Category: dance

The Oakland Ballet hasn’t danced in nearly a year, as administrators struggled to balance the company’s books during a planned dark year. But those who feared the demise of the troupe can now breath a sigh of relief with the announcement that the red ink has been eliminated, the 2005-06 season has been unveiled, and a new “fiscally conservative” business model has been adopted.

The reviews are in on a new ballet based on the life of Diana, Princess of Wales. They’re not kind: “While Diana the Princess, created by Danish dance impresario Peter Schaufuss, is indeed pretty bad, it does have moments of comic genius. The problem is it’s hard to tell whether they’re intentional or not.”

The Alvin Ailey Company has moved into a beautiful new home. “Conventional wisdom holds that nonballet dance troupes lack the business savvy or community support to raise the kind of money needed for their own buildings, but the new Ailey home shines as a model of how it can be done.”

Later this year Peter Boal leaves New York City Ballet to take over Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle. “NYCB is the major repository and custodian of the Balanchine heritage. PNB is a bit like NYCB in its early days, when every Balanchine premiere stirred controversy as well as delight. And the Seattle company can afford to take chances on new ideas as to what dancing is all about. Peter Boal’s mental suitcase is packed. In many ways, he has already left home.”

“Diana the Princess, created by Danish choreographer and friend of the Royal Peter Schauffus, portrays the Prince of Wales as a heartless brute, sternly dressed in a double-breasted suit. The Prince, who spurns his wife throughout, is shown passionately cavorting with Camilla Parker Bowles in the early stages of his marriage.”

The Royal Ballet and the mayor of London have struck a deal that will expand the company school’s programs for minorities and allow the school to renovate its school buildings. “The mayor had previously been criticised at City Hall by members who accused him of waging “class war” against the ballet school. Its proportion of minority pupils is higher than the national average, but falls below the proportion of minorities in London.”

The Birmingham Ballet has had a rough few years. A £1 million deficit built up. Programmes shrank and full-length classics reigned, showing up the callow youth of BRB’s company. A couple of artistsic flops didn’t help. Several top dancers left. But suddenly, the sun has come out, and this season’s programs have burst with new life…

There is no easier way for a dance troupe to achieve validation than to score a hit in New York City. And this week, both of Colorado’s high-profile dance companies are paying the Big Apple a visit. “But if the potential payoff for these trips to New York is big, so are the risks. Instead of the endorsement they crave, some companies get spanked.” What’s the solution? Well, it never hurts to hire a publicist with extensive knowledge of New York’s strange and powerful arts world.

Moscow’s historic Bolshoi Theater is set to close this summer for a major renovation which should have started years ago. “The Bolshoi, which comprises both an opera company and a ballet company, will be leaving its historic home for the first time in 150 years. Turmoil at the theater, political infighting and haggling over architectural plans and costs have delayed the project for years.”

Yang Liping may not be a household name in the US, but she may be China’s most popular choreographer, with a sold-out run of her signature “Peacock Dance” sparking talk of a European/American tour. “The show is the latest coming-out party for Ms. Yang, who, though not well known outside of China, is known here as a stern but creative and independent force in Chinese dance.”