Jan McNulty

Sadler’s Wells joins Big Dance 2012 and Wayne McGregor for world record attempt Friday 18 May, 1:00pm Sadler’s Wells, EC1 As part of the Big Dance 2012 Schools Pledge, Sadler’s Wells will join schools and venues across the world in an attempt to set a new Guinness World Record for ‘Largest Dance Routine – Multi Venue’, on Friday 18 May at 1:00pm, to coincide with the arrival of the Olympic torch relay in the UK. The event will see thousands of school children all over the UK and abroad dancing a specially created 5 minute work by Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist, CBE Wayne McGregor, set to music by Scanner and Joel Cadbury. Over 60 local residents and children from local schools will gather in Sadler’s Wells’ main foyer, before a video introduction by Wayne McGregor counts down to the beginning of the record attempt at 1:00pm. The current record is held by the Netherlands with 264,188 people in 1,472 locations. It is estimated around 600,000 school children across 20,000 schools in the UK will be taking part in Friday’s record attempt, with schools in 55 other countries around the world also taking part. The choreography has been devised to depict different Olympic sports, including fencing, rowing, running and basketball. Big Dance is one of the principle projects of the Cultural Olympiad’s London 2012 Festival, and the record attempt on 18 May marks the official countdown period to the Big Dance Festival week (7 – 15 July), which concludes with another mass Wayne McGregor performance on 14 July, when one thousand school children will perform a specially commissioned McGregor work in Trafalgar Square. Wayne McGregor said: "The Schools Pledge is a fantastic and fun opportunity for young people of all ages to learn a new dance inspired by the Olympics and to perform it as part of our Guinness World Record attempt. On the day the Olympic Torch arrives in the UK, young dancers throughout Britain and in our partner countries worldwide will share a unique moment in time, dancing together and in unison, sharing our passion for the art form we love. Everyone, take up the challenge, learn the dance, teach it to your friends, your class and your school and on Friday May 18th be a world record breaker!" In collaboration with the British Council, Big Dance’s Schools Pledge provides dance related educational resources to schools in return for the commitment to teach their students the choreography and take part in a Guinness World Record attempt and undertake to do an additional 20 minutes of dance a day during Big Dance week (7-15 July 2012). Big Dance is one of the world’s biggest and most influential dance festivals, featuring dance in unusual spaces and showcasing the diversity of dance styles in the capital and across the UK. The festival features work on television, in the streets, in theatres and schools and right into the heart of communities all over the country. An estimated 5 million people across the UK will be participating in this year’s Festival, with the majority of events free to access. The UK’s leading dance house, Sadler’s Wells, is the North London hub for Big Dance and will host workshops, masterclasses and performances across the region from 18 May – 15 July. Further information on Big Dance Schools Pledge can be found here: http://www.bigdance2...nd_teachers.php

