Our picks from the Autumn 2011 season at Sadler’s Wells which goes on sale Monday 23 May, taken from the press release issued earlier today (for full details click here):
Grupo Corpo
Imã & Onqotô
Tuesday 13 – Friday 16 September
Founded in 1975, Brazilian contemporary dance company Grupo Corpo and choreographer Rodrigo Pederneiras have attracted high praise from both critics and audiences for reinventing classical ballet as an exuberant and rhythmic dance form.
Onqotô tackles the origins of the universe through the surprising setting of a football match in Rio de Janeiro. A score by Caetano Veloso and José Miguel Wisnik accompanies the 21 dancers, with lighting by Paulo Pederneiras. Imã is inspired by the scientific law of magnetism whereby particles either repel or attract one another. Set to an experimental soundtrack by Brazilian trio “+2″, the dancers engage in a constant game of union and dispersion, while Freusa Zechmeister’s costumes and Paulo Pederneiras’ lighting work in harmony to create an explosion of colour on stage.
Sylvie Guillem
6000 miles away
Thursday 22 – Sunday 25 September
Sylvie Guillem will return to Sadler’s Wells with an evening of works by three of the most important choreographers working today: Mats Ek, William Forsythe, and Jiřà Kylián. This is the second run of performances following the world premiere in July. Swedish choreographer Mats Ek will present Ajö (Bye), a new solo created especially for Guillem set to Beethoven’s last piano sonata, while William Forsythe has a brand new duet for Guillem and Massimo Murru. Completing the evening is a work by former Artistic Director of Nederlands Dans Theater, Jiřà Kylián.
La La La Human Steps with Diana Vishneva
New Work by Édouard Lock
Wednesday 28 September – Saturday 1 October
Leading contemporary dance group La La La Human Steps was founded in Montreal in 1980 by Édouard Lock. To mark more than 30 years of groundbreaking dance, Lock has created a new work that brings together two great tragic operas; Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and Gluck’s Orpheus and Eurydice. Set to a score by acclaimed English composer Gavin Bryars, the piece will unite two operas into one and feature guest soloist and Mariinsky star, Diana Vishneva.
Emanuel Gat Dance
Brilliant Corners
Monday 10 & Tuesday 11 October
Part of Dance Umbrella 2011, Brilliant Corners is the newest work from Israeli choreographer and performer Emanuel Gat. Created for ten dancers it is set to an original score composed by Gat himself. An explosion of simultaneous ideas, this new work is a choreographic playground of multiple perspectives, exposing both the fragility and burning relevance of the moment.
Birmingham Royal Ballet
La Fille Mal Gardée & Autumn Glory
Tuesday 18 – Saturday 22 October
Birmingham Royal Ballet returns with two contrasting evenings; La Fille Mal Gardée and Autumn Glory, a triple bill of ballets from the heart of Britain’s dance heritage.
La Fille Mal Gardée was choreographed in 1960 by Sir Frederick Ashton and tells the story of a love triangle between country beauty Lise, her true love Colas, and Alain, the son of a rich vineyard owner.
Autumn Glory features Ninette de Valois’ Checkmate, with a score by Sir Arthur Bliss and iconic designs by E. McKnight Kauffer; Frederick Ashton’s Symphonic Variations performed by six dancers to one of César Franck’s finest works and Pineapple Poll, choreographed by John Cranko and danced to a medley of Gilbert and Sullivan.
Scottish Ballet
Double Bill
Thursday 3 & Friday 4 November
Scottish Ballet returns with a double bill originally unveiled at this year’s Edinburgh International Festival. Kenneth MacMillan’s Song of the Earth was created for Stuttgart Ballet in 1965 at the invitation of Artistic Director John Cranko. Set to a live performance of Mahler’s song cycle Das Lied von der Erde, the lyrics which were translated from a collection of eighth century Chinese poems offering bittersweet reflections on human emotion, Song of the Earth explores man’s struggle to accept mortality.
Resident Choreographer at Boston Ballet, Finnish-born Jorma Elo creates a new work for Scottish Ballet which features costumes by Yumiko Takeshima and is set to Mozart’s First Violin Concerto and music by Steve Reich.
Rambert Dance Company
Mixed bill featuring Seven for a secret, never to be told
Tuesday 15 – Saturday 19 November
Following the success of Constant Speed, Eternal Light and The Comedy of Change, Rambert AD Mark Baldwin presents his brand new work, Seven for a secret, never to be told; a magical and playful piece set to music based on Ravel’s opera L’enfant et les sortileges, adapted by Stephen McNeff with designs by Michael Howells.
Javier De Frutos returns to Rambert to create a world premiere inspired by the life and work of Tennessee Williams, set to music from A Streetcar Named Desire. Concluding the bill is Merce Cunningham’s hypnotic RainForest, a work praised for its “childlike gentleness†(New York Times) performed to David Tudor’s evocative score.
Turnage | McGregor | Wallinger
UNDANCE
Thursday 1 – Saturday 3 December
This collaboration between composer Mark-Anthony Turnage, Wayne McGregor and Turner Prize-winning visual artist Mark Wallinger marks the first new work in Sadler’s Wells’ Composer Series.
The two part evening, with an orchestra conducted by Tim Murray, features a new staging of Turnage’s emotional chamber opera Twice Through the Heart, written for a mezzo-soprano and 16 instrumentalists. Wayne McGregor directs Sarah Connolly in the role of a woman who is jailed for killing her abusive husband, with design by digital art-collective The Open Ended Group.
