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Press Release: English National Ballet announces principal casting for Romeo & Juliet, and welcomes Jurgita Dronina as new Lead Principal


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press release from National Ballet of Canada. Essentially she will be a guest artist with us in Toronto. Sob, sob, sob.  Lucky  y'all.

 

Principal Dancer Jurgita Dronina to Dance with The National Ballet of Canada and English National Ballet Next Season

June 23, 2017… Karen Kain, Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada, today announced that Principal Dancer Jurgita Dronina will be a Lead Principal Dancer with English National Ballet in London, England next season. Ms. Dronina will remain with The National Ballet of Canada as Principal Dancer and will be featured in The Winter’s Tale, which opens the 2017/18 season, as well as The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker.

“I am very excited to have this unique opportunity to be part of two incredible companies this season: English National Ballet in London and The National Ballet of Canada in Toronto. I consider myself very lucky to be able to work for two inspiring women, Tamara Rojo and Karen Kain, who have extraordinary visions for the future of their companies. I feel honored to be a part of this,” said Ms. Dronina.   

With English National Ballet, Ms. Dronina will dance the leads in productions including Giselle in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Coppélia on tour to Japan and Romeo and Juliet in London in August 2017. Further performances for English National Ballet’s 17/18 season to be announced shortly.

 

Ms. Dronina, who joined the National Ballet as a Principal Dancer in 2015, made her debut as Blanche DuBois in John Neumeier’s A Streetcar Named Desire and in Wayne McGregor’s Genus in the company’s 2016/17 season. Her repertoire with the National Ballet also includes Cinderella, Giselle, La Sylphide, Onegin, Tarantella, The Four Temperaments, Le Petit Prince and Pinocchio.

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English National Ballet 
Romeo & Juliet 
Southbank Centre, Royal Festival Hall 
Tuesday 1 - Saturday 5 August 2017 
Performances at 7.30pm (mat at 2pm
Tickets: £12 - £55 
Box Office: www.ballet.org.uk or www.southbankcentre.co.uk    
 
Returning to London in its 40th anniversary year, English National Ballet perform Rudolf Nureyev’s Romeo & Juliet at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall from 1 - 5 August 2017.
 
The world’s greatest love story, Romeo & Juliet features Nureyev’s inventive and passionate choreography set to Prokofiev’s exhilarating score, performed live by English National Ballet Philharmonic.
 
For Romeo & Juliet, English National Ballet welcomes Jurgita Dronina, who joins the Company as Lead Principal following her guest performances with the Company in Giselle at the Grand Opera House Belfast this week and earlier this year at the London Coliseum. She performs in Romeo & Juliet alongside new Lead Principal Aaron Robison, who joined the Company in June. Dronina, who remains Principal with The National Ballet of Canada, will perform with English National Ballet for the 17/18 season, further details to be announced shortly.
 
Of joining English National Ballet, Dronina said“I am very excited to have this unique opportunity to be part of two incredible companies this season: English National Ballet in London and The National Ballet of Canada in Toronto. I consider myself very lucky to be able to work for two inspiring women, Tamara Rojo and Karen Kain, who have extraordinary visions for the future of their companies. I feel honoured to be a part of this.”
 
Under directorship of Tamara Rojo, English National Ballet has attracted the best artists from around the world, offering impeccable coaching, as well as the opportunity to bring world class ballet to a wide range of audiences worldwide. I am truly looking forward to all that this season has to offer and I feel privileged and grateful to both of my directors for making this lifetime experience possible."
 
English National Ballet also sees Guest Artist Josua Hoffalt, Étoile at Paris Opera Ballet, make his debut with the Company performing in the role of Romeo. 
 