Northern Ballet dancer nominated at International Competition for Choreographers Northern Ballet Premier Dancer Kenneth Tindall has been invited to compete for an award at the 26th International Competition for Choreographers in Hannover for his debut choreography Project #1. Originally created for a Northern Ballet Choreographic Workshop performance in the summer of 2011, Project #1 was then extended to form part of Perpetual Motion which was performed at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre in Leeds earlier this year. The piece was developed by looking at each dancer’s way of moving and producing choreography which showcased their unique style. Kenneth Tindall said “Project #1 is inspired by movement of dancers’ bodies. When I first started work on the piece I focused on the physical attributes of three Northern Ballet dancers – Tobias Batley’s flexibility, Ben Mitchell’s feet and Victoria Sibson’s pliable ribcage. Project #1 now involves six dancers but I have continued to work in the same way, looking at the movement and quality of each dancer and creating choreography which showcases each dancer’s individuality whilst still incorporating my own personal style.” The International Competition for Choreographers is a two-day competition in Hannover for young choreographers under the age of 35. Over the course of the two days the competitors will exhibit their work in front of a public audience and an international jury which includes Ed Wubbe Artistic Director of Scapino Ballet Rotterdam. The competition has gained a reputation for promoting interesting and progressive choreography and previous competitors include Loni Landon who is currently dancing with The Metropolitan Opera. On his nomination to the competition Kenneth Tindall said “I am completely thrilled to have been invited to Hannover. It is such a prestigious competition and I’m honoured to be considered for it.” Northern Ballet Artistic Director David Nixon OBE said “Project #1 shows Kenneth’s tremendous potential as a choreographer. We have been fortunate in discovering and nurturing his talents and I have no doubt that there will be much more to come from him in the future. I am so pleased that such work is coming from within the Northern Ballet ranks.” The International Competition for Choreographers will run in June but prior to this Kenneth Tindall will be appearing in Northern Ballet’s I Got Rhythm which premieres at Leeds Grand Theatre on the 23 May. Northern Ballet is committed to nurturing the talent of the Company’s dancers and later this year two more dancers Sebastian Loe and Dreda Blow will choreograph Ugly Duckling a ballet for children based on the Hans Christen Anderson fairytale. -ENDS- Notes to Editors Northern Ballet is renowned for its full-length narrative productions which embrace popular culture and take inspiration from literature, opera, or give a unique interpretation of classical ballets. The Leeds-based company is committed to touring throughout the UK and overseas, developing new audiences for dance. It has carved a unique place in the UK’s cultural landscape and was voted Britain’s favourite ballet company for three consecutive years at the National Dance Awards. Northern Ballet and Phoenix Dance Theatre are based in a new centre of excellence for dance in Leeds for dance artists, enthusiasts and audiences across the north of England. Their award-winning headquarters on Quarry Hill in central Leeds is the largest purpose-built space for dance outside London. Ugly Duckling is an audience outreach project funded by Leeds City Council and is part of Leeds Inspired which celebrates arts, sport and heritage events. The project has been developed with Northern Ballet dancers Dreda Blow and Sebastian Loe (who will choreograph the piece) alongside family groups in Harehills and Chapeltown who are acting as consulting bodies. This is the first time Northern Ballet will produce a children’s ballet and the aim is to engage families in theatre, art and music in a fun, lively and approachable way. Ugly Duckling will premiere in October and will be accompanied by education outreach activities at duck ponds across Leeds. Tour Listings I Got Rhythm Leeds Grand Theatre Wed 23 – Sat 26 May Performances: Evenings 7:30pm, Matinee: Thu and Sat 2:30pm Box Office: 0844 848 2701 Book Online:leedsgrandtheatre.com Tickets: £8.50 (RV) - £39.50 Norwich Theatre Royal Tue 29 May – Sat 2 June Performances: Evenings 7:30pm, Matinees: Thu and Sat 230pm Box Office: 01603 630 000 Book Online:theatreroyalnorwich.co.uk Tickets: £6.50 - £36.50 Ugly Duckling Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre Mon 29 October – Fri 2 November Performances: Daily at 11am, 1pm and 3pm (except Thursday 1 November when there is no 3pm performance) Box Office: 0113 220 8008 Book Online: nothernballet.com Tickets: £4 - £5

I LOVE Lee Child's books. I can't put them down and have read all the Reacher series. They are incredibly well written (IMHO.

This is the link I was thinking of:

Hi Primrose, I've tried editing it but I can't get it to show as a proper link. I copied and pasted the URL and that worked fine to access the film. It's wonderful isn't it!! Do I recollect that someone posted a link to a playful film that Kobborg/Steiffel did a couple of months back. I can't find it now but that was fun too. Edited to add that I think I've managed to sort the original posting and I've also added another link that I refer to below.

Dear All, I've just moved 3 posts from this thread into a new one I have started that specifically relates to BRB's North East Midscale Tour. If anyone has seen the performances so far in Durham and York it would be great if you could put your comments on that thread: http://www.balletcoforum.com/index.php?/topic/931-brb-midscale-tour-north-east-2012/

This thread is to discuss BRB Midscale North East Performances 2012. It would be lovely to hear from people who saw the performances in Durham and/or York this week and Buxton next week.

