Wheeldon’s Alice is an attractive but disjointed spectacular

Steven McRae as the Mad Hatter in Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

William Bracewell as the Knave and Francesca Hayward as Alice in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Francesca Hayward as Alice in Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Lauren Cuthbertson as The Queen of Hearts in Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

James Hay as The White Rabbit in Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

By Vikki Jane Vile, 29 September 2024

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“a conveyor belt of chaotic characters which provides much of the company with opportunities to shine”

Reviewed at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 28 September 2024

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Christopher Wheeldon)

The Royal Ballet

Koen Kessels, Conductor

Bob Crowley, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Natasha Katz, Lighting Designer

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden

Francesca Hayward, Dancer

William Bracewell, Dancer

Lauren Cuthbertson, Dancer

James Hay, Dancer

Gary Avis, Dancer

Kristen McNally, Dancer

Steven McRae, Dancer

Atlanta Ballet shines in a mixed contemporary program

Rebecca Ehrhardt, 3rd April

Atlanta Ballet's Golden Hour program featured two world premieres and the Atlanta premiere of Christopher Wheeldon's Within the Golden Hour.

*****

NYCB: Ratmansky’s The Naked King is not satire, but good fun

Ivy Lin, 7th February

New York City Ballet presents a very entertaining quadruple bill which includes Alexei Ratmansky’s latest work, The Naked King, showing off the company’s comic talents.

****1

The Royal Ballet’s Like Water for Chocolate is sumptuous but complex

Amanda Jennings, 1st October

The Royal Ballet’s season opener, Christopher Wheeldon’s Like Water for Chocolate, is visually tremendous, very well danced but the many principal and soloist characters are difficult to keep up with.

****1

Ballet Nights makes an impressive and unforgettable Scottish debut

Kathy Elgin, 4th July

Ballet Nights is more than an evening of party pieces: it showcases emerging talent alongside older favourites and, in the case of this first Scottish outing, has an eye to local tradition.

****1

ABT in Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale: CliffsNotes Shakespeare

Ivy Lin, 2nd July

Christopher Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale is a sumptuous looking production but on this occasion, it didn’t come to life emotionally.

***11

Wheeldon’s Alice: The Royal Ballet shines in a vehicle of excellence

Amanda Jennings, 13th June

Christopher Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland shows off The Royal Ballet's roster of supreme dance actors in every version of technical wizardry and comic incarnation.

****1

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Vikki Jane Vile

Vikki Jane Vile has been reviewing dance for over ten years, specialising in Ballroom and Ballet. In 2018, she became a member of the Critics' Circle for Dance. Vikki writes for BroadwayWorld and previously Dancing Times, LondonDance.com and CultureWhisper. She also prides herself on being a Strictly Come Dancing connoisseur since its inception and has appeared on BBC radio and several podcasts as an expert on all things Strictly. Having lived in London for ten years, she is now based in Germany and adapting to the Berlin dance scene.