Further principal casting includes Lead Principal Isaac Hernández, Principal Yonah Acosta, and First Soloist James Forbat perform in the role of Romeo. Performing in the role of Juliet is Lead Principal Erina Takahashi, Principal Laurretta Summerscales, and Soloist Alison McWhinney
 
Originally created by Nureyev especially for English National Ballet in 1977 to celebrate the Queen’s Silver Jubilee, Romeo & Juliet has since toured the world to critical acclaim, winning the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Ballet in its premiere year. 
 
Romeo & Juliet Principal Casting 
Casting is subject to change. Please see www.ballet.org.uk for up to date casting. 
 
In the order of Romeo, Juliet, Mercutio, Benvolio, Tybalt, Paris
 
Tuesday 1 August: Press night 
Isaac Hernández, Erina Takahashi, Cesar Corrales, James Forbat, James Streeter, Emilio Pavan* 
 
Wednesday 2 August
Josua Hoffalt*, Laurretta Summerscales, Yonah Acosta, Laurent Liotardo, Fabian Reimair, Jinhao Zhang*  
 
Thursday 3 August (matinee) 
James Forbat, Alison McWhinney, Pedro Lapetra, Vitor Menezes, Fernando Bufalá, Aitor Arrieta* 
 
Thursday 3 August 
Yonah Acosta, Erina Takahashi, Cesar Corrales, Guilherme Menezes, James Streeter, Emilio Pavan 
 
Friday 4 August 
Josua Hoffalt, Laurretta Summerscales, Fernando Bufala, Laurent Liotardo, Fabian Reimair, Jinhao Zhang* 
 
Saturday 5 August (matinee) 
Aaron Robison*, Jurgita Dronina*, Ken Saruhashi, James Forbat, Fabian Reimair, Aitor Arrieta 
 
Saturday 5 August 
Isaac Hernández, Erina Takahashi, Fernando Bufala, Guilherme Menezes, James Streeter, Emilio Pavan
 
*Debut in role. 
 
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1 hour ago, Bruce Wall said:

This has made my day .... Two great companies ... Two excellent leaders... One breathtaking ballerina.

 

BRILLIANT!!!

 

WELL DONE YOU, MS. ROJO!!

Yah, perhaps if our "excellent leader" in Toronto had actually cast Jurgita in Swan Lake, instead of giving the role to two soloists, she wouldn't be looking elsewhere....

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Thanks toursenlair for relaying this news. A change/move in a dancer's career seems always a case of good news for some fans, bad news for others - and I can certainly empathise with the disappointment. And with this news I think I am one of the lucky ones as you say. I was excited when Dronina joined ENB for Giselle this year and I did wonder idly whether it would lead to more guest appearances but never imagined it would lead to a more formal contract like this. 

 

With Cojocaru's happy personal news (but professional hiatus), it seems a brilliant, shrewd coup for Rojo to engage Dronina. Having admired her dancing only on video, I very nearly took the opportunity to see her live in Giselle (but with time constraints felt I had to plump for the chance to see Cojocaru dance instead). Thus the news of future chances to see Dronina dance in the UK is just wonderful. It would be even more wonderful for me if Dronina dances in the ENB touring performances in northern English cities close to me - Liverpool and Manchester.  

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well I don't think she's going to be spending much time in Canada. My guess would be two performances of Winter's Tale early November, a couple of Nutcrackers in December and maybe 3 Sleeping Beauties in mid-March, so I expect she'll have plenty of time to be touring around the UK!

 

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I was fortunate to see Dronina dance Diamonds in Amsterdam before she left HNB for NBC so I shall be looking forward to seeing her again here hopefully in Khan's Giselle in Liverpool or La Sylphide in Manchester. Fingers XD!! 

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5 minutes ago, Don Q Fan said:

I was fortunate to see Dronina dance Diamonds in Amsterdam before she left HNB for NBC so I shall be looking forward to seeing her again here hopefully in Khan's Giselle in Liverpool or La Sylphide in Manchester. Fingers XD!! 

She was lovely in Mary Skeaping's Giselle with ENB at the beginning of the year so I am thrilled with this news and can't wait to see her again.  

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