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Press Release: New Shows Announced for 2020 at Sadler’s Wells


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For immediate release
23 January 2020

 

New Shows Announced for 2020 at Sadler’s Wells

  • Sadler’s Wells launches Digital Edition - a new festival of digitally engaged work
  • Akram Khan Company celebrates 20 years with Carnival of Shadows, a festival curated by Akram Khan
  • Nederlands Dans Theater 1 & 2 return to Sadler’s Wells with the UK Premiere of Kunstkamer, a celebration of the first company’s 60th Anniversary
  • Sadler’s Wells Elixir and Flamenco Festival return, featuring four World Premieres
  • National Youth Dance Company returns to Sadler’s Wells with a new production from multi award-winning choreographer Russell Maliphant
  • Sadler’s Wells launches Barclays Dance Pass, a new ticket scheme for young people aged 16 – 30 

 

Tickets are on public sale from Monday 10 February 2020 for new shows announced at Sadler’s Wells across 2020, featuring five world premieres, 10 UK premieres, and six Sadler’s Wells Productions and co-productions, as well as a host of new creative partnerships involving artists from all over the world.

 

April 2020 sees the launch of Digital Edition, a new festival focussing on digitally engaged work curated by Sadler’s Wells. This three-day focus, a first for Sadler’s Wells, offers a chance to experience dance artists who are investigating the use of new technologies and offer new expressions of dance. The festival takes place throughout Sadler’s Wells across the weekend of Friday 17 - Sunday 19 April. From virtual and augmented reality, to robotics, artificial intelligence, and the merging of recorded and live dance, these artists are experimenting with the different ways in which the viewer’s body can form part of an expanded choreographic world. Events, installations and performances include Sadler’s Wells New Wave Associate Alexander Whitley’s new work Overflow, alongside his VR installation Celestial Motion II; a re-mounting of Sadler’s Wells New Wave Associate Wilkie Branson’s film installation TOM, originally created for Sadler’s Wells’ 20th anniversary; VR_I, an immersive VR installation from choreographer Gilles Jobin and Swiss motion-capture specialists Artanim; works by young dance-makers, including AΦE’s free, foyer-based AR piece 0AR; and New Movement Collective’s Project XO, an exploration of early robotics.

 

Other celebrations curated by Sadler’s Wells include the return of Elixir and Flamenco Festival. Established in 2014, and now in its third edition, Elixir Festival 2020 runs 17 - 20 June. Celebrating lifelong creativity, the festival features older artists working with international choreographers, alongside new works from long-established artists. Liz Aggiss and Charlotta Öfverholm bring two works, Crone Alone and Lucky to the Lilian Bayliss Studio, while a mixed bill at Sadler’s Wells features mature artists performing new commissions and existing work from some of the most exciting contemporary choreographers. The evening features world premieres of three newly commissioned works, alongside an extract from a much-celebrated masterpiece. Choreographer Ben Duke creates a unique and funny intergenerational piece for three older and three younger dancers; the Olivier Award-nominated Elixir Ensemble returns with a new work created for them by Nicole Beutler; Company of Elders, Sadler’s Wells’ resident inspirational over-60s performance company, appears alongside over-60s dancers from The National Theatre of Taiwan and Taiwanese company BDANCE, to present Tsai Po-cheng’s Floating Flowers; and iconic Canadian choreographer Louise Lecavalier completes the programme with an extract of her seminal piece So Blue.


Flamenco Festival returns to Sadler’s Wells with performances from Tuesday 30 June - Sunday 12 July. This year’s festival celebrates up-and-coming artists alongside flamenco stars, challenging past traditions of the genre and looking towards a new future.


Emerging talents include former principal of the Ballet Nacional de España dubbed the ‘Catalan virtuoso’ Jesús Carmona, who returns to London with his company to present The Jump, a world premiere co-production with Sadler’s Wells, from Tuesday 7 July - Wednesday 8 July; choreographer, director and multi-award winning flamenco dancer Manuel Liñán, returns to Sadler’s Wells Tuesday 30 June to Wednesday 1 July with ¡VIVA!, a challenge to defined roles of male and female forms in traditional flamenco; and emerging talent Ana Morales blends traditional with the avant-garde in Without Permission, Songs for Silence, on Thursday 2 July. Two legends of flamenco also perform: María del Mar Moreno brings her Compañia to the Gala Flamenca, with special guests Pastora Galván, La Moneta and singer Mara Rey, presenting Mujeres de cal y cante on Friday 3 July - Saturday 4 July, and Compañia María Pagés returns with An Ode To Time from Friday 10 July - Sunday 12 July. The Flamenco Festival dance programme is complemented by two concerts: five-time Latin Grammy Award-winner, Tomatito brings an open-minded fusion of jazz, classical and Latin American styles on Thursday 9 July, whilst young talent Estrella Morente, a member of one of Spain’s great flamenco dynasties, gives a fresh take to the Andalusian tradition on Sunday 5 July.


