Oh, the places we've been this month! What a treat to be able to jet around the globe in search of the latest in ballet, donât you think? My New Year kicked off in the Parisian atelier of Chanel, attending Karl Lagerfeldâs utterly divine haute couture presentation. Ballet was a muse for Karlâs show; the music was Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake and there were exquisite references to balletâs signature styles; perfectly tulle layered gowns in ethereal pinks, blues and whites. Of course, the real highlight were the pointe shoes worn by the Chanel muses, with each model wearing a pair - but for shoes these were nothing less than works of art; hand painted and embellished in the most gorgeous tones, they stole the show with their tiny elegance.
Now back to the ballet... It was to New York that I flew after Paris to experience the opening of 'A Streetcar Named Desire' by the New York City Ballet, it had just had it's world premiere at Lincoln Center. It is such a thrill to be one of the first people to see something that will soon be a dance-world classic and so thrilling to see the work of Justin Peck, one of todayâs hottest choreographers. This is his take on Tennessee Williamâs play - I saw it through the eyes of Blanche Dubois. Peck used an exquisite score by Philip Glass, an amazing way to modernise a classic. Peck used his very contemporary ballet language to present the story in an honest and heartbreaking way and gave us a view of a young, naive dancer as well as Blanche Dubois; thereâs some wonderful meta-theatricality in this work which works beautifully. The new generation of dancers really excelled and they all performed as if born to inhabit this role: the tender delicacy of Sara Mearns as Blanche and the masterful acting, character and raw power of Tyler Angle, as Stanley. And the lighting was as dramatic as ever, by the award winning designer Mark Stanley - what a master, we have to admire his eye for creating a moody, dark world to accentuate the human tragedy that is playing out.
I must mention too, that some of the NYCB dancers appeared with a performance at Carnegie Hall for a fund-raiser and this was to launch the companyâs first album: âDance with the City Ballet,â it will be available online very soon - donât miss out! And talking about recording, I must also give huge credit to the wonderful team of The Royal Opera House, for the new live digital recordings of the operaâs Ballet Company productions of their latest full-length classics. I watched Don Quixote in HD from the comfort of my own flat. Such clarity - the beautiful cinematography of Richard Strachanâs film allows every nuance to be captured.
But whatâs this I hear? News is breaking! It appears the Paris Opera Ballet are on a bit of a tour at the moment with a stop in London. The ballet was a mixed bill including works by Benjamin Millepied (and, who knew this?, he actually studied at the Paris Opera Ballet!). His âLes Contes d'Hoffmannâ was a must-see - he is really at the top of his game in terms of story telling and choreography. There was much chatter about his clever use of âGrand pas de deux' - it has real âdramaâ in every pose, every movement. And I was not surprised to find that this very gifted dancer, JĂ©rĂ©mie BĂ©lingard, was at the helm as Hoffmann.
On from London we flew to the East and to Tokyo - another amazing place where contemporary ballet is a real force. It is all a little bit more on the cutting edge. What is happening now in Japan in terms of ballet is incredibly exciting. I took my usual 'insider tipâ and saw Kaede and Asamiâs performances at the Tokyo Theatre for Dance. There were a great group of Tokyo-based ballet choreographers working to bring an extremely new take on the ballet world in Tokyo. Their show 'Dreamscape,' with the design and costumes created by Mizu Natori, was incredibly innovative with each piece giving us an intense emotional and spiritual narrative - these two are a perfect match!
On a different note, from the avant garde there was the classical excellence of the Mariinsky Ballet from St Petersburg (and if anyone is not familiar, please take it from me, these guys are really good). The troupe did what they do best: they gave an absolutely flawless performance in 'Swan Lake'. In addition to the technical precision on display, I have to also comment on the fact that they gave such heartfelt acting with their storytelling and it seemed that every performance of this ballet by The Mariinsky company, from the leading dancers to the corps de ballet all knew their roles like the backs of their hands. I would definitely add their DVD of 'Swan Lake' to your collection.
And so on with my travel ..., itâs a big world and there is such a vibrant world of dance out there at the moment, some are ground breaking and some very classic - both are incredibly exciting, so what will 2016 bring? The future for ballet looks bright and we look forward to all of it, with much anticipation!
Until next month!