dancers as ‘just’ dancers. There may be other duties to fulfil each day while on board yet there is still free time to read, study, explore, rehearse, work out and just have some down time. Remember you are in a privileged position, being paid to do what you love in fantastic locations. While cruising, your accommodation and meals are all covered, so many performers find that they can save a good portion of their pay too.

The Role Of The Choreographer In The Stage And Screen Musical is a free symposium taking place on 28 November, offered by the Society for Dance Research. The symposium will feature distinguished keynote speeches from Dame Gillian Lynne, acclaimed British dancer, choreographer and theatre/television director, to Professor Millie Taylor of the University of Winchester.

Taking place at St Hilda’s College, Oxford, this special event will provide audiences with an insight into the role and responsibility of a choreographer in productions for both stage and screen. Dame Gillian Lynne’s career, for example, could probably host the symposium alone as it is so varied and rich. The Society for Dance Research is renowned for offering stimulating events, conferences, workshops and publications, and this symposium is no different.

Since 1982 the Society has been working to foster and promote the quality and scope of dance scholarship in the UK and to provide an international forum for diverse dance interests covering a broad range of dance forms and dance-related issues. Through its activities it aims to advance research into all forms of dance and performance internationally, stimulate discussion and exchange through meetings and other activities that support dance research, including practice-led research, and encourage the preservation of archives, collections and important source materials.

The Society for Dance Research’s journal – Dance Research – is published twice yearly. The Society for Dance Research members embrace a wide cross-section of the dance world: scholars, critics, teachers, lecturers, students, librarians, dancers, choreographers, archivists and interested dance-goers. Members come from both the UK and overseas and their interests span all forms of dance and associated disciplines, such as music, theatre, design and literature.

For further information please visit http://www.sdr-uk.org/

Dance house Sadler’s Wells recently announced a programme of new work especially commissioned for ballet star Natalia Osipova as part of the theatre’s Spring/Summer 2016 season. Osipova is currently a Principal with the Royal Ballet, and joining with Sadler’s Wells for the new programme will see her married with much more contemporary works.

World-renowned contemporary dance choreographers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Russell Maliphant and Arthur Pita will create pieces inspired by Osipova for the production, which will receives its world premiere from 29 June to 2 July 2016. The celebrated ballet dancer follows in the footsteps of Sylvie Guillem and Tamara Rojo in taking on a new challenge with contemporary dance, in a production co-produced by Sadler’s Wells and Moscow’s Muz Art Management Company.

Having a programme of works created with Osipova in mind is a huge compliment for the dancer; whilst she has worked with the contemporary choreographers before, it will be a new challenge to dance these very new works. Osipova will be joined on stage by notorious ex-Royal Ballet dancer Sergei Polunin for the world premieres, who – it is rumoured – is also her off stage partner.

Osipova joined the Royal Ballet in 2013 after her guest appearance in Swan Lake, and has performed lead roles in Giselle, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker and La Fille mal gardée and DGV: Danse à grande vitesse. She has created roles in Wayne McGregor’s Tetractys and Woolf Works, and Alastair Marriott’s Connectome. She started her formal ballet training at the age of eight, before joining the Bolshoi Ballet at the age of 18. She has also danced with American Ballet Theatre and Mikhailovsky Ballet.

Carlos Acosta’s A Classical Selection will play at the London Coliseum from 8-13 December 2015, presenting highlights from Acosta’s career in celebration of twenty four years as a dancer, on the London stage. Carlos Acosta is named by some as the great male ballet dancer of his generation, having thrilled audiences throughout the world with his breathtaking performances, including principal roles in many ballets in the classical repertoire.

In devising A Classical Selection, the programme follows the format of his 2006 show Carlos Acosta with Guests of The Royal Ballet, for which he won an Olivier Award; this time it features a new selection of classical works. He will present some of his favourite pieces from classical repertoire with the help of Marianela Nuñez, Zenaida Yanowsky, Yuhui Choe, Tierney Heap, Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Thiago Soares, Valeri Hristov and Nehemiah Kish.

The performance will include a number of the most famous pas de deux from the classical and neo-classical canon: extracts to be performed will include Kenneth MacMillan’s Winter Dreams, George Balanchine’s Agon, August Bournonville’s La Sylphide and Diana & Acteon by Agrippina Vaganova. Full programme details are yet to be announced however at this stage the new production looks set to delight fans and audience members alike.

Acosta trained at the National Ballet School of Cuba and joined The Royal Ballet in 1998, becoming a Principal Guest Artist in 2003. Acosta has since turned his hand to producing, directing and choreographing, and his past productions have played to sell-out audiences. He was awarded the CBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List in 2014 for his services to ballet and is passionate about nurturing and inspiring the next generation of dancers through the Carlos Acosta International Dance Foundation. At the National Dance Awards 2015 Acosta was awarded the De Valois Award for Lifetime Achievement.