Akram Khan Company celebrates its 20th anniversary across the autumn with Carnival of Shadows, a festival curated by Akram Khan, who returns to the stage to perform in two works. Over the past 20 years, the Company has reinvented itself, reflecting the world as it changes and telling stories from ancient myths to modern times. Both reflecting on the past and looking to the future, Carnival of Shadows presents four major works that represent the cyclical nature of the Company’s journey - Until the Lions, XENOS, We Are But Shadows and Outwitting the Devil.

 

Carnival of Shadows opens with the UK premiere of the Company’s latest work that speaks on humanity’s relationship to the natural world, Outwitting the Devil. Khan’s final full-length solo in the award-winning XENOS, returns to reflect on the brutality of the First World War and to mirror our current tumultuous times. For this anniversary celebration, Until the Lions is presented at Sadler’s Wells for the first time, with Khan performing in an exclusive three-show run to tell the mythical tale of revenge and justice through the lens of a female protagonist. Forming a classical evening of work are two pieces presented as part of Khan’s curation of Darbar Festival, We Are But Shadows. The double-bill features Jwala, a solo by dancer Mythili Prakash and I am Ravana, performed by eight young dancers from Malaysia’s Temple of Fine Arts. Carnival of Shadows will also include further performances, talks, concerts, an exhibition, workshops and masterclasses. Full details will be announced at a later date.

 

A world-leading company for generations, Nederlands Dans Theater 1 & 2 return to Sadler’s Wells with the UK premiere of Kunstkamer from Wednesday 24 - Saturday 27 June. The first company marks its 60th anniversary with a tribute to its dance history over the past six decades. Inspired by Albertus Seba’s Curiosity Cabinet (1734), Kunstkamer presents the company as a multi-faceted 'Company of Oddities'. Resident choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot join forces with Marco Goecke and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Crystal Pite to create work which features every dancer in both NDT 1 and NDT 2, the highly acclaimed second company joining the first company, in a work featuring music from Ludwig van Beethoven to Janis Joplin, Arvo Part, Bela Bartok and Franz Shubert.

 

National Youth Dance Company (NYDC) returns to Sadler’s Wells on Saturday 18 July, performing a new work created specially for them by Guest Artistic Director, multi award-winning choreographer and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Russell Maliphant. Thirty-nine outstanding young dancers brought together from all over England, present a new contemporary work, exploring the relationship between movement, light and music. NYDC has established a reputation for producing high-quality, critically acclaimed productions by leading choreographers including Botis Seva, Sharon Eyal, Damien Jalet, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Michael Keegan-Dolan, Akram Khan and Jasmin Vardimon. This is the first time they have collaborated with Russell Maliphant.

 

Two favourite family shows return to Sadler’s Wells for Christmas 2020. For 23 years, the stage adaption of The Snowman has transported children and families to the wintery wonderland of a boy and a snowman that comes to life. With music and lyrics by Howard Blake, including the timeless Walking in the Air, Birmingham Repertory Theatre’s production continues to enchant audiences, and runs at The Peacock from Saturday 21 November - Sunday 3 January. Last seen in 2011, Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker! returns to London for a limited season at Sadler’s Wells from Tuesday 8 December 2020 – Sunday 24 January 2021. Featuring his trademark wit, pathos and magical fantasy, and influenced by the lavish Hollywood musicals of the 1930s, Bourne’s choreography creates a fresh and irreverent interpretation of this traditional Christmas favourite. Adored by audiences and critics since its premiere in 1992, new surprises should be expected in this reinvented production for 2020.

 

Today Sadler’s Wells also launches Barclays Dance Pass, a new ticket scheme offering £10 tickets to 16 to 30-year-olds as part of a new partnership with Barclays. Barclays Dance Pass will make 10,000 tickets available per year at £10 each to those registered with the scheme. No booking fee applies, and registered holders can purchase two tickets per production, for shows across Sadler’s Wells’ three venues - Sadler’s Wells Theatre, the Lilian Baylis Studio and The Peacock. Registration is free and can be completed online at sadlerswells.com/barclaysdancepass. The ticket scheme launches today at 10am, after which Barclays Dance Pass holders can book for shows in the spring 2020 season, beginning with Sadler’s Wells Sampled opening on Friday 31 January.

 

To mark the launch of Barclays Dance Pass, Sadler’s Wells is offering the first ten sign ups a pair of free tickets for the world premiere of Message In A Bottle, the new Sadler's Wells & Universal Music UK production from Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Kate Prince, based on the songs of Sting, on Wednesday 19 February.

 

The Monument Trust supports co-productions and new commissions at Sadler’s Wells.

 

Barclays supports Barclays Dance Pass and is an Associate Partner of National Youth Dance Company.

