Press Release: les ballets C de la B and NTGent's Gardenia - 10 years later returns to Sadler's Wells from Tuesday 16 - Wednesday 17 November 2021

[Jan McNulty]

les ballets C de la B & NTGent Gardenia – 10 years later Sadler’s Wells, EC1R 4TN  Tuesday 16 November & Wednesday 17 November 2021   Tickets: £20 - £25  Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com     Having originally premiered at NTGent Theatre, Belgium in 2010 and performed at Sadler’s Wells in 2011, Gardenia – 10 years later is back at Sadler’s Wells on Tuesday 16 & Wednesday 17 November, as part of a European tour.  Over 10 years on, eight members of the cast are reunited. Gardenia – 10 years later is an insight into their turbulent lives, showcasing the most intimate tales about hope, and cherished or lost illusions. Inspired by the film Yo soy así by Sonia Herman Dolz and based on a concept by Vanessa Van Durme who also stars in the piece, Gardenia – 10 years later allows audiences a glimpse into the private lives of a remarkable group of older artists. Gardenia – 10 years later beautifully explores the experiences of transgender performers as they transform on stage.  The cast is gathered from Vanessa Van Durme’s own world and includes a collection of friends who are all in their 70s, navigating gender expression. Born male in 1948, Vanessa Van Durme is one of Belgium’s first transgender performers. She is formerly a popular radio personality with the longest running comedy act on Belgian radio. Van Durme has written around 20 plays for the stage and the book Look mummy, I’m Dancing, from which she created a show that she has performed in four languages all over Europe and America. A principal aim of Van Durme’s work is to challenge public prejudice and to promote tolerance and acceptance of people who are perceived as different. The world-renowned director Alain Platel and founder of ballets C de la B and has reunited with the original creative team 10 years on: multi-award-winning director Frank Van Laecke, and composer Steven Prengels. This powerhouse trio presentGardenia – 10 years later which explores lifelong bonds, transformation and an unimaginable will to survive. The cast talk about growing old and being different, about sadness and longing that binds us, about seeking and finding happiness, about transience, about beauty that does not expire. Revisited 10 years later, the work takes on new meaning in 2021. 10 years ago, the production toured across the world and played over 200 performances in cities including Paris, Berlin, Oslo, and a tour of Russia. In 2012, Gardenia was nominated for an Olivier award. The life of the cast was also beautifully portrayed in the documentary Before the last curtain falls, which won multiple awards at international film festivals including the Grand Prize at Fifa in Montréal and Prix du public à Grenoble among others.  Gardenia – 10 years later contains strong language, partial nudity and some adult themes, including transgender discrimination and physical violence.     Tour Dates:  Thursday 7 October – Saturday 10 October, Bourla Schouwburg, Antwerp Friday 15 October – Saturday 16 October, Théâtre Sénart - Scène Nationale, Sénart Tuesday 19 October – Saturday 23 October, KVS, Brussels Friday 5 November – Saturday 6 November, Temporada Alta, Girona Tuesday 9 November, Théâtre Edwige Feuillère, Vesoul Friday 12 November – Saturday 13 November, Bonlieu – Scène Nationale, Annecy Tuesday 16 November – Wednesday 17 November, Sadler’s Wells, London Saturday 20 November – Sunday 21 November, Le Volcan, Le Havre Friday 26 November – Saturday 27 November, La Rose des Vents / La condition publique, Villeneuve d’Ascq/ Roubaix Friday 3 December – Sunday 5 December, Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam, Amsterdam Wednesday 8 December, C-Mine, Genk Friday 10 December – Saturday 11 December, Théâtre de Namur, Namur Thursday 16 December – Friday 17 December, Charleroi/ Danses, Charleroi Monday 20 December – Thursday 23 December, NTGent – Schouwburg, Gent  NOTES TO EDITORS    Listings Information  les ballets C de la B & NTGent  Gardenia – 10 years later Sadler’s Wells, EC1R 4TN   Performances: Tuesday 16 November & Wednesday 17 November, 7:30pm   Tickets: £20 - £25  Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com    About les ballets C de la B les ballets C de la B (Ghent-Belgium) was founded by Alain Platel in 1984. Since then it has become a company that enjoys great success at home and abroad. Over the years it has developed into an artistic platform for a variety of choreographers. The company still keeps to its principle of enabling artists from various disciplines and backgrounds to take part in this dynamic creative process. As a result of its ‘unique mixture of artistic visions’, les ballets C de la B is not easy to classify. It is nevertheless possible to discern something like a house style (popular, anarchic, eclectic, committed), and its motto is ‘this dance is for the world and the world is for everyone’. www.lesballetscdela.be  About NTGent As a city theatre, NTGent wants to question, motivate and rouse a diverse audience. It does so by making and presenting high-profile productions and by mobilizing theatre for social debate. Since March 2018 artistic leadership has been in hands of the Swiss director, sociologist and theatre maker Milo Rau. Stefan Bläske, his permanent dramaturg, functions as his right hand man and Steven Heene is artistic coordinator. www.ntgent.be  About Sadler’s Wells   Sadler's Wells is a world-leading dance organisation. We make and share dance that inspires us all. Our acclaimed year-round programme spans dance of every kind, from contemporary to flamenco, Bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap.  We commission, produce and present more dance than any other organisation in the world. Since 2005, we have helped to bring close to 200 new dance works to the stage, embracing both the popular and the unknown.    Each year, over half a million people visit our three London theatres. Many more attend our touring productions nationally and internationally or explore our digital platforms, including Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage. In 2023 we’re opening a fourth London venue in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, to sit alongside our Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Lilian Baylis Studio and Peacock Theatre. Sadler’s Wells’ new space will house a 550-seat mid-scale theatre, as well as facilities for a choreographic centre and a hip hop theatre academy.     Supporting artists is at the heart of our work. We have associate artists and companies, which nurture some of the most exciting talent working in dance today. We host the National Youth Dance Company, which draws together some of the brightest young dancers from across the country. Sadler’s Wells Breakin' Convention runs professional development programmes to champion and develop the world’s best hip hop artists, as well as producing, programming and touring groundbreaking hip hop performances.     Around 30,000 people take part in our learning and engagement programmes every year. We support schools local to our theatres in Islington and Stratford, designing experiences for children and young people to watch, explore and critically engage with the arts. We also run Company of Elders, a resident performance company of dancers aged over 60 who rehearse with renowned artists to make new work for public performances locally, nationally and internationally.    Sadler’s Wells is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation.