Erik Bruhn Competition

[toursenlair]

Karen Kain, Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada, today announced that Corps de Ballet members Hannah Fischer (20) and Ethan Watts (20) will represent the company at The Eleventh International Competition for The Erik Bruhn Prize on Tuesday, March 24, 2015 at 7:30 pm at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. Choreographic Associate Robert Binet will create a new contemporary work commissioned by the National Ballet as part of the competition.

The companies participating in this year’s competition are Boston Ballet, The Hamburg Ballet, The Royal Danish Ballet,  San Francisco Ballet  and The National Ballet of Canada.

Participants are: Junxiong Zhao (23) and Ji Young Chae (23) from Boston Ballet, Christopher Evans (20) and Futaba Ishizaki (21) from The Hamburg Ballet, Sebastian Haynes (20) and Stephanie Chen Gundorph Møller (21) from The Royal Danish Ballet and Carlo Di Lanno (22) and Wan Ting Zhao (23) from San Francisco Ballet.

[Bruce Wall]

What a wonderful selection of companies. 

[toursenlair]

it's supposed to be NBOC, Royal Ballet, ABT, and Royal Danish, but sometimes the timing clashes with the companies' schedules (ABT, e.g. is working on the premiere of Ratmansky's new Sleeping Beauty) and then NBOC invites other companies. Hamburg's a fairly frequent participant, but I'm pretty sure this is the first time we've seen anyone from Boston. Royal Ballet doesn't show up very often, it must be said, although I remember James Hay and Francesca Hayward from the last one, or perhaps it was the one before that.

[alison]

What a wonderful selection of companies.

Just the "wrong" ones. I didn't realise they'd done that before. 

[Bruce Wall]

Just the "wrong" ones. I didn't realise they'd done that before. 

 

Well, Alison, I guess everything has to 'move on' .... Somehow I think Bruhn would have accepted ... and applauded that.  Kain, as she ever was, is a wise creative leader. 

[alison]

Mmm. Do Boston, Hamburg and SFB have any links with Bruhn?

[Bruce Wall]

Mmmmm ... It is true that the competition was set up through a codicill of Bruhn's will, to wit:

 

In a codicil to his will, Bruhn left part of his estate for the establishment of The Erik Bruhn Prize, recognizing dancers from the three companies with which he was most closely associated: the Royal Danish Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, and the National Ballet of Canada, each of which are invited to send one male and one female dancer to the competition, held in Toronto, Canada.

 

I'm sure that Kain/NBOC must have sent invitations/advice out to ABT as per those terms.  It is a shame indeed that they are are not fulfilling that commitment but wonderful that the RDB and NBoC are determined to maintain this important prize as elected by Bruhn himself.  It is wonderful too that other companies (e.g., outside of those listed by Bruhn himself) are participating and able to benefit from the fine traditions as practiced/instigated by Bruhn.  It is, of course, understandable - especially over a defined period of several years of very real funding cuts - that the UK's Royal Ballet are not always able to be in that enhanced number.  How wonderful to have had the glorious Francesca Hayward and the very fine James Hay amongst the historical EBP throng.  They remain outstanding within - indeed amongst the very strongest of - current RB constituents.  I believe Hayward/Hay did the Flower Festival pas and were coached in that by Kobborg - then a RB principal - when they participated in the EBP competition.  In that way they too upheld Bruhn's native attributes.  Most fitting.  We were treated I remember to an excellent showing of that in one of the Galas that Cojocaru instigated on behalf of a Romanian orphanage.  Excellent it was.  It would be wonderful if, perhaps, one day another of the major UK balletic forces - say, the very fine ENB, BRB, NB or SB - might have a pair of participants amongst/aside that designated core number which was so close to Bruhn's own heart and so crucial to the development of his own stellar career.  I'm certain those young dancers could but benefit from that experience and that - in and of itself - would I'm certain have delighted Bruhn.

Edited February 6, 2015 by Bruce Wall