 

National Youth Dance Company is jointly funded by Arts Council England and the Department for Education.

 

Tickets for all newly announced events are on public sale from Monday 10 February at  9am via www.sadlerswells.com and 020 7863 8000, and in person at 10am. Booking opens to members from Wednesday 29 January at 9am.

 

Notes to Editors

 

About Sadler’s Wells

Sadler’s Wells is a world-leading creative organisation dedicated to dance in all its forms. With over three centuries of theatrical heritage and a year-round programme of performances and learning activities, it is the place where artists come together to create dance, and where people of all backgrounds come to experience it – to take part, learn, experiment and be inspired.

 

Its vision is to reflect and respond to the world through dance: enabling artists of all backgrounds to create dance that moves us and opens our minds, and sharing those experiences with the widest possible audiences – to enrich their lives and deepen their understanding of what it means to be human.

 

Audiences of over half a million come to Sadler’s Wells’ three London theatres each year, with many more enjoying its touring productions at venues across the UK and around the world and accessing its content through digital channels. Sadler's Wells commissions, produces and presents more dance than any other theatre in the world, embracing the popular and the unknown. Since 2005, it has helped to bring over 170 new dance works to the stage, many of them involving its 16 Associate Artists, three Resident Companies and four Associate Companies – the most exciting talents working in dance today. 

 

Sadler’s Wells nurtures the next generation of talent through a number of artist development initiatives and reaches over 30,000 annually through its learning and engagement programmes.

 

Located in Islington, north London, Sadler’s Wells’ current building is the sixth to have stood on site since entrepreneur Richard Sadler first established the theatre 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 having all started at Sadler's Wells.

 

Sadler’s Wells is to open an additional mid-scale venue in east London in 2022. The new space will be at the heart of the East Bank project, a new cultural and education district in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, which will also include BBC, UAL’s London College of Fashion, UCL and the V&A in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution. As well as a 550-seat auditorium, Sadler’s Wells’ new venue will include a choreographic centre and a hip hop theatre academy, the first of their kind in the world to be run by a theatre.

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New Shows for 2020 at Sadler’s Wells

 

Tickets for all newly announced events are on public sale from Monday 10 February at  9am via www.sadlerswells.com and 020 7863 8000, and in person at 10am. Booking opens to members from Wednesday 29 January at 9am.

 

Sadler’s Wells and Lilian Baylis Studio Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com.

 

The Peacock Ticket Office: 020 7863 8222 or www.peacocktheatre.com.

 

The new trailer is available to view on Sadler’s Wells YouTube channel.

 


Digital Edition

Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Lilian Baylis Studio & foyer spaces
Friday 17 - Sunday 19 April

This three-day focus on digitally engaged work is a chance to experience works by dance artists who are investigating the use of new technologies and offer new expressions of dance. This is Sadler’s Wells’ first focus on this rapidly developing artistic field.

From virtual and augmented reality, to robotics, artificial intelligence, and the merging of recorded and live dance, these artists are experimenting with the different ways in which the viewer’s body can form part of an expanded choreographic world.

Events, installations and performances include:

  • Sadler’s Wells New Wave Associate Alexander Whitley’s Overflow
  • A re-mounting of New Wave Associate Wilkie Branson’s film installation TOM, originally created for Sadler’s Wells’ 20th anniversary
  • Choreographer Gilles Jobin & Artanim’s immersive VR installation VR_I
  • Works by young dance-makers including AΦE’s free, foyer-based AR piece 0AR, - inspired by the iconic Zero Degrees production (2005) by Akram Khan, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Anthony Gormley; New Movement Collective’s Project XO, an exploration of early robotics and Alexander Whitley’s VR installation Celestial Motion II, based on his previous work, 8 minutes
  • A behind-the-scenes tour of his digital installation with Wilkie Branson
  • Talks and debates from artists and technologists

 

Alexander Whitley Dance Company         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Overflow

Friday 17 & Saturday 18 April
Tickets: £20 - £25


In 2017, Sadler’s Wells New Wave Associate Alexander Whitley collaborated with space scientists to create 8 Minutes, combining dance, visuals and music to take audiences on a breath-taking journey to the sun. Known for his adventurous use of technology, Whitley’s new work delves into what it means to be human in the era of big data. 

 

Overflow features a dazzling kinetic light sculpture by Children of the Light, costumes from award-winning designer Ana Rajcevic and an original score from London-based producer Rival Consoles, whose music features in the Netflix series Black Mirror.

A Sadler’s Wells co-commission
The Monument Trust supports new commissions at Sadler’s Wells
Free post-show talk: Friday 17 April

 

 

Alexander Whitley Dance Company      SADLER’S WELLS
Celestial Motion II      ROSEBERY ROOM

Friday 17 & Saturday 18 April
Tickets: £5

A shared virtual reality dance experience, Celestial Motion II transports audiences to an alternate universe, joined by a virtual cast of world-class dancers on a journey towards the sun.
 