As a Scouser: CONGRATULATIONS TO MANCHESTER CITY ON WINNING THE PREMIERE LEAGUE TODAY

Robert Parker gave his final performance for Birmingham Royal Ballet on the midscale tour (South West) in Truro yesterday. He gave his utmost till the end and gave us a real treat in Take 5. He danced both the Flying Solo and in the duet with Elisha Willis. I cannot imagine how even Robert had the energy for this feat (anyone who has seen Take 5 will know exactly what I am talking about). Needless to say all the cast rose to the occasion and we were treated to a truly enthralling performance. Robert danced the very fast, fun Flying Solo with his unique energy and enthusiasm and he was breathtaking. He and Elisha then performed the duet with a wonderful rapport - sensual and lyrical. The performance brought the house down. Robert's final role was as Noel Coward in the quirky The Grand Tour. His characterisation was just beautiful and his eyebrow action deserves and Oscar! At the end of the piece, which is set on a cruise liner, one of the "stewards" showered him with a bucket of glitter confetti and at the curtain calls he was ceremoniously decorated with a lifebuoy bearing the workds "Thank You Bob". It was a memorable and emotional evening bringing to a close this stage of Robert's remarkable career with BRB. So much has been written about Robert's performances over the years but for me I will always think of him as Cyrano and as Will Mossop. He had an energy about his dancing that I don't think I have ever seen any other dancer display and he was a wonderful and subtle actor. I would just like to echo the sentiments written on the lifebuoy and say "Thank You Robert for all your wonderful performances that we have enjoyed over the years". Very best wishes for your new role as Director at Elmhurst.

Sim, I managed to avoid it too!

BRB used The Planets as the basis for a choreographic evening some years ago. One section of David Bintley's Planets was used (Venus) and different company members choreographed each of the other planets. Rosie Kay was commissioned to choreograph Mars.

Darren Goldsmith of Northern Ballet is undertaking the National Three Peaks Challenge in aid of the Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity. Here is his page: http://www.justgiving.com/Darren-goldsmith?fb_ref=fundraising-page-new&fb_source=other_multiline

