First time ever: Three John Neumeier ballets in South Africa
Cape Town City Ballet dancers rehearsing during auditions for the Neumeier ballets. Photo by Michael Groenewald.
Following four years of negotiations, 2014 will be the ground-breaking year when Cape Town City Ballet presents three ballets by John Neumeier, the world-renowned choreographer and artistic director of the Hamburg Ballet company in Germany, considered by many to be one of the ballet world’s greatest living choreographers.
To be performed from 26 to 30 September 2014 at Artscape in Cape Town, the three ballets selected to be staged will be Neumeier’s Spring and Fall, danced to music by Dvorak; Vaslav, to music by JS Bach; and his Rite of Spring (Le sacre du Printempts) to music by Igor Stravinsky.
Keith Mackintosh, artistic executive of Cape Town City Ballet (CTBC), said that he has long wished to bring the ballets of John Neumeier to Cape Town and has been working on this major collaboration between Hamburg Ballet and CTBC for the past four years.
Commenting on the collaboration, Keith Mackintosh said:
“The CTCB has throughout its history cultivated international cultural relations with other countries, ballet companies, dancers, choreographers and producers, but this is the first time we’ll be performing works of John Neumeier.
Presenting his ballets will not only provide opportunities for our dancers’ development, but also offer audiences the chance to witness the sublime creativity of this master choreographer”.
The US-born Neumeier has already choreographed some 130 ballets during his career thus far, all displaying diverse styles and new creative ideas. According to Hamburg Ballet, “Mr. Neumeier has continually focused on the preservation of ballet tradition, while giving his works a modern dramatic framework. His ballets range from new versions of evening-length story ballets to musicals and to his symphonic ballets, especially those based on Gustav Mahler’s compositions, as well as his choreographies to sacred music.”
Watch this video for insights into John Neumeier and Hamburg Ballet’s approach to ballet choreography and dance creativity, from their ballet school through to the professional company:
Booking details:
Dates: 26 to 30 September 2014
Venue: Artscape Theatre, Cape Town
Tickets: R110, R120 or R130 through Computicket or Artscape Dial-a-Seat on 021 421 7695.
Category: Dance News
