Happy 55th Birthday Northern Ballet!

[Jan McNulty]

Northern Ballet is 55 years old today.

 

From the website:

 

https://northernballet.com/happy-birthday-to-us?utm_campaign=1876995_(DEV) 241128 55th Anniversary&utm_medium=email&utm_source=nb_newsletter&dm_i=6S78,148AR,2EKGV1,55YWP,1

[jmhopton]

A lovely tribute to a fabulous company. I had some of my earliest ballet experiences, seeing Northern Ballet at the Grand, theatre,  Blackpool.  I wish they'd return there. I saw their wonderful Romeo and Juliet (still my favourite production of this ballet), the Christopher Gable Giselle which was amazing and I wish Bonelli would revive it again as it can give the Peter Wright version a run for it's money. Then there was the original Dracula which is still my favourite version of the ballet; much prefer it to their later version and A Christmas Carol, such an original ballet enhanced by Lez Brotherstons fabulously inventive sets and costumes and Carl Davis' brilliant Christmas score. Happy birthday Northern Ballet; so many wonderful ballets and ballet experiences.  Let's hope there are many more still to come in the next 55 years!

[CCL]

I also had some of my earliest ballet-watching experiences with Northern Ballet Theatre as they were then called. They brought their Giselle to the old Odeon in Sale, Manchester, which briefly rebranded itself as a theatre, and I went a few times to the Royal Northern College of Music to see them. I recall a lovely double bill of Madame Butterfly and Miss Carter Wore Pink, which had narration by the actress Pat Phoenix. Happy memories and Happy Birthday Northern Ballet!

[Jan McNulty]

The first production I saw was Robert de Warren's Othello, which I would guess was at the end of 1985.  I can also remember an attractive Nutcracker and Swan Lake (in which Nureyev guested).  I also saw Nureyev perform in The Lesson and Miss Julie.  I loved Michael Corder's Ancient Airs and Dances.

 

I loved both of Christopher Gable's productions of Giselle - the traditional and the ghetto-set production that had male and female vengeful spirits.

 

I remember an attractive production of Coppelia.  Of course A Simple Man.

 

Then we had Christopher firmly setting his stamp on the company in 1991 with R&J and Christmas Carol.

 

David Nixon also produced some wonderful ballets for the company - Wuthering Heights, Madame Butterfly, A Midsummer Night's Dream, his own take on Swan Lake, Nutcracker.

 

I've got so many happy memories associated with this company.  Not least the Friends' stall manned for years on a voluntary basis by Margo and Margaret.  I met some of my best ballet-watching friends through their introductions.