The best dance shows: 2016 highlights
From a classic film on stage to a very personal tragedy, the best dance shows 2016 offered a powerful range of talent
English National Ballet: Giselle, Akram Khan at Sadler’s Wells
Under its dynamic Artistic Director, Tamara Rojo, English National Ballet continued on its way to becoming one of the most vibrant ballet companies in Britain. Its commission of a new Giselle from the ever-imaginative Akram Khan proved inspired, if controversial. CW awarded it its highest accolade: 5 Stars.
Read more ...English National Ballet: She Said: Sadler's Wells
ENB also jumped right into the controversy over the dearth of female choreographers in mainstream programming with She Said, a specially commissioned triple bill of works by women featuring Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Yabin Wang and Aszure Barton,.
Read more ...Life: BalletBoyz, Sadler's Wells ★★★★★
BalletBoyz brought us one of the most exciting, thought-provoking and amusing programmes of the year, with their double bill of work by the little known Pontus Lidberg (we want to see a lot more of his work!) and the well-established and always provocative Javier the Frutos.
Read more ...Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young: Betroffenheit, Sadler's Wells ★★★★★
Choreographer du jour Crystal Pite and actor/playwright Jonathan Young joined forces in what was undoubtedly the most harrowing dance/theatre piece to hit the London stage in 2016: Betroffenheit. Inspired by the death in a fire of Young’s teenage daughter, this tour-de-force piece brought us pain, horror, despair and ultimately redemption.
Read more ...★★★★★ Richard Alston Dance Company: An Italian in Madrid
Richard Alston showed once again his unique ability as a harmonious and often exhilarating dance maker with An Italian in Madrid, where he effortlessly fused the Bharatanatyam style of his guest dancer, Vidya Patel with his own very distinctive choreographic language.
Read more ...La Fille Mal Gardée, Royal Ballet
It was hit and miss at the Royal Ballet, where Liam Scarlett’s Frankenstein and Christopher Wheeldon’s Strapless, two much anticipated new creations, were major flops; but new stars made their mark, among them their youngest principal, the delightful Francesca Hayward in Frederick Ashton's La Fille Mal Gardée.
Read more ...Matthew Bourne: The Red Shoes, Sadler’s Wells
And Matthew Bourne delivered himself of another major crowd-pleaser with his dance adaptation of the Powell/Pressburger epoch-marking film, The Red Shoes.
Read more ...