SADLER’S WELLS’ AWARD WINNING PRODUCTION THE MOST INCREDIBLE THING JOINS THE LINE UP FOR THE LATITUDE FESTIVAL 2012 Sadler’s Wells will present an excerpt from the hugely popular Sadler’s Wells Production, The Most Incredible Thingat this year’s Latitude Festival on Sunday 15 July 2012 on the Waterfront Stage, adding to a diverse and exciting dance line-up. A collaboration between pop legends Pet Shop Boys and choreographer/director Javier De Frutos, The Most Incredible Thing won the Evening Standard’s inaugural Beyond Theatre Award after its premiere in 2011, and recently enjoyed a return run at the theatre this Spring. The Latitude performance features soloists from the original production; South Bank Show Breakthrough Award winner Aaron Sillis and Clemmie Sveaas. The full programme presented this year compliments both Sadler’s Wells’ and Latitude’s artistic vision, appealing to audiences of all ages and reflecting the theatre’s reputation for exhibiting world class dance in all its forms. Latitude Festival’s Curator of the Arts Tania Harrison comments: “As the UK’s leading dance house, Sadler’s Wells brings the most exciting dance companies and performers to Latitude and this is a brilliant partnership for the festival. Whether it is hip hop, contemporary, ballet or kathak, the audiences at Latitude have embraced each and every bill. It has always been inspirational and absolutely worth it. Seeing new audiences discover the beauty and brilliance of dance at Latitude has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my festival programming career.” On both days the programme features Candoco Dance Company, the UK’s leading contemporary dance company of disabled and non-disabled dancers. They perform Set and Reset/Reseta restaging of the celebrated American choreographer Trisha Brown’s signature work, Set and Resetwhich was premiered in 1983. Using the original concepts from her playful choreography, the work is set to a score from Laurie Anderson’s album Long Time No See. Completing the line-up for both days isAeroplane Man, a hip hop dance piece created by Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist and hip-hop pioneer Jonzi D, Artistic Director and curator of Breakin’ Convention and Jonzi D Projects. Aeroplane Man explores the concept of ‘home’; based on the true story of a black man’s journey from East London on a global quest to find his spiritual homeland. With a unique fusion of rhyme, lyrically motivated movement, classical and hip hop dance, plus live breakbeats; the universal theme of detachment is delivered with Jonzi’s trademark bold, ironic wit. Emma Gladstone, Sadler Wells Producer comments: “We are excited to be returning to Latitude for our fifth year, to the cracking atmosphere, enthusiastic audience, and fine location of the Waterfront stage. Latitude Festival continues to provide us with a platform to present dance to a wider audience beyond our theatre and I hope this year’s exciting and varied programme of dance with its strong music influences, will appeal to all Latitude goers and dance enthusiasts alike.” LISTINGS: Latitude Festival Thursday 12 – Sunday 15 July 2012 Sadler’s Wells at Latitude Waterfront Stage Saturday 14 & Sunday 15 July 2012 Saturday 14 July: Candoco Dance Company, Jonzi D Sunday 15 July: Candoco Dance Company, Jonzi D, The Most Incredible Thing Tickets: www.latitudefestival.co.uk Sadler’s Wells Offsite Sadler’s Wells first took dance to festivals in 2007 with a mixed programme at Glastonbury, followed by presentations at Glastonbury in 2008 and Latitude in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011. Committed to delivering dance to the widest possible audiences both at home and abroad, Sadler’s Wells has presented off site works in the UK at venues including Tate Modern, Roundhouse, Young Vic, Trafalgar Square, London Coliseum, Fabric nightclub and Village Underground. The theatre’s annual international festival of hip hop dance theatre Breakin’ Convention will embark on its fourth UK tour in 2012. About Sadler’s Wells Sadler's Wells is the UK's leading dance house, committed to producing, commissioning and presenting new works and to bringing the very best international and UK dance to London audiences. Under the Artistic Directorship of Alistair Spalding the theatre’s cutting edge programme spans dance in all its forms, from contemporary to flamenco, bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap. Its international award-winning collaborative productions and commissions include Sutra, zero degrees, and PUSH. Sadler’s Wells also provides a home to world class Associate Artists and Resident Companies including Sylvie Guillem, Akram Khan, Hofesh Shechter, Wayne McGregor | Random Dance, Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures and ZooNation. Located in Islington in north London, the current theatre is the sixth to have stood on the site since it was first built by Richard Sadler in 1683. The venue has played an illustrious role in the history of theatre ever since with The Royal Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and English National Opera all having started at Sadler’s Wells. Candoco Dance Company was co-founded in 1991 by Celeste Dandeker and Adam Benjamin; since then Candoco Dance Company has commissioned and performed work created by world-class choreographers for national and international touring. Choreographers include Rafael Bonachela, Hofesh Shechter, Nigel Charnock, Arthur Pita, Stephen Petronio, Wendy Houstoun and Sarah Michelson. Jonzi D has been actively involved in British Hip Hop culture, rapping and b-boying since its genesis in the early eighties. After graduating from the London Contemporary Dance School, he has played a key role in the development of hip hop theatre, creating Lyrikal Fearta in 1995, and Aeroplane Man in 1999 and has performed and created dance theatre pieces all over Europe, North America, Russia, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, Cuba, Uganda, and Southern Africa. As an emcee Jonzi has worked with The Roots, Steve Williamson, MC Mell’o’, Wordsworth, Hymphatic Thabs, and toured europe with Jeru Da Damaja and Gangstarr in the early nineties. About Breakin’ Convention Still the only event of its kind in the UK, and curated and directed by Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Jonzi D, Breakin’ Convention returns for its ninth year over the May bank holiday weekend, from Saturday 5 - Monday 7 May 2012. Featuring some of the very best UK and international acts in hip hop dance, Breakin’ Convention offers audiences a range of different styles from breaking and popping to locking, b-boying and newer styles such as house dance, devised from the dance floors and born out of club culture. There are also dozens of extra events in the mix including workshops, film screenings, DJ demos, impromptu foyer freestyle sessions and even live aerosol art. Since its inception in 2004 Breakin’ Convention has showcased over 400 UK and international companies, and a total of over 3,900 performers to audiences in excess of 75,000. For more information please visit: www.breakinconvention.com About The Most Incredible Thing Sadler’s Wells Production, The Most Incredible Thing is an award-winning collaboration between Pop legends Pet Shop Boys and choreographer/director Javier De Frutos. Premiering at Sadler’s Wells in March 2011, this modern fairytale based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fable, adapted by Matthew Dunster, centres on a contest to produce ‘the most incredible thing’, with a prize of half the kingdom and marriage to the princess at stake. The production was created by an impressive team including long-time Pet Shop Boys collaborator Sven Helbig, Tony Award-winning designer Katrina Lindsay (Les Liaisons Dangereuses), and BAFTA-winning film animator, Tal Rosner. - ENDS - .