The experience, created with Fenyce Workspace, uses HTV Vive motion tracking technology to playfully recreate users’ bodies in a visually thrilling virtual world inspired by the world of solar physics. With a special introduction by celebrated scientist and TV journalist, Jim Al-Khalili, the work is a development from New Wave Associate Alexander Whitley’s stage production, 8 Minutes, presented at Sadler’s Wells in 2018.

 


Wilkie Branson       LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
TOM  

Friday 17 - Sunday 19 April
Tickets: £17

Set in a hinterland between the civilised world and the wilderness, TOM tells the story of one man’s journey to rediscover who he really is. The piece returns to the Lilian Baylis Studio after winning the Theatre & Technology Award for Outstanding Production.

A dance for camera installation, TOM is created by award-winning choreographer, filmmaker and New Wave Associate Wilkie Branson. In this soul searching and poetic film, Branson explores storytelling using b-boy with cutting-edge technologies including animation, projection mapping, sound design and film installation.

A Sadler’s Wells co-production
Wilkie Branson is a Sadler’s Wells New Wave Associate Artist

 


Cie Gilles Jobin & Artanim          SADLER’S WELLS STUDIO A
VR_I       

Friday 17 - Sunday 19 April
Tickets: £5


Following presentations at Venice Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival, Cie Gilles Jobin & Artanim’s VR_I comes to Sadler’s Wells.

 

This award-winning immersive virtual reality experience is unique sensory journey, bringing together choreography and technology from seasoned choreographer Gilles Jobin and Artanim, acclaimed motion capture technology experts and virtual reality pioneers from Switzerland.

 


New Movement Collective         SADLER’S WELLS STUDIO B
Project XO             UK PREMIERE
Friday 17 - Sunday 19 April
Tickets: £5


Project XO is a cutting-edge dance installation devised by New Movement Collective with creative technologists Kai Lab, Visualpilots and FENYCE Workspace.

This unique encounter invites members of the public to wear a robotic exoskeleton which moves their bodies in precise choreography. Exploring themes of power, agency and empathy, this performance is a three-way interaction between participant, performer and technology.

Audience members can choose to partake by wearing the robotic suit or watch the interaction in the dance studio.

 

 

AΦE     SADLER’S WELLS MEZZANINE
OAR

Friday 17 – Sunday 19 April
Free

This augmented reality piece takes inspiration from the iconic Sadler’s Wells production zero degrees (2005) by Akram Khan, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Anthony Gormley and Nitin Sawhney.

The piece is free to access, installed in one of the foyer spaces on the Mezzanine Level of Sadler’s Wells Theatre.

 

Wild Card: Christopher Matthews / formed view       LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
my body’s an exhibition                   UK
PREMIERE
Thursday 14 May
Tickets: £17

Wild Card returns with more offerings from a new generation of artists, curating their own performance nights.

American-born, London-based Christopher Matthews curates a special event featuring several movement-based installations, opening a dialogue on themes of gender, class structure, intersections of the classical and contemporary, icon versus self, and pop culture.

Taking the Janet Jackson lyrics from the 2008 song Feedback - “my body’s an exhibition baby” - as a curatorial provocation, audiences are invited to question the relationship between the body as object and spectatorship, echoed in the lyrics describing the sensual urges of two bodies coming into contact. In this evening, Matthews builds on his practice of investigating the relationship between dance’s historical position and its mirroring in pop culture.

 

International performance makers and visual artists display video works, photographic prints and live installations alongside two of Matthews’ works. Lads exposes the influence of neo-classical culture on early modern dance, whilst My Body’s Number 1 explores class structure through references to go-go boys and Greco-Roman nudes.

 

 

Pagrav Dance Company         LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
Kattam Katti UK PREMIERE

Thursday 21 & Friday 22 May
Tickets: £17

Kattam Katti is a new work from Pagrav Dance Company inspired by Uttarayan, the world-famous festival which takes place in Gujurat, north India. Uttarayan sees millions of people from different places and backgrounds come together to fly kites, part of an ancient tradition marking the transition from winter in summer.

 

Tapping into the chaos, creativity and colour of the event, the company brings to life the excitement of Uttarayan with lyricism, drama and exquisite technique. The work is created and performed by a new generation of British dancers of Indian heritage, accompanied by live musicians.

Founded by acclaimed dancer, choreographer and teacher Urja Desai Thakore - recently BBC Young Dancer choreographer - Pagrav Dance Company creates work rooted in kathak, though infused with contemporary storytelling and design.

 

 

Dan Daw Creative Projects                                                LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
The Dan Daw Show

Thursday 4 & Friday 5 June
Tickets: £17

Having spent years inspiring non-disabled people simply because of who he is perceived to be, Dan Daw seizes the moment to inspire himself. By taking ownership of the beautiful mess that encompasses all that he is, Daw lets go of who he once was, to make room for who he wants to be. 

