Live, Video: Find classical music concert, opera, ballet and dance reviews | Jenna Roberts

It is good to see Birmingham Royal Ballet in such fine fettle. This triple bill is well conceived and deftly performed. Not always flawless in its execution, but a five star programme nonetheless.

Sir Peter Wright's version of The Sleeping Beauty has stood the test of time, though this opening night of the tour in Southampton didn't always convince that the work has a place of adoration in the company’s heart.

It starts like a scene from Mary Poppins, with penguin waiters nimbly weaving between waltzing couples, but ends with a deft blow to the stomach to deliver its environmental message.

For the second time in a week, Birmingham Royal Ballet celebrate Shakespeare with a wonderful evening of dance.

An enchanting Ashton double bill in Birmingham comprising The Dream, to mark Shakespeare400, and A Month in the Country. 

Celebrating 20 years as Artistic Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet, David Bintley brings the company to London, where Balanchine’s Serenade acts as a delicate sorbet before the excesses of Bintley’s own Carmina burana.  

Frederick Ashton used to say it was like a lesson in choreography every time he watched The Sleeping Beauty. For Kenneth MacMillan too, the ballet was the pinnacle of classicism and technique and a great test of any company’s skills.

War on a chess board; simplicity and purity of line; and a rollicking Victorian nonsense musical—all rolled into one evening in London this week. Autumn Glory was a true mixed bag of styles and tempos, and recalled Birmingham Royal Ballet’s heritage that had its beginnings at Sadlers Wells Theatre.