Press Release: Northern Ballet returns home with a new Mixed Programme

[Jan McNulty]

Northern Ballet returns home with a new Mixed Programme 
 
Northern Ballet will perform a new Mixed Programme at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre in its Leeds city-centre headquarters from 6 – 9 May 2015. The Mixed Programme will feature Kenneth Tindall’s The Architect and Christopher Hampson’s Perpetuum Mobile as well as three works only previously performed at Northern Ballet’s 45^th anniversarySapphire Gala; Little Monsters by Demis Volpi, A Northern Trilogy by Jonathan Watkins and Daniel de Andrade’s Fatal Kiss.

A Northern Trilogy was created by former Royal Ballet dancer Jonathan Watkins for Northern Ballet’s 45^th anniversary Sapphire Gala in March 2014. Set to a soundtrack of voice recordings by Stanley Cooper; Yorkshire Pudden, One-Each-A-Piece-All-Round, The Lion and the Albert; A Northern Trilogy is a light-hearted and witty piece capturing the spirit and humour of the North. This is Watkins’ first creation for Northern Ballet for whom he will create a full-length adaptation of 1984 to première this September in Leeds.

Daniel de Andrade’s Fatal Kiss is set to music by Astor Piazolla and tells the story of a man who meets his death in the form of a last kiss. With a distinctly Latin feel, this dark but passionate piece was also created for Northern Ballet’s 45^th anniversary Sapphire Gala.  

Choreographed by Demis Volpi, Stuttgart Ballet’s resident choreographer, Little Monsters tells a love story from the passionate beginning to the despair of its end expressed through the lyrics of Elvis Presley songs; Love Me Tender, I Want You, I Need You, I Love You and Are You Lonesome Tonight.

Last performed by Northern Ballet in 2012, Perpetuum Mobile, was one of Christopher Hampson’s first creations for English National Ballet with whom he danced until 1999. Now Artistic Director of Scottish Ballet, Hampson’s Perpetuum Mobile opens the programme with a challenging classic piece inspired by, and set to, Bach’s Violin Concerto in E Major.
 
Closing the programme, The Architect premièred in Leeds in June 2014 and is created by Northern Ballet’s Premier Dancer, Kenneth Tindall, who retires at the end of the season to pursue a full-time career as a choreographer. Taking inspiration from the story of Adam and Eve, The Architect explores the creation and temptations of mankind in an intensely physical performance with music by Zoe Keating, Olafur Arnalds and Balanescu Quartet and sets and costumes designed by Christopher Giles.
 
Artistic Director of Northern Ballet, David Nixon OBE, said: ‘Northern Ballet is a company that possesses some of the most talented and emotionally engaging dancers in the world. Through our Mixed Programme we are able to showcase their versatility in performing in any genre and the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre is the ideal setting for audiences to experience our company up close and at their most physical.
 
In addition to reviving two popular pieces in The Architect and Perpetuum Mobile, I am also delighted to be able to give audiences another chance to see a further three very different pieces that have only previously been performed at ourSapphire Gala.’
 
Tickets for Northern Ballet’s Mixed Programme at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre are on sale now and can  be booked online at theatreleeds.com or by calling the box office on 0113 220 8008.
 
-ENDS-

 
Mixed Programme press performance – 6 May 2015, 7.30pm
 

Notes to Editors
For more details of Northern Ballet's tour, on sale dates and booking information, please visit northernballet.com/whatson.
 
Voted Best Company at the 2014 Taglioni European Ballet Awards, Northern Ballet is one of the UK’s five large ballet companies. Based in Leeds it performs throughout the UK as well as overseas. Northern Ballet’s productions mix classical dance and theatre, embracing popular culture and taking inspiration from literature, opera, or giving a unique interpretation of popular classical ballets.
 
Northern Ballet is the busiest touring ballet company in the UK and is typically on the road for around 32 weeks of the year. The Company of 48 dancers tours a combination of full-length new work and established repertoire to cities throughout the UK. Northern Ballet will introduce a new strand of touring in 2015, widening the Company’s already extensive reach. The new mid-scale tour will see the Company perform in nine additional venues.
 
Northern Ballet tours widely with its ballets for children, the first three of which were adapted for TV by CBeebies, and also performs a mixed programme showcasing the versatility of its dancers.
 
Visit northernballet.com for more information on the Company and tour. 
 
Mixed Programme – Tour Dates
Leeds, Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre     
6 – 9 May 2015                                                                          
Box Office 0113 220 8008                            
theatreleeds,com                                                          
On sale now      
                                            
London, Linbury Studio Theatre
12 – 14 May 2015   
Box Office 0207 304 4000
roh.org.uk     
On sale now