Rambert’s 92nd anniversary saw the launch of a new database documenting every Rambert premiere since The Tragedy of Fashion premiered in 1926, detailing which dancers and musicians performed, names of the creative teams, music and venue, as well as the other pieces performed that night if part of a triple bill. The last nine decades for the company have been encapsulated in one database in order to preserve its performance history. Continue reading Rambert’s nine decades of dance
Category: Fun
American ballet company offers commentary during performance
Drawing inspiration from live commentary during sports events, a performance of Sleeping Beauty by San Jose company New Ballet has offered audiences the chance to dial into a conference call from their mobile and listen to anecdotes, background and analysis from a ballet expert alongside the performance. Continue reading American ballet company offers commentary during performance
Dance Consortium Presents Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
Last seen in the UK in 2015, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, the multi-award winning all-male, comedy ballet company, will return to the UK and receive its Ireland premiere in 2018 during an eight-week, twelve-venue tour beginning at The Peacock, London on 11 September. It will conclude at the Grand Opera House, Belfast on 3 November. Continue reading Dance Consortium Presents Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
The Sound of Music to embark on a new UK tour
Bill Kenwright’s esteemed production of The Sound of Music is to embark on a new UK tour in 2018, it has recently been announced. As such an iconic musical, this will delight musical theatre fans across the country, able to see a timeless classic on their doorsteps. The show opens at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre in Dublin on 19 December and will then embark on the tour from 9 January at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley. Continue reading The Sound of Music to embark on a new UK tour
The 2017 Strictly Come Dancing line up
Strictly Come Dancing’s professional dancer line-up for series 15 has now been unveiled, with three new female dancers taking to the nation’s screens alongside the return of viewers’ old favourites too. The three new professional dancers are all champions from the Ballroom and Latin world; Dianne Buswell from Australia, Nadiya Bychkova from Ukraine and Amy Dowden from Wales. They will join Strictly Come Dancing when the award-winning series returns in September to BBC One.Cirkopolis by Cirque Éloize
Cirque Éloize will return to the Edinburgh Fringe this year after an 18 year break: it will mark Cirque Éloize’s second time at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and follows a critically-acclaimed 1999 run of Circus Excentricus. This year the company will present Cirkopolis, an imaginative and humorous show seen by over 450,000 in 100 cities in 30 countries. It won the Drama Desk Awards for Unique Theatrical Experience in 2014.Sadler’s Wells Family Weekend
Family Weekend, Sadler’s Wells’ annual two-day festival of family-friendly events, was back on Friday 14 & Saturday 15 April, taking over the theatre building and offering something for all ages with fun activities, arts & crafts and workshops. These complemented Aracaladanza’s Vuelos on the Sadler’s Wells stage, inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s quest to make man fly. Suitable for ages five and over, Family Weekend continued to see the theatre transformed into a magical space for children and their families as an unmissable jam-packed day out.Norfolk & Norwich Festival – full programme
As the flagship arts event for the East of England, Norfolk & Norwich Festival showcases some of the world’s most renowned international artists alongside regional talent, drawing audiences from across the UK. The full 2017 programme was recently announced, including five world premieres and large-scale free outdoor events.Continue reading Norfolk & Norwich Festival – full programme
The Theatreland Trail
Theatre ticket organisation TKTS, and annual ticket project Kids Week, have teamed up in order to bring theatre lovers a fun Theatreland Trail. Touted as perfect to do with the family, with a group of friends or even on your own, the Theatreland Trail will take participants on a journey throughout London’s Theatreland, where you can meet famous playwrights, see a whole host of theatres and enjoy the sights and smells of the West End.
How to… improve your pirouettes
With a multitude of dance events and exhibitions taking place up and down the country this year, there is no end to the fun dancers can have attending and seeing what is on offer, be it shopping, browsing dance courses or taking part in pop-up classes.
This year Dance Direct will be present at the Can You Dance? conventions, taking place in a number of cities throughout 2017. It is the biggest touring dance convention in the UK and will be visiting 10 different venues this year. There will be the opportunity to shop the great range Dance Direct stocks, but most exciting is the chance to win big in a pirouette competition! Show us how many pirouettes you can do at our stand, or post it on social media and tag @dancedirect, to be in with a chance of winning a Dance Direct goodie bag, full of lots of freebies!
It’s never too late to start practising: pirouettes are not always a dancers’ favourite part of class, but with a few tweaks you can drastically improve your technique and ensure you are spinning across the studio.
Often pirouettes can go slightly AWOL if a dancer does not have the strength to maintain their turns. A strong relevé onto demi-pointe and using the core to control your centre of gravity can do wonders for the number of turns you can achieve, and your recovery too. Starting at the barre before moving into the centre, practice snatching your working leg onto demi-pointe, and your other leg to retiré. With strength running through your arms too you’ll create a solid base for your turns.
Perhaps the most vital part of succeeding in your pirouettes is the use of your head, and spotting using a point in space ahead of you. Not only does this help you achieve multiple turns by the body following, but it also helps to prevent dizziness – you can then turn some more! Before you turn, decide how many pirouettes you will achieve. If you need a double pirouette then don’t change your mind halfway through – commit to your turns and use your head to whip round twice.
Keep your head up and your shoulders back, and you’ll sail round. Looking at the floor will only mean you will end up down there, and unless it is choreographed, it’s best to stay standing!