Jan McNulty Posted June 2, 2019 Share Posted June 2, 2019 Northern Ballet has been creating ballets specifically for young children for the last 7 years, starting with The Ugly Duckling. I have seen every one of the productions in the theatre and what I have enjoyed most about them is the pleasure these ballets give to younger children. There is enough content to keep the adults happy too!! Coming in at around 40 minutes they are short enough to keep the interest of the children throughout. The latest ballet in this series is Puss in Boots, created for the Company by Jenna Lee and premiered last October. A friend and I went to Huddersfield yesterday to see it again close to the end of a very long run. Jack is given Puss as a present but is a bit disappointed with him. He and Puss go to the market and Puss is kitted out. Puss ends up playing music with the town cats before he finds the King's Castle. By duping Jack he steals Jack's clothes and persuades the King to give him new ones. Jack meets the Princess and they fall in love. Puss meets the Princess' cat Penelope. Happy ending! Richard Norriss has composed a lively jazz-infused score that is very tuneful and you can't help tapping your feet in parts. Yesterday George Liang was a supple, very feline Puss whose facial expressions were superb and whose hands were incredibly expressive. Apart from Puss the five other dancers perform multiple roles. There are some very nice moves for all the dancers. George was joined by Harriet Marden and Adam Ashcroft from Northern Ballet. My friend recognised the other 3 dancers as being from Ballet Central but I'm afraid I don't know their names. All the dancers looked as though they were having a ball on stage and danced with sincerity and commitment. I think this was reflected in the enthusiastic audience reaction to the piece. So a great time was had by all! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maryrosesatonapin Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 It's wonderful if this type of event garners a new young audience! I do think, though, that children can appreciate dance and in particular ballet much more than we sometimes give them credit for. I have taken young relatives to the Nutcracker when they were quite small, moving on to Sleeping Beauty then Swan Lake, and also Opera (Carmen is a good starter). They are now hooked! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted June 4, 2019 Author Share Posted June 4, 2019 These ballets are advertised as being suitable for children of 2+. I didn't take my nieces to the theatre till they were 7, although we had been going to the cinema when they were younger. I probably would have taken them to these productions at a younger age. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted June 9, 2019 Author Share Posted June 9, 2019 The view from Wolverhampton: https://www.expressandstar.com/entertainment/theatre-and-comedy/2019/06/08/puss-in-boots-a-ballet-for-children-northern-ballet-wolverhampton-grand-theatre-review/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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