March 2015 issue

Posted on February 27, 2015

Our March 2015 issue is here! Our cover star is Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Céline Gittens. This month features four British-based choreographers, discussing music, choice of subject matter, moving from dancing into choreography and the future of British classical ballet. We also speak to dance fathers and sons, herald Dance UK’s forthcoming conference and report on international performances…

Builder’s tea – well stirred

Birmingham Royal Ballet’s David Bintley tells Paul Arrowsmith about his work as choreographer and company director:

“Bintley professes not to be interested in posterity – but does he prefer to be remembered for his ballets – or as a director? ‘The two are indivisible. Being here, doing the work I want – relatively – are one and the same,’ Bintley tells me….

“‘I’m not a freelance by nature. Going into a company might work, it might not. I like to have a relationship, to know the dancers. That makes everybody look good.’”

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Experience what you are doing

Robert Cohan, founding artistic director of The Place, celebrates his 90th birthday this month. He and Kenneth Tharp, current chief executive of The Place, talk to Zoë Anderson.

Cohan: “We say, ‘If you want a glass of wine, come with an empty glass.’ If your glass is full, you’re not going to get any more. The same thing is true in you. If you think you know, and you come into a class, you’re not going to learn anything, because it’s all spilling off you. If you come in empty, you begin to learn what the teacher is giving you. It may not be exactly everything you think is right, but you understand something from another point of view. And that’s experiential – especially in a dance class.”

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The Music Man

Choreographer Michael Corder tells Jonathan Gray his views on classical dance in the UK.

“Classical ballets are now being presented as museum pieces, or ‘heritage works’, and the lion’s share of new creations are mainly offered by directors to contemporary choreographers. Even new productions of the classics are being offered to contemporary choreographers with no experience of working with disciplines such as pointe work, pas de deux and corps de ballet work. Some serious questions need to be asked. Are audiences really asking for this from ballet companies? I don’t think so. This issue is being driven entirely from within the companies themselves by people who should know better and often with the collusion of marketing departments who are still describing the latest piece of ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’ as ‘cutting edge’…”

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Also in the March issue…

Northern Ballet’s Kenneth Tindall talks about his transition from dancer to choreographer

Dominic Antonucci looks at the lives of “ballet dads” and their sons

Margaret Willis interviews The Royal Ballet’s Tristan Dyer

Assis Carreiro introduces Dance UK’s conference on the future of dance

Zoë Anderson reports from the 2015 Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards, with all the winners

Jenny Veldhuis reports on The Bohemia Ballet, a junior company based in Prague

Preview of the Council for Dance Education and Training’s dance careers conference, held at Elmhurst School for Dance

Debbie Malina considers the benefits of chiropractic for dancers

Dance for children: we look at the family-friendly shows around the UK this month

Plus news of the Paris Opéra Ballet’s 2015–16 season, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s new role as director of Royal Ballet Flanders, English National Ballet’s 2015–16 plans, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano’s departure from National Dance Company Wales and the Royal Academy of Dance’s Moving North competition; reviews of BalletBoyz, East London Dance and the Royal Opera in Orfeo, Aakash Odedra, The Royal Ballet, Richard Alston Dance Company, John Ross and Sally Marie, ZooNation Dance Company, Kidd Pivot, Hofesh Shechter Company, Ultima Vez, Ballet Black, National Ballet of Canada, Bavarian State Ballet, the Leonid Yakobson Ballet Theatre and Justin Peck’s new work for New York City Ballet; dance education news; obituaries of Eileen Ward, Nesta Macdonald Donna-Day Washington, reviews of dance books and DVDs and more!

The March issue is in shops (including larger branches of WH Smith) now, or you can buy your print copy here, or buy your digital copy from all good app stores

Zoe Anderson

Zoë was born in Edinburgh, and saw her first dance performances at the Festival there. She is the dance critic of The Independent, and has also written for The Independent on Sunday, The Scotsman and Dancing Times. In 2002, she received her doctorate from the University of York for a thesis on “Nationhood and epic romance: Ariosto, Sidney, Spenser”. She is the author of The Royal Ballet: 75 Years and The Ballet Lover’s Companion.