I find most ballet-goers to be some of the nicest, friendliest people you could ever meet! I h ave met wonderful people and made lifelong friends through my obsession.

Don't forget that it's Northern Ballet and Phoenx' open day this coming Saturday (12th May). It looks as though it should be a really good day.

Aileen, no it wasn't me at Streetcar! Until it happened to me, I hadn't realised how much someone leaning forward could block a view. Your issue of tall people is very pertinent! When I was recently in Munich watching BRB, on the first evening we were on the 2nd row. There was no rake at all on the first few rows of the stalls. My friend and I were fine but the poor lady sitting next to us had the misfortune to be sitting behind a gentleman who was enormously tall. She was having to move from side to side to see anything at all and I actually heard the lady behind her complaining (in English) about her moving around! She and her husband swapped seats after the interval but then so did the tall man! She and her husband swapped back as the lights went down. Now all balletcoforum readers know why I prefer to sit, in most instances, on the front row of the stalls. As I tend to visit certain theatres on a regular basis I have worked out where I prefer to sit in most circumstances. For example, at the Liverpool Empire if I am not on the front row I go in row L or further back. At the Palace Theatre in Manchester, the front row is too low and I prefer the side stalls in rows D-F (D15 or D31 is my favourite seat).

Re leaning forward: I realised very early on that leaning forward obstructed the view of the people behind so stopped doing it (even before I'd started watching ballet). I've had people lean forward in front of me to peer into the orchestra pit at crucial bits of the action and it absolutely infuriates me when that happens. I've never had an issue with people in front of me using binoculars or opera glasses and have never been obstructed by them. I wouldn't worry too much about one person complaining.

When I first started going to ROH and other theatres, I bought a small pair of binoculars (about 8x magnification) but I found them too powerful for ease of use - I was constantly having to adjust the focus and in the end gave up. I was given a pair of rather nice opera glasses (I was horrified when I saw how much money the ROH shop sold them for!) and found those much better. As John said - you don't need them for an overall view but if you wanted to see particular dancers closer up they can be very useful. For example, in some of the "war horse" pdd, it can be nice to focus on the dancer during the solos. You may want to use them in story ballets for close-ups on the faces of dancers but it isn't necessary as the choreography adequately tells the story. Whatever you do, enoy the performance! Edited to correct the spelling mistake I noticed and to add a bit about story ballets.

I love "A Suitable Boy" and never wanted it to end. I also enjoyed Seth's "An Equal Music". I'll look out for the other book you recommend Paul.

Welcome back Terry. Thanks for posting. See you in Truro!

