Never forget that this was a first for Ballet Nights, The New Year’s Day Concert. And compère and artistic director Jamiel Devernay-Laurence, in his inimitable way, certainly did not allow us to forget. His effervescent personality and natural spontaneity never disappointed as he quipped and joked throughout a most enjoyable evening.
It was undoubtedly exceptional on the musical front, in true New Year’s Day tradition. The performance opened with Quartet Concrète and the gifted pianist Viktor Erik Emanuel emphatically driving home the importance of classical music, with two movements from Dvořák’s Piano Quintet no. 2 in A major – the Scherzo (Furiant) and the Allegro. What an impressive opener!
This was swiftly followed by Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Yasiel Hodelín Bello in the Act 2 Ali variation from Le Corsaire. He has phenomenal technique but I’m not a big fan of performing solos out of context and without the pas de deux. It gives the artist little scope for presenting anything other than text book delivery. The good news is that Hodelín Bello will have the opportunity to perform his second chosen variation of the evening, Basilio’s Act 3 solo from the wedding pas de deux, within the full-length Don Quixote, in February this year with BRB. This will show him in a more interesting light, though he nevertheless oozes potential.
One of the stand out performances of the evening was Minju Kang, Lorenzo Trossello and Kevin Poeung in Kenneth Tindall’s Bitter Earth. Originally created for a Northern Ballet workshop in 2011, the following year he was invited to extend it for the main stage. In 2021 he revised it for a charity gala and has now brought it to Cadogan Hall. Kang and Trossello are currently with ENB but what an opportunity to reunite with former colleague Poeung, now a principal with Northern, in this truly innovative piece of mellifluous choreography. Set to Dinah Washington and Max Richter’s This bitter earth, there were some eye catching moments – Kang ‘walking’ up her two partners’ limbs; Poeung caught in a sitting lift. I would happily watch this over and over again, especially with this cast.
Emanuel performed Chopin’s Étude in C Sharp minor, Op.10, no.4, with staggering speed and gusto. One can only imagine the practice (and talent) it requires to play such a demanding composition. Evanescence, to Puccini's “Vissi d’arte” from Tosca and choreographed by Sebastien Bertaud for Liudmila Konovalova was accompanied by the superb Azerbaijani soprano Gulshan Akin and Emanuel once again. Konovalova’s lush port de bras could not lift the choreography enough to distract from Akin’s stunning voice and dominant stage presence.
The first half closed with Florent Melac’s Moonlight, set to an arrangement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, and was performed by London City Ballet’s Constance Devernay-Laurence and English National Ballet’s Gareth Haw. Perhaps at first glance, an unlikely pairing, they turned out to be very much on the same page. Intricate lifts and deeply fluid movements made for extremely pleasing viewing. Devernay-Laurence was powerfully athletic and fearless in all the lifts, Haw effortlessly swooped her into the air with elastic pliés and expansive lines.
The second half was once again extremely strong musically, opening with Quartet Concrète performing Bryce Dessner’s Aheym. Dominic Stokes went on to give a fiery account of Paul Hindemith’s Viola Sonata. Stokes was also responsible for arranging Rossini’s “Largo al factotum” from Il barbiere di Siviglia, for string quartet. It was the turn of charismatic baritone Patrick Alexander Keefe to bring cheer to the beguiled Cadogan Hall audience.
In between the musical interludes Ekleido, (Hannah Ekholm and Faye Stoeser) already familiar to Ballet Nights regulars, danced their own Clinquant to music by Floating Points, Ela Minus and Stella Mozgawa. Interesting to note that the inventive lifts and contrasting movements were not diminished by the fact that the women were partnering each other. Fabulous choreography delivered with slick professionalism.
The evening closed with the third act pas de deux and coda (no solos) from The Sleeping Beauty. Haw partnered Konovalova as only he can. Always attentive, always conscious of what shape or line they will make together. Konovalova recovered graciously from a nasty slip and showed off her beautiful lines, but a rather slow recording of the music did not help her to bring magic to it.
Ballet Nights is on the up with a UK tour set to run this year. The unique format remains ever more appealing.
