#WorldBalletDay 2022 will be the biggest yet with over 60 companies, from 6 continents, coming together online on Wednesday 2 November 2022 to celebrate dance.
The line-up of participating companies includes 14 companies taking part for the very first time, including Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, Joffrey Ballet and The Washington Ballet. They will join a list of returning favourites: American Ballet Theatre, Paris Opera Ballet, National Ballet of Japan, Cape Town City Ballet and over 50 others.
Fans (young and old) are invited to join in online by sharing a video of themselves performing a piece of choreography inspired by The Sleeping Beauty, as demonstrated by Royal Ballet Principal Anna Rose O'Sullivan. No ballet experience is necessary, and choreography can be adapted. Content should be shared using #WorldBalletDay for a chance to be featured on the day.
Kevin O'Hare, Director of The Royal Ballet, said:
We are delighted to be sharing the day with so many fantastic companies around the world, and to be offering more fascinating glimpses into life backstage.
David Hallberg, Director of The Australian Ballet, added:
Before any show, there are hours of rehearsal, and World Ballet Day is the chance to see the beauty of ballet, expressed right before you in the most close up way.
Opening with morning class, The Royal Ballet's four-hour live stream will begin at 11.00 (GMT) and offer sneak previews of rehearsals for some of this season's productions: Kenneth MacMillan's Mayerling and A Diamond Celebration. Students at The Royal Ballet School will make an appearance, and new work will also be seen.
From The Australian Ballet, audiences will see a full class with commentary by David Hallberg, followed by rehearsals for DanceX – a three-part festival that showcases the depth, range, and diversity of Australia's dance community. The four-hour segment streamed from Melbourne, will also include rehearsals for Romeo and Juliet, and for two new works: Annealing, choreographed for the company's Instruments of Dance triple bill by Resident Choreographer Alice Topp, and Justin Peck's Everywhere we go. It will run from 11.00-15.00 (Australian Eastern Daylight Time, UCT+11).
Exclusive content from The Royal Ballet and The Australian Ballet will be made available on TikTok, in addition to full-length streams on Facebook and YouTube.
The line-up of participating companies and their respective streaming schedules is being continually updated. Both The Royal Ballet and The Australian Ballet's schedules are subject to change. Visit www.worldballetday.com for more.
PARTICIPATING COMPANIES
Africa
Joburg Ballet
Cape Town City Ballet
Asia
Bangkok City Ballet
Cloud Gate Dance Theater of Taiwan
Universal Ballet
Singapore Dance Theatre
The National Ballet of Japan
Korean National Ballet
Hong Kong Ballet
Ballet Indonesia Foundation
Europe
Finnish National Ballet
The Royal Danish Ballet
La Scala Theatre Ballet
Polish National Ballet
Stuttgart Ballet
Ballet de l'Opera de Paris
Wiener Staatsballett
Opera Sofia
Staatsballet Berlin
Dutch National Ballet
Bayerisches Staatsballett
Estonian National Ballet
Ballet de Barcelona
The Norwegian National Opera & Ballet
Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo*
The Royal Ballet
English National Ballet
Royal Academy of Dance
Birmingham Royal Ballet
Northern Ballet
Scottish Ballet
ISTD
Oceania
The Australian Ballet
West Australian Ballet
Queensland Ballet
Royal New Zealand Ballet
North America
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
American Ballet Theatre
Boston Ballet
The National Ballet of Canada
Miami City Ballet*
San Francisco Ballet
Houston Ballet
The Joffrey Ballet*
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Oregon Ballet Theatre*
BalletX
Smiun Ballet*
Texas Ballet Theatre*
Kansas City Ballet*
The Sarasota Ballet*
Ballet West*
Ballet West Academy*
Ballet Arkansas*
Philadelphia Ballet*
The Washington Ballet*
Ballet Idaho*
Central and South America
Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico
Acosta Danza
Ballet Nacional de Cuba
São Paulo Dance Company
*Joining for the first time
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.
Thank you so much! Clearly the extensive roster represents a certain
compensation for the absence of the Bolshoi Ballet. That is a sadness,
but we are being provided with quite a spectrum and chance to see some
of the active, smaller companies in the ballet world. Bravo for that!