Daw is joined in an intimate evening of play by performer Christopher Owen (Joe Moran; Scottish Dance Theatre). The Dan Daw Show is a peep into the shiny and sweaty push-pull of living with shame, while bursting with pride. 

 

Daw returns to Sadler’s Wells after curating a Wild Card evening in 2017, questioning our understanding of success and failure. 

 

 

Elixir Festival 2020 
Wednesday 17 – Saturday 20 June 2020

 

Established in 2014, and now in its third edition, Elixir Festival celebrates lifelong creativity. The festival recognises the contribution that older artists make, challenging assumptions about what older people can and want to do.

 

Elixir Festival 2020 includes an evening of renowned older artists working with international choreographers on the Sadler’s Wells Theatre stage, as well as performances in the Lilian Baylis Studio from Liz Aggiss & Charlotta Öfverholm.

 

There will also be participation opportunities, with a series of Elixir Workshops. This varied and vibrant programme of performances and workshops proves that creativity does not diminish with age; in fact, it continues to grow.

 

 

Liz Aggiss & Charlotta Öfverholm                                    LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
Crone Alone & Lucky

Elixir Festival 2020
Wednesday 17 June 2020
Tickets: £12


Liz Aggiss, ‘enfant terrible’ of the bus pass generation, presents a ‘scratch’ extract from her new work Crone Alone. This layered, unapologetic feminist solo, is chock-full of dark wit and pithy social commentary, that gleefully dissects the historical medical precedents associated with female hysteria.

 

Charlotta Öfverholm presents Lucky. Lucky longs for happiness, to die young, to live forever, or just live in the moment. Dance, circus, text and music create a performance that questions, accepts and celebrates life’s journey, the path to maturity and what might follow.

 


Elixir Festival 2020         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Friday 19 & Saturday 20 June 2020     WORLD PREMIERE

£15 - £20

 

The Elixir Festival presents a mixed bill featuring internationally renowned, older-generation artists, performing new commissions and existing work from some of the most exciting contemporary choreographers.

 

The evening features newly commissioned works making their world premiere as part of Elixir 2020 alongside an extract from a much-celebrated masterpiece.

 

  • Working with three older and three younger dancers, Ben Duke creates a funny and moving, intergenerational piece.
  • A regular feature of Elixir Festival, the Olivier Award-nominated Elixir Ensemble returns to the festival with a new work created by Nicole Beutler.
  • In an exciting collaboration, Company of Elders, Sadler’s Wells’ resident inspirational over-60s performance company, appears alongside over-60s dancers from The National Theatre of Taiwan. Working with Taiwanese company BDANCE, the group presents the company’s founder Tsai Po-cheng’s Floating Flowers. Created in memory of Tsai’s father, this award-winning piece depicts the transience of life and death.
  • Iconic Canadian choreographer Louise Lecavalier completes the programme with an extract of her stunning piece So Blue, a radical, raw, and haunting work set to the visceral music of Mercan Dede.

 

Nederlands Dans Theater 1 & 2         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Kunstkamer UK PREMIERE

Wednesday 24 – Saturday 27 June
Tickets: £15 - £65

Celebrating 60 years of the company, Nederlands Dans Theater marks its anniversary in a tribute to its dance history over the past six decades. Inspired by Albertus Seba’s Curiosity Cabinet (1734), Kunstkamer presents the company as a multi-faceted 'Company of Oddities'.

Resident choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot join forces with Marco Goecke and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Crystal Pite to create work which features every dancer in both NDT 1 and NDT 2.

 

The highly acclaimed second company joins the first company, set to a medley of music from Ludwig van Beethoven to Janis Joplin, Arvo Part, Bela Bartok and Franz Shubert.

 

 

L’atisse Rhoden       LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
L CASA           UK PREMIERE

Friday 26 & Saturday 27 June
Tickets: £17

Sadler’s Wells New Wave Associate L’atisse Rhoden brings together a special evening featuring newly commissioned works for stage, alongside film and photography, which explore issues of perception, mental health, female empowerment, and ultimately, distorted realities.

 

A bold introduction to L’atisse’s artistry, L CASA includes exciting multi-disciplinary works from different artists curated by NAVA, her own company. Intensely thought provoking, L'atisse’s work is heavily inspired by hip hop, surrealism and future sounds, and has been showcased at Sadler’s Wells as part of Breakin’ Convention.

 

 

Hagit Yakira Dance       LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
If One Keeps Walking UK PREMIERE

Saturday 4 & Sunday 5 July
Tickets: £12

If One Keeps Walking is the latest work by Hagit Yakira Dance, who return to Sadler’s Wells after curating a Wild Card evening in 2016.

