Northern Ballet at 50: a gala celebration in Leeds

By Graham Watts, 06 January 2020

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“David Nixon... grasped the opportunity with theatrical panache”

Reviewed at Leeds Grand Theatre, Leeds on 4 January 2020

The Great Gatsby (Charleston) (David Nixon)

Rückert-Lieder (Dance) (Solo) (Peter Darrell)

Cinderella (Fireside Duet) (Christopher Gable)

A Simple Man (The Golden Room) (Gillian Lynne)

A Christmas Carol (Belle & Young Scrooge Duet) (Massimo Moricone)

Dracula (Dracula & Harker Duet) (Christopher Gable, Michael Pink)

Carmen (Bedroom Duet) (Didy Veldman)

Madame Butterfly (Wedding Night Duet) (David Nixon)

Casanova (Masquerade; Casanova & Bellino Duet) (Kenneth Tindall)

Windrush: Movement of the People (Duet) (Sharon Watson)

1984 (Countryside Duet) (Jonathan Watkins)

Jane Eyre (Proposal Duet) (Cathy Marston)

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (Twin Souls Duet) (Daniel de Andrade)

Wuthering Heights (On the Moors) (David Nixon)

Cleopatra (Cup Duet) (David Nixon)

A Midsummer Night's Dream (Jive) (David Nixon)

Northern Ballet

Northern Ballet Sinfonia

Minju Kang, Dancer

Lorenzo Trossello, Dancer

Marge Hendrick, Dancer

Amanda Assucena, Dancer

Greig Matthews, Dancer

Tamara Rojo, Dancer

Jeremy Kerridge, Dancer

Federico Bonelli, Dancer

Abigail Prudames, Dancer

Laura Morera, Dancer

Ryoichi Hirano, Dancer

Vanessa Vince-Pang, Dancer

Aaron Chaplin, Dancer

César Morales, Dancer

Momoko Hirata, Dancer

Martha Leebolt, Dancer

Tobias Batley, Dancer

Harris Beattie, Dancer

Rachael Gillespie, Dancer

Dreda Blow, Dancer

Giuliano Contadini, Dancer

Antoinette Brooks-Daw, Dancer

Jonathan Hanks, Dancer

Sean Bates, Dancer

Mlindie Kulashe, Dancer

Elise de Andrade, Dancer

Matteo Zecca, Dancer

Filippo Di Vilio, Dancer

Matthew Koon, Dancer

Northern Ballet's The Great Gatsby unfolds at breakneck pace

Graham Watts, 16th May

Those unfamiliar with the great American story will need to read the extensive synopsis in the programme to keep up with the whizz-bang comings and goings on stage!

***11

The Nutcracker is a hit with the audience in Leeds

Viki Westall, 5th January

A farcical, entertaining Mouse King limbers up atop his cheese!

****1

Narrative knots entangle Northern Ballet's Dangerous Liaisons

Graham Watts, 8th June

A ballet that has been reduced in substance but is still weighed down by complexity.

**111

Nixon's Little Mermaid is a Masterpiece

Kirsty Morgan, 22nd March

A fantastic score, wonderful costumes, brilliant dancing and stunning choreography coalesce beautifully in David Nixon’s magical The Little Mermaid for Northern Ballet.

*****

A magical Midsummer Night's Dream from Northern Ballet

Margaret Willis, 28th September

The lady at the bus stop announced that she had just been to the ballet, and commented: “I didn’t really understand it but I loved it”. The ballet was A Midsummer Night’s Dream, performed by Northern Ballet, and yes, it was somewhat confusing, though highly enjoyable and very funny.

****1

Northern Ballet's The Great Gatsby at Sadler's Wells

Hanna Weibye, 14th May

Goodness, Northern Ballet are an appealing company. Their dancers are cheerful, charismatic and talented; their ethos one of hard work and unflagging dedication to outreach, bringing the delights of ballet to as wide an audience as possible across their mostly northern catchment area. A new full-length story ballet based on F.

***11

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Graham Watts

Graham Watts is a freelance dance writer and critic writing regularly for Dancing Times, Dance Europe, Danza Europa, and many more publications. He regularly writes features for Sadler’s Wells, London Coliseum and La Scala. Chairman of the Dance Section of the Critics’ Circle in the United Kingdom and of the UK National Dance Awards he has interviewed many of the greatest names in dance including Maya Plisetskaya, Vladimir Vasiliev, Boris Eifman, Alexei Ratmansky, Andris Liepa, Sir Peter Wright, David Bintley and Dame Gillian Lynne. When not involved in dance Graham is a keen fencer, and has captained the British Sabre team.