Winning the gold medal for her contemporary performance at the recent South African International Ballet Competition, Yuanyuan Zhang now performs her piece with partner Anpu Yuan to Joburg audiences. Photo by Pat Bromilow-Downing.

The double gold medallist awarded at last week’s South African International Ballet Competition, Chinese ballerina Yuanyuan Zhang, will perform with partner Anpu Yuan for just two performances in Johannesburg this week.

Joined by exceptional dancers from South Korea (the Korean Youth Ballet Stars), Cuba (from the National Ballet of Cuba), along with other competition winners and upcoming South African stars (including Johannesburg’s very strong Art of Motion dancers), you can see these dancers perform at the Young Ballet Stars of the World gala events on Tuesday 25 February and Wednesday 26 February at 8pm at the Lyric Theatre, Gold Reef City.

Booking details:

Dates: Tuesday 25 February 2014 at 8pm; Wednesday 26 February 2014 at 8pm.
Venue: Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City, Johannesburg
Tickets: R120, R250 or R360 via Computicket.com.

See the Korean Youth Ballet Stars perform in Cape and Johannesburg in February 2014.

As the first major ballet gala event of 2014, the Young Ballet Stars of The World production is said to be possibly the largest gathering of young international ballet dancers ever seen in one South African event. Following immediately after the South African International Ballet Competition (SAIBC) in Cape Town – and including the competition’s medal winners alongside international guests – the Young Ballet Stars of The World assemble for gala performances in Cape Town on 23 February at Artscape and then Johannesburg on 25 and 26 February 2014 at the Lyric Theatre, Gold Reef City.

South Africa’s ballet entrepreneur, Dirk Badenhorst, has invited the Korean Youth Ballet Stars, dancers from the National Ballet School of Cuba, the Youth America Grand Prix in New York as well as dancers from the United States, Switzerland, China, Brazil and Japan, who will join local South African stars to mark the highlight of the 2014 South African International Ballet Competition.

The ‘young’ part of the title Young Ballet Stars of The World relates to the fact that the four gala performances aim to showcase “the brilliance of young stars on the verge of greatness, giving SA audiences a rare glimpse into the future of international ballet in a glittering array of ballet highlights” (according to their press release).

“The ballet world has recently seen an explosion of phenomenal talent from young dancers in their teens and early twenties and the galas in South Africa offer a unique preview of greatness before these dancers take the world by storm,” says Dirk Badenhorst, CEO of the SAIBC.

Booking details – Cape Town

Dates: Sunday, 23 February 2014 at 3pm and 7:30pm.
Venue: Artscape Theatre Centre, Cape Town
Tickets: R200 or R300 via Computicket.com.

Booking details – Johannesburg

Dates: Tuesday, 25 February 2014 at 8pm; Wednesday, 26 February 2014 at 8pm.
Venue: Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City, Johannesburg
Tickets: R120, R250 or R360 via Computicket.com.