The second part of the evening features a brand new choreographic work performed by Random Dance with lighting by Lucy Carter, costumes by Moritz Junge and a visual world created by Mark Wallinger. Turnage’s new score for the piece has been inspired by a text written by Wallinger, which was in turn inspired by American sculptor Richard Serra’s Compilation of Verbs and the work of photographer Eadweard J. Muybridge.
Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker!
A New Adventures Production
Tuesday 6 December 2011 – Monday 23 January 2012
Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker! returns to Sadler’s Wells this Christmas to celebrate its 20th anniversary with a seven week run, marking New Adventures’s 10th consecutive Christmas season at Sadler’s Wells.
Set to Tchaikovsky’s score and with Anthony Ward’s delicious set and costume design, Nutcracker! follows Clara’s bittersweet journey from a bleak Christmas Eve at Dr. Dross’ Orphanage, through a shimmering, ice-skating winter wonderland to the candy kingdom of Sweetieland.
Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch: World Cities 2012
Wednesday 6 June – Monday 9 July 2012
This month-long season of international co-productions is presented by Sadler’s Wells and the Barbican to celebrate the global focus of the Olympic year and one of the most influential choreographers in dance, Pina Bausch.
This is the first ever continuous season of productions by Pina Bausch and her company, commissioned by Sadler’s Wells, in association with Cultural Industry and the Barbican. It features international co-productions exploring 10 global locations in India, Brazil, Italy, Hong Kong, United States of America, Hungary, Turkey, Chile, and Japan. Living in each city for a period of time, her company would then return to Wuppertal to create a piece inspired by their visit. The works are presented as part of London 2012 Festival, which is the culmination of the Cultural Olympiad:
Bamboo Blues, part of Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch: World Cities 2012. Photo: Angelos Giotopoulos / Sadler's Wells ©
- Viktor (Rome)
Wednesday 6 & Thursday 7 June 2012 – Sadler’s Wells (SW)
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Teatro Argentina di Roma which premiered on 14 May 1986.
- Nur Du (Only You) (Los Angeles)
Saturday 9 & Sunday 10 June 2012 – Barbican (B)
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with the University of California in Los Angeles, the Arizona State University, the University of California in Berkley, the University of Texas in Austin, Darlene Neel Presentations, Rena Shagan Associates, Inc. and The Music Center Inc. which premiered on 11 May 1996.
- …Como el musguito en la piedra, ay si, si, si (Santiago de Chile)
Tuesday 12 & Wednesday 13 June 2012 – SW
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Festival International de Teatro Santiago a Mil in Chile in cooperation with Andres Neumann International which premiered on 12 June 2009.
- Ten Chi (Saitama)
Friday 15 & Saturday 16 June 2012 – B
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Saitama Prefecture, Saitama Arts Foundation and Nippon Cultural Centre which premiered on 8 May 2004.
- Der Fensterputzer (The Window Washer) (Hong Kong)
Monday 18 & Tuesday 19 June 2012 – SW
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with the Hong Kong Arts Festival Society and Goethe-Institut Hong Kong which premiered on 12 February 1997.
- Bamboo Blues (Kolkata)
Thursday 21 & Friday 22 June 2012 – B
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Goethe-Institut in India which premiered on 18 May 2007.
- Nefés (Istanbul)
Sunday 24 & Monday 25 June 2012 – SW
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with the International Istanbul Festival and the Istanbul Foundation of Arts and Culture which premiered on 21 March 2003.
- Ãgua (São Paulo)
Thursday 28 & Friday 29 June 2012 – B
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Brazil, Goethe-Institut São Paulo and Emilio Kalil which premiered on 12 May 2001.
- Palermo, Palermo (Palermo)
Sunday 1 & Monday 2 July 2012 – SW
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Teatro Biondo Stabile, Palermo and Andres Neumann International which premiered on 17 December 1989.
- Wiesenland (Budapest)
Sunday 8 & Monday 9 July 2012 – SW
A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Goethe-Institut Budapest and Théâtre de la Ville, Paris which premiered on 5 May 2000
Last but not least,
Out of Asia Season at Sadler’s Wells
The Out of Asia series will bring together artists from China (Beijing Dance Theatre, TAO Dance Theater), Vietnam (Ea Sola), Bangladesh (Akram Khan’s DESH), Japan (Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s TeZuka) and Taiwan (Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan), starting with the World Premiere of TeZuka, a manga-inspired dance theatre work by Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.
- Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
TeZukA
Tuesday 6 – Saturday 10 September
Widely hailed as the ‘God of Manga’, visionary Japanese animator Osamu Tezuka provides the inspiration for internationally renowned choreographer and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s brand new work – TeZukA. Famed for his manga creations including Astro Boy and Buddha, Tezuka’s work has become a vital part of Japanese cultural identity.
- Akram Khan Company
DESH
Tuesday 4 – Saturday 8 October
DESH (homeland) is a new solo work from Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Akram Khan, inspired by his homeland of Bangladesh. After critically acclaimed collaborations with artists including Sylvie Guillem, Anish Kapoor and Antony Gormley, DESH is set to be one of Khan’s most personal works, as he examines the contradictions of his own British-Asian identity.
- Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan
White
Wednesday 9 – Saturday 12 November
Directed by internationally renowned choreographer Lin Hwai-min, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan was the first contemporary dance company in any Chinese speaking community. The company is known for transforming ancient aesthetics into thrillingly unique performances that draw on diverse disciplines; from chi kung and meditation to ballet and internal martial arts.
For the full Autumn season programme and to book tickets visit the Sadler’s Wells Website.