In Northern Ballet dancers at all levels appear in all sorts of roles. I remember years ago Jayne Regan saying that she loved doing the "cat dance" in Romeo and Juliet because she could just dance and enjoy it.

Wow - we take Chunky out for an hour and 2 new members mean that we've gone over the 600!

Apart from the recent glut, Northern Ballet had a delightful, longish, one acter when I first started watching the company (they did it on a double bill with A Simple Man) and, of course, ENB had a version in the Derek Deane days. Over the last few months it's been a similar story with Beauty and the Beast with BRB reviving David Bintley's, Northern Ballet doing David Nixon's splendid new production and was it Independent Ballet Wales who also had a production touring? How often has every company under the British sun (ha ha) been showing their Romeo and Juliet at the same time?

BRB gave three performances of a mixed programme at the intimate Crescent Theatre in Birmingham as part of that city's International Dance Festival. I saw the matinee yesterday (4th May). BRB dancer Kit Holder was commissioned to expand his piece "Printer Jam" that was shown at a choreographic event a couple of years ago. He has expanded his 5 minute saucy duet to 20 minutes for 9 dancers now called 9-5. I thought it was sensational! It starts off with lots of wit and humour as you see office workers on a train/bus going to work and then their arrival. Joseph Caley is perhaps contemplating a romance with Laura-Jane Gibson. The boss is played with evil intent by Samara Downs. She calls Caley into an office and has her wicked way with him - we are left in no doubt that she is harrassing him. His other colleagues assume that he is a toady and they bully him. You can see that this piece has some meaty subject matter (I should point out that the interpretation above is my own). Laura-Jane Gibson tries to console him. The end is left open to interpretation...... The choreography involves the use of office chairs and, I'm almost ashamed to admit (well not really!) reminds me of antics we used to get up to when we first got chairs that revolved! The duet for Caley/Gibson is romantic and lyrical and the one for Caley/Downs sharp and edgy. I thought Joe Caley was sensational as the downtrodden office worker, his acting was natural and very convincing to the extent that I wanted to give him a hug and advise him on how to take out a grievance case. Larua-Jane Gibson and Samara Downs were also terrific in their roles. I thought this work was absolutely superb and hope we have plenty more opportunities to see it. After the interval we were treated to Lyric Pieces by American choreographer Jessica Lang, whom I must admit I had not heard of. The piece is for 8 dancers and "accordians" of black paper and is danced to piano music by Edvard Grieg. It is utterly joyous. The paper accordians of various sizes are used as props by the dancers. I started out by thinking I was absolutely going to hate it but actually the props enhance both the movement and the music (by the rustling sounds the paper accordians make as they are moved). The title of the piece is very apt as I found the work to be very lyrical and free-flowing. I thought the whole piece was absolutely gorgeous but there are two particular highlights - the duet and a solo sublimely danced by Jenna Roberts/Iain Mackay and Tzu-Chao Chou. We ended the afternoon with a scintillating and thrilling performance of David Bintley's Take Five to the music of Dave Brubeck. Again this piece is full of humour and fast and precise footwork. The whole cast was exceptional. As you can see, I had a fantastic afternoon. I know other users of this board saw one or more performances. I, for one. would love to hear what you thought.

A lot of people in the "What do you do for fun" thread quoted reading as a favourite activity. I thought it might be fun to start a thread where people could say what they are reading at the moment and whether they would recommend it. Networking with friends about books (how pretentious am I) means that I have discovered a few authors over the past few years that I would never have considered. To start things off: I have just finished reading the Millenium Trilogy by Steig Larsson. It has taken me just over a week to read the three books and I have had to tear myself away from them to keep up an occasional semblance of life. The stories are intricate with layers and layers to peel away. They contain some graphic detail which some people may be uncomfortable with but Larsson has created characters that I cared about very much. I mentioned on the "fun" thread that I like crime and conspiracy novels and these tick all those boxes. I would highly recommend them (but do read them in the written order).