The piece is a site-responsive, experiential event beginning as an outdoor promenade performance, which then makes its way into the Lilian Baylis Studio. The show brings together a cast of five professional dancers performing alongside a cast of people of all ages and abilities, drawn from the local community in Islington, London.

 

The audience is taken on a mindful journey beginning outside - walking and watching, in and through the urban environment, and following invitations from the performers who act as guides. The journey is simultaneously quiet, animated, solitary and united, culminating in live music from acclaimed composer Sabio Janiak, and a performance from the full cast. Boundaries between audience, performers and dancers are blurred in the creation of a unique communal experience.

 

 

Flamenco Festival 2020       SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Tuesday 30 June - Sunday 12 July 
Tickets: £15 - £65


This year’s Flamenco Festival celebrates up-and-coming artists alongside flamenco stars, challenging past traditions of flamenco and looking towards a new future. Artists explore what flamenco means to them in a sensational line-up of flamenco shows. 

Compañia Manuel Liñán 
¡VIVA!
  UK PREMIERE
Tickets: £15 – 55
Tuesday 30 June – Wednesday 1 July


Innovative choreographer, director and multi-award winning flamenco dancer, Manuel Liñán, returns to Sadler’s Wells with ¡VIVA!. Challenging the defined roles of male and female forms in flamenco, Liñan seeks to present his own vibrant, joyful and exuberant flamenco that celebrates expression, freedom and being yourself.



Compañia Ana Morales
Without Permission, Songs for Silence
  UK PREMIERE
Tickets: £15 - £55
Thursday 2 July


Emerging talent Ana Morales blends the traditional with the avant-garde in Without Permission, Songs for Silence. The work looks at memory, delving into the delicate recollections of the artist’s father, his connection to Andalusia and to flamenco, and her own journey to understanding art and its connection to life. Morales brings together a blend of different dance forms and is a contemporary flamenco artist representing the bright future of flamenco dance.



Gala Flamenca
Compañia María del Mar Moreno, starring Pastora Galván & La Moneta
Mujeres de cal y cante  UK PREMIERE

Tickets: £15 - £65
Friday 3 July – Saturday 4 July


Mujeres de cal y cante by Compañía María del Mar Moreno features the talents of flamenco dancer La Moneta from world-famous Sevillian dynasty, Pastora Galván, as well as rising flamenco singing star Mara Rey.

Mujeres de cal y cante marks the meeting place of multiple generations of women in an authentic flamenco celebration. Presenting flamenco in its purest form, these female artists, led by Compañía María del Mar Moreno as lead dancer, combine their wisdom, experiences and expression in a celebration on the three stages of ‘The Woman’, past, present and future.



Estrella Morente 
In Concert

Tickets: £15 - £55 
Sunday 5 July


A member of one of Spain’s greatest singing dynasties, Estrella Morente represents a passionate new voice in flamenco, applying a fresh new take on the Andalusian tradition.

With an emotive, powerful vocal, Morente presents a curated collection of festive songs from her childhood, to exploring the depths of love and loss. She seeks to represent women past, present and future through her voice, delving into the complexities of human emotion. 



Compañia Jesús Carmona
The Jump WORLD PREMIERE

Tickets: £15 – 55
Tuesday 7 July - Wednesday 8 July


The aptly dubbed ‘Catalan virtuoso’, Jesús Carmona, returns to Sadler’s Wells with his signature choreography in a new work. The former principal of the Ballet Nacional de España is trained in multiple genres, from flamenco, ballet and tap, to 17th century Italian court dances. Audiences can expect a show that crosses genres and styles, pushing the boundaries of flamenco.

The Jump explores art’s ability to affect personal growth, as Carmona looks at his own journey and relationship with masculinity in the 21
st century.

A Sadler’s Wells co-production



Tomatito
In Concert 
Tickets: £15 - £55 
Thursday 9 July


Five-time Latin Grammy Award-winner, Tomatito is recognised as one of the leading guitarists in contemporary flamenco. Appearing with an ensemble of exceptional musicians and a guest flamenco dancer, the long-time musical partner of the transcendent Camarón de la Isla brings an adventurous and open-minded fusion of jazz, classical and Latin American styles. 

 


Compañia María Pagés
An Ode To Time UK PREMIERE

Tickets: £15 - £65
Friday 10 July – Sunday 12 July


The leading innovator of modern flamenco lets her imagination soar in two powerful works” - New York Times

Searching for meaning in the art of flamenco, María Pagés blends art and life in her in-depth explorations of the genre. Her powerful gestures and ferocious footwork combine to create a performance that is theatrical and passionate, whilst also reflective. 

Accompanied by eight dancers and an original score, An Ode to Time looks at darkness and light, the chance of happiness in uncertain times and the nature of time itself. Working with her long-time collaborator El Arbi El Harti, Pagés’s swift and incisive choreography draws from a variety of flamenco styles and inspirations.