In partnership with Gateway Studios, the internationally acclaimed Phoenix Dance Theatre is set to launch a brand new high-quality training programme for talented young dancers aged 14 to 18 from across the North East, based on the hugely successful Phoenix Youth Academy in Leeds. The high quality tuition that Phoenix provides aims to transform local young people into the contemporary dancers of the future.

Phoenix Dance Theatre is one of the UK’s leading contemporary dance companies, and for over three decades the Company has performed, educated and inspired audiences both in the UK and across the globe. Phoenix Youth Academy in Leeds has been running since 2009 and many of its graduates have gone on to successfully audition for numerous conservatoires, including London Contemporary Dance School, Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, Northern School of Contemporary Dance and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.

It is hoped there will be a similar situation with the new programme: Phoenix Academy North East students will meet twice a week, developing their contemporary dance technique through working with recognised choreographers and Phoenix Dance Theatre’s company dancers. Academy members will also participate in intensive courses during the school holidays, with regular performance opportunities at platforms across the UK. The satellite Youth Academy in Gateshead is part of the ongoing ambition to extend Phoenix’s reach outside of Leeds.

Young people will consequently have more access to dance opportunities, and the Academy is hoped to be a preparation for those considering a dance career. Phoenix is committed to providing quality training with its distinctive approach and high standards of contemporary dance tuition. Acceptance into the Academy is by audition only and spaces are limited. Auditions will take place in Gateshead on 5 December 2015. For further information, and to book a place at the audition, contact [email protected].

One of Britain’s best loved choreographers, for his innovative modern dance takes on classic stories, was honoured at the UK Theatre Awards with The Stage Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre. Matthew Bourne, who already has five Olivier Awards under his belt, has built on his theatrical success year after year. His company is now over 25 years old, and has transformed classic ballets to establish a firm following all over the world.

Bourne’s work has become a firm favourite on the international stage, with his stunning, modern takes on iconic, usually traditional tales, including Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker and his all-male Swan Lake. These new takes are without considering his other theatrical successes, such as The Car Man (based on Carmen), Highland Fling (based on La Sylphide) and many other innovative productions including Play Without Words and earlier works such as Spitfire.

Bourne began his career as a dancer, founding Adventures In Motion Pictures in 1987 and later New Adventures, the company he is now famous for. He has also worked extensively with West End producer Cameron Mackintosh, with collaborations including Mary Poppins, Oliver! and My Fair Lady. In winning such a prestigious accolade, it is clear Bourne is a leading light of the UK theatre and dance scene, and has been for many years. He has thrilled audiences all over the UK and around the world with an incredible contribution to the arts industry.

Through Bourne’s work with Adventures in Motion Pictures and New Adventures, he has created an unrivalled and hugely successful repertoire and has helped to popularise contemporary dance and dance theatre internationally with new takes on old, sometimes worn out tales. Bourne’s award is part of the UK Theatre Awards,the only annual theatrical prize to celebrate achievement throughout the UK, both on and off the stage.

A rural touring initiative has been set up for contemporary dance, involving eight companies which will tour their shows to rural venues in 2016-17. Contemporary dance companies will join forces with the National Rural Touring Forum in an initiative to take the art form to new audiences, with further companies already shortlisted for the following year’s programme of The Rural Touring Dance Initiative.

For 2016-17, Phoenix Dance, Panta Rei, Spilt Milk and Sonia Sabri Company are among the first round of companies which will tour contemporary dance productions as part of the scheme, alongside Lost Dog, Protein, Joan Cleville Dance and Lîla Dance. In an exciting and new project, the scheme will see the companies visit new venues and play to audiences who may not see much contemporary dance. Five further companies – James Wilton Dance, Sarah Blanc’s Moxie Brawl, Tom Dale Company, Greg Wohead and Ben Wright’s Bgroup – have been shortlisted for a commission of £45,000 to create a new show for 2017-18.

The companies will tour existing shows in partnership with the National Rural Touring Forum, which represents rural touring schemes and arts development agencies including venues and festivals. Four of the the companies selected for the 2016-17 scheme, in addition to those shortlisted for creations for 2017-18, were chosen from an open call after which 155 companies applied to be part of the scheme. In terms of opportunity, the rural touring programme is a fantastic initiative in taking performance to new audiences and extending companies’ reach.

On the whole, mainstream contemporary dance is perhaps more associated with the bolder dance scenes of cities, rather than being something one would normally associate with rural locations. It is therefore particularly encouraging that so many people working within this area of the arts have been enthusiastic about exploring the concept and taking part.