This summer, from 16 – 26 June, English National Ballet presents Solstice, a programme of repertoire highlights, at the Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall.
Solstice features excerpts from the classics – Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, Le Corsaire – as well as a passionate duet from Broken Wings, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa's ballet inspired by the life of Frida Kahlo, Stina Quagebeur's Hollow and sections from Coppélia.
There are moments of reflection and tenderness in extracts from Akram Khan's Dust and Ben Stevenson's Three Preludes, set to Rachmaninov's music. The programme concludes with William Forsythe's Playlist (Track 1, 2), a high-energy work set to neo-soul and house music.
Tamara Rojo, English National Ballet's Artistic Director, said:
I'm so pleased we will be performing at the Royal Festival Hall this summer. After so long without performing in theatres it's wonderful to have the opportunity to have so many of the Company back on stage showcasing highlights from English National Ballet's much loved and diverse repertoire.
Accompanied by live music performed by musicians of English National Ballet Philharmonic, Solstice follows English National Ballet's return to the stage at Sadler's Wells earlier this month.
Graham Spicer is a writer, director and photographer in Milan, blogging (under the name ‘Gramilano') about dance, opera, music and photography for people “who are a bit like me and like some of the things I like”. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy.
His scribblings have appeared in various publications from Woman's Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the ‘Danza in Italia' column for Dancing Times magazine.