 

 

National Youth Dance Company         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Guest Artistic Director: Russell Maliphant

Saturday 18 July
Tickets: £12


For its latest staged work National Youth Dance Company (NYDC) collaborate with multi-award-winning choreographer and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist, Russell Maliphant. His work has been performed by renowned dance artists including Sylvie Guillem, BalletBoyz, Munich Ballet and English National Ballet.

 

Thirty-nine outstanding young dancers present a new contemporary work, exploring the relationship between movement, light and music.

NYDC has established a reputation for producing high-quality, critically acclaimed productions by leading choreographers including Botis Seva, Sharon Eyal, Damien Jalet, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Michael Keegan-Dolan, Akram Khan and Jasmin Vardimon.

NYDC Associate Partner Barclays
NYDC is jointly funded by Arts Council England and the Department for Education

 

 

Noise Boys THE PEACOCK
Tuesday 29 September - Saturday 10 October
Tickets: £18 - £55

Noise Boys is an exhilarating tap and beatboxing spectacular that arrives at The Peacock following a hit run at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2019.

This high-octane show combines physical skill with incredible musicianship and infectious rhythms. Noise Boys features an impressive lineup of multi award-winning champion beatboxers, world-class tap dancers and some of the best vocal and musical talent in the UK.

 

Noise Boys is presented by Nic Doodson Productions, Andrew Kay and Associates and Great Leap Forward in association with BB Promotion, Harmonia Holdings and Selladoor Worldwide.

 

 

Carnival of Shadows
Akram Khan Company
Monday 28 September - Tuesday 13 October

Celebrating 20 years of Akram Khan Company

 

Over the past 20 years, Akram Khan Company became a platform for stories from another perspective, constantly reinventing itself and reflecting the world as it changes, from ancient myths to our current times.

 

Akram shares his thoughts about a unique journey that has brought the Company to a new beginning: “These past twenty years have been of an epic undertaking with Akram Khan Company producer Farooq Chaudhry and our incredible team. We chose to seek out artists from across the world and gather not just their remarkable expertise and talent, but their different insights into the fundamental questions of why we dance, and how can we bring stories that may have been forgotten, erased, or hiding in the shadows to the frontline of our rapidly changing global arena. The beguiling thing about this very moment, is that I feel the past 20 years have been about finding my voice. And now that that voice is more present in the global community, it feels so exciting to start using it and discover its range into the future - starting with Carnival of Shadows. A celebration of our work and vision at Sadler’s Wells, my dancing home for the last 15 years.”

 

The festival has been curated by Akram Khan with works that represent the cyclical nature of the Company’s journey. Carnival of Shadows opens with the UK premiere of the Company’s latest work that speaks on humanity’s relationship to the natural world, Outwitting the Devil. Khan’s final full-length solo XENOS, returns to reflect on the brutality of the First World War and to mirror our current tumultuous times. For this anniversary celebration, Until the Lions is presented at Sadler’s Wells for the first time. Khan performs in an exclusive three-show run to tell the mythical tale of revenge and justice through the lens of a female protagonist. Forming a classical evening of work are two pieces presented as part of Khan’s curation of Darbar Festival: We are but Shadows. The double-bill features Jwala a solo by Outwitting the Devil dancer Mythili Prakash and I am Ravana, performed by eight young dancers from Malaysia’s Temple of Fine Arts.

Carnival of Shadows also includes further performances, talks, concerts, an exhibition, workshops and masterclasses. Further details to be announced.


Outwitting the Devil         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Monday 28 - Wednesday 30 September
Tickets: £15 - £65

Stirring classical and contemporary, Akram Khan Company’s latest production, Outwitting the Devil examines ritual and remembering.

Like Kaash, based on the pantheon of Hindu gods, and Until the Lions, re-imagining the experience of one of Mahabharata’s female protagonists, Outwitting the Devil draws on the ancient narrative of Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh.

 

Weaving the narrative and design are the Company’s close collaborators: dramaturg Ruth Little, composer Vincenzo Lamagna, rehearsal director Mavin Khoo, costume designer Kimie Nakano, and writer Jordan Tannahill who are joined by lighting designer Aideen Malone, visual designer Tom Scutt and an ensemble of six international dance artists.

A Sadler’s Wells co-production

 

XENOS            SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Saturday 3 - Monday 5 October
Tickets: £15 - £75

“A blaze of glory. Khan’s striking, beautiful lament is an extraordinary way to wind down a solo dance career” - Time Out

Following its Olivier Award in 2019 for Outstanding Achievement in Dance, Akram Khan returns to the stage, alongside five world-class musicians, to present the critically acclaimed XENOS.

 

Shifting between classical kathak and contemporary dance, Khan conjures the shell-shocked dream of a colonial soldier in the First World War. Meaning ‘stranger’ or ‘foreigner’, XENOS takes place where humanity stands in wonder and disarray, on the border between East and West, past and present, mythology and technology.

