West Australian Ballet to bring world class dance to the WA Regions
West Australian Ballet are set to bring a highly anticipated multi-work evening to the regions, visiting a total of four locations in March and April. The performance, named A Gala Evening with West Australian Ballet, will feature short works and excerpts from both classical and contemporary dance.
West Australian Ballet, its dancers and Teaching Artists will travel over 4,500 kilometres (which is longer than the width of Australia) to visit Kalgoorlie, Port Hedland, Karratha and Mandurah.
Aurélien Scannella, Artistic Director of West Australian Ballet, says the programme is sure to impress those in the regions. “Not only are we bringing our world-class dancers (that include eight different nationalities) to Regional WA, we’re bringing a great variety of spell-bounding and impressive works that can be enjoyed by the whole family,” says Scannella.
The Nutcracker
The evening will commence with one of classical ballet’s most well-known pas de deux’s (dance of two). The Nutcracker pas de deux will not only feature spell-binding jumps and lifts, it will bring a touch of Christmas magic to the WA regions in March. The Nutcracker has previously been performed in its full length to sell-out audiences in both 2016 and 2018.
A short but explosive work, previously performed by West Australian Ballet in both Perth and Shanghai, is Les Indomptés. Choreographed by Frenchmen Claude Brumachon, Les Indomptés (which translates loosely to The Untamed) is a high energy, physical work danced by two men and first premiered in 1992 and has been performed in three continents.
Les Indomptés
After being described as “taking the audience on a breathless, comical journey,” by The West Australian in 2017, Ballet 101 will feature as the light-hearted fixture of the Gala Evening. A male solo that guides the audience through ‘101’ ballet moves, feelings or awe, laughter and surprise will be shared in this short work.
Andre Santos in Eric Gauthier’s Ballet 101 (Photo credit: Sergey Pevnev)
A piece that celebrates the ‘father of modern ballet’ George Balanchine, is the nimble and virtuosic Tarantella. Choreographed by Dampier-born former West Australian Ballet Principal dancer Jayne Smeulders, this brief but explosive piece expands the traditional vocabulary of modern ballet. Originally created in 1964 by Balanchine, this iteration was previously performed in 2015 to raucous applause at His Majesty’s Theatre.
Tarantella
The Le Corsaire pas de deux will see dashing pirate Conrad reunite with his love, Medora. The dynamic duet is sure to be a highlight of the evening as the audience are wowed by the explosive and technically challenging choreography presented from this historic classical ballet.
The finale of the evening will be the newly created work from award-winning Australian choreographer, Garry Stewart, which premiered at West Australian Ballet’s In-Synch: Ballet at the Quarry on 8 Feb. Reincarnation is a highly energetic contemporary work that explores the notion of what happens after death, with inspiration taken from classical ballets such as Giselle and Swan Lake. Collaborating on this work with West Australian Ballet, is Australia’s newest contemporary dance company, Co3 Australia, with both companies appearing on-stage together.
Reincarnation
West Australian Ballet will also be holding a series of workshops, in-school activities and Masterclasses for ballet students in each area, as well as a free open warm-up class of the professional company on-stage prior to the performance, with the time to be advertised via the venue.
Minister for Culture and the Arts, The Hon. David Templeman MLA highlights the importance of arts in the regions. “This government has a deep commitment to providing access and participation in arts and culture for all West Australians regardless of where they live. Through the various performances, workshops and in-school activities, I hope you’re inspired by West Australian Ballet as they look to make long-term connections in the regions,” said Minister Templeman.
An exciting addition to the Gala Evening, and unique to the Port Hedland performance, is the creation of a Youth Ensemble who will perform as a curtain-raiser on the evening. Former West Australian Ballet Demi-Soloist, and winner of the prestigious Churchill Fellowship, Christopher Hill will choreograph a short bespoke work for the dance students, who are all from the Port Hedland area.
West Australian Ballet’s regional tour has been made possible by the vital support of the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries through their Creative Regions, Regional and Remote Touring Fund, Principal Partner Woodside, Lead Partner the Roy Hill Community Foundation, Presenting Partner Virgin Australia, Regional Partner Santos, and Supporting Partners Mitsui Iron Ore Development.
Click here to visit West Australian Ballet’s website.