Press Release: Nitin Sawhney with special Guests, Royal Albert Hall, Wednesday 2 November 2016

[Jan McNulty]

Nitin Sawhney

With special guests Sébastien Ramirez and Honji Wang
Royal Albert Hall, SW7
Wednesday 2 November 2016
Performance: 7.30pm
Tickets: £25 - £60
Ticket Office: 020 7589 8212 or www.royalalberthall.com / 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com   

 

Acclaimed multi-instrumentalist and composer Nitin Sawhney will perform a one-off show at the Royal Albert Hall on Wednesday 2 November featuring music from his new album Dystopian Dream.

 

For this unique performance Sawhney is accompanied by singer Joss Stone and a host of other special guests, including hip hop duo Sébastien Ramirez and Honji Wang performing new, specially-commissioned choreography, in the first ever co-production between the Royal Albert Hall and Sadler’s Wells.

 

Sawhney, a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist, has collaborated with the likes of Paul McCartney, Sting, Anoushka Shankar and Ellie Goulding, creating a succession of distinctive, groundbreaking works – and November’s concert may be his most ambitious and remarkable yet.

 

Lucy Noble, Director of Events at the Royal Albert Hall, said: “Nitin Sawhney is a phenomenon and a true original – a producer, songwriter, DJ, multi-instrumentalist and orchestral composer with a truly unique musical voice. He is, simply, incomparable. This special, one-off show will bring his latest vision to the world’s most famous stage in truly arresting fashion, fusing music and dance for what promises to be a truly unforgettable event.”

 

Sadler’s Wells Artistic Director and Chief Executive Alistair Spalding said: “I am delighted to be co-producing this performance by our Associate Artist Nitin Sawhney with the Royal Albert Hall. Nitin is an eclectic creative talent and his latest album Dystopian Dream further demonstrates his versatility and virtuosity as a composer, musician and producer. It is also exciting that talented dancers and choreographers Sébastien Ramirez and Honji Wang are performing as part of the show. The combination of their movement and Nitin’s music make this an evening not to be missed.”

 

Sawhney’s work in theatre and dance includes the scores for Complicite’s A Disappearing Number and Akram Khan’s Zero Degrees, both of which won Olivier Awards, with the latter earning him a New York Performance and Dance Award for best score.

 

Other collaborations with Akram Khan include Bahok for the Royal Ballet of China; Vertical Road; and iTMOi - part of the Rite of Spring centenary celebrations at Sadler’s Wells. He also worked with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui on a Sadler’s Wells Production based on the life of Manga artist and animator, Tezuka. Sawhney has also created work for the immersive Sadler’s Wells Production No Body, which receives its world premiere in June; a multi-installation experience which combines all the elements of a successful dance performance – lighting, sound, projection – but without the physical presence of dancers. He has made three previous headline appearances at the Royal Albert Hall, last selling out the venue in 2014, as well as featuring in the BBC Proms.

 

The November concert marks Sébastien Ramirez and Honji Wang’s Royal Albert Hall debut. French hip hop choreographer and b-boy Ramirez is known for the finesse and emotional impact of his dance style. He works worldwide with dancers from different cultural and chorographical backgrounds. Wang is a choreographer and dancer born and raised in Germany by Korean parents, her style rooted in hip hop with influences of martial arts and ballet. She studied ballet for 10 years in Frankfurt before dedicating herself to the hip hop techniques of b-girling and newstyle, as well as working in contemporary dance. Together, their urban dance roots have grown into a unique style blending hip hop with contemporary influences, with nods to ballet and martial arts.

The duo’s choreographic language is often referred to as urban Tanztheater and has won many accolades, including the Outstanding Performers Award at the Bessies for their appearance at Breakin' Convention at the Apollo Theater, New York in 2013. Their other awards include the Special Jury Award at Dance Delight in Osaka in 2009, and the 1st Prize and Audience Prize at the International Choreography Competition of Hannover in 2012 for their collaboration AP15. Most recently the pair worked with Breakin’ Convention to present Boardline, a work for six performers at Sadler’s Wells in 2015.

 

Full programme details to be announced.

 

Nitin Sawhney is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist

A Royal Albert Hall and Sadler’s Wells co-production

 

Notes to editors

Listings information

Nitin Sawhney
With special guests Sébastien Ramirez and Honji Wang
Royal Albert Hall, SW7
Wednesday 2 November 2016
Performance: 7.30pm
Tickets: £25 - £60
Ticket Office: 020 7589 8212 or www.royalalberthall.com / 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com

 

ABOUT ROYAL ALBERT HALL
The Royal Albert Hall is the world’s most famous stage. Over the past 145 years, it has hosted everyone from Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein and Edward Elgar to The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Adele. Last year, its breathtaking auditorium presented 388 events by the world’s greatest performers – taking in rock, pop and classical music, dance, films, Cirque du Soleil and even tennis – with the magical setting and inspired artists creating amazing memories for audiences.

Opened in 1871 to fulfil Prince Albert’s vision of a central hall to promote the arts and sciences, the Hall is a registered charity that remains true to his founding ambitions within a modern context. It hosts over 400 events a year in its secondary space, the Elgar Room, and beyond, broadening the Hall’s appeal to incorporate younger and more diverse audiences.

Its Education & Outreach programme reaches more than 150,000 participants each year, working with schools, young people and the community, as well as other charities such as Music for Youth, as part of its extensive public benefit remit.

 

ABOUT SADLER’S WELLS
Sadler's Wells is a world-leading dance house, committed to producing, commissioning and presenting new works and to bringing the best international and UK dance to London and worldwide audiences. Under the Artistic Directorship of Alistair Spalding, the theatre’s acclaimed year-round programme spans dance of every kind, from contemporary to flamenco, Bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap.

 

Since 2005, it has helped to bring over 100 new dance works to the stage and its award-winning commissions and collaborative productions regularly tour internationally. Sadler’s Wells supports 16 Associate Artists, three Resident Companies, an Associate Company and two International Associate Companies. It also nurtures the next generation of talent through research and development, running the National Youth Dance Company and a range of programmes including Wild Card, New Wave Associates, Open Art Surgery and Summer University.

 

Located in Islington, 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. Sadler’s Wells is an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation and currently receives approximately 10% of its revenue from Arts Council England. 

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