 

A stellar creative team joins the journey, including fellow Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist lighting designer Michael Hulls, dramaturg Ruth Little, playwright Jordan Tannahill, designer Mirella Weingarten, costumier Kimie Nakano and composer Vincenzo Lamagna.

A Sadler’s Wells co-production


Until the Lions           SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Friday 9 - Sunday 11 October
Tickets: £15 - £65


“Thrilling and beautiful” - The Observer

Akram Khan Company brings Until the Lions, a piece originally created for The Roundhouse in 2016, to Sadler’s Wells for the first time. Joining Akram Khan on stage is an international cast of two dancers and four musicians.

 

Using a powerful blend of classical Indian kathak movement and contemporary dance, Khan tells the story of Amba, one of the great, unsung heroines of the Mahabharata. Adapted from Karthika Naïr’s book Until the Lions: Echoes from the Mahabharata, the piece is a poetic retelling of the Sanskrit epic exploring notions of gender and time in a battle for justice and liberty.

 

Until the Lions sees the Company reunite with some of its regular artistic collaborators, including visual artist Tim Yip, lighting designer Michael Hulls, writer Karthika Naïr and dramaturg Ruth Little.

A Sadler’s Wells co-production


Press night: Friday 9 October at 7:30pm

 

We Are But Shadows            SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Tuesday 13 October
Tickets: £15 - £55

Supported by Darbar Festival, Akram Khan Company presents We Are But Shadows, an evening comprised of two Indian classical works, both performed originally as part of Akram Khan and Mavin Khoo’s dance curation for the festival. 

 

Jwala, choreographed by Mythili Prakash, is a three-part production exploring Sanskrit phrase ‘Jwala Vyapnoti Akasham’, meaning ‘the rising light fills space’. Jwala finds connection between death and life, between saying goodbye and looking ahead, between release and hope and between shedding and seeking. 

 

For the second work, the all-male bharatanatyam ensemble from the Temple of Fine Arts Inner Space Dance perform choreography by Mavin Khoo, I am Ravana. Drawing from the musical tradition of bhajan hymns, alluding to the spirit of Lord Rama, this new work explores three scenes from the Sanskrit epic Ramayana.

 

Karais Limited THE PEACOCK
Flamenka
    UK PREMIERE Monday 2 November – Saturday 7 November          
Tickets: £18 - £65

Latin and Flamenco join forces in a thrilling performance combining the power of Riverdance with the sultry heat of the Mediterranean.

 

Flamenco legend Karen Ruimy leads an exceptional company of male dancers from Madrid and South America in a passionate fusion of two of the most exhilarating dance forms. As worlds collide, feet stomp and hips twirl, Flamenka takes you on an electrifying journey of a forbidden love affair.

Flamenka is directed and choreographed by Arlene Phillips CBE, famed for her work as a choreographer, director, television judge and presenter, and former dancer.

 

 

Birmingham Repertory Theatre THE PEACOCK
The Snowman

Saturday 21 November - Sunday 3 January
Tickets: £18 - £55

"Sheer theatrical magic. Go see The Snowman and melt" - The Times

For 23 years, this magical stage adaption of Raymond Briggs’ much-loved book, and the film directed by Dianne Jackson, has transported a generation of children and their families into the wintery wonderland of a boy and a snowman that comes to life. With music and lyrics by Howard Blake, including the timeless Walking in the Air, The Snowman continues to enchant audiences with a captivating mix of dance, live music, storytelling and spectacle.

 

 

Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker!
   
Music by Tchaikovsky
Tuesday 8 December – Sunday 24 January
Tickets: £15 - £85


The sweetest of all Matthew Bourne’s Christmas treats returns to London for a limited season at Sadler’s Wells Theatre. It’s a Nutcracker! like no other.

 

Coupled with Tchaikovsky’s glorious score, and Anthony Ward’s delectable sets and costumes, Bourne’s dazzling choreography creates a fresh and charmingly irreverent interpretation of this traditional Christmas favourite. Featuring his trademark wit, pathos and magical fantasy, Nutcracker! follows Clara’s bittersweet journey from a darkly comic Christmas Eve at Dr. Dross’ Orphanage, through a winter wonderland to the candy kingdom of Sweetieland, influenced by the lavish Hollywood musicals of the 1930s.

 

Adored by audiences and critics alike since its premiere in 1992, expect a sprinkling of new surprises in this reinvented production for 2020.

Acclaimed worldwide as the UK’s most popular choreographer and director, Matthew Bourne and his New Adventures company have produced some of the most successful dance productions of the last two decades including Swan Lake, Cinderella, The Red Shoes, Edward Scissorhands and most recently his acclaimed re-imagining of Romeo and Juliet.

 

 

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