English National Ballet premieres by Micaela Taylor and Jae Man Joo head for Marquee TV
Bow Out, Taylor’s tribute to the tap-dancing Nicholas Brothers, streams first on 27 November, with Auguries of Innocence following in November 2027 and documentaries on the making of both.
Marquee TV is to co-invest in filming two world premieres from English National Ballet’s Rhythm Riot triple bill, under a global streaming partnership announced today by the platform and the company.
The works are Micaela Taylor’s Bow Out and Jae Man Joo’s Auguries of Innocence.
Rhythm Riot opened at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London on 24 September and runs until 3 October. Rather than simply distributing finished recordings, Marquee TV is putting money into the film capture itself, with the aim of taking new choreography to a worldwide audience and giving it a life beyond the stage run.
When to watch
Bow Out premieres exclusively for Marquee TV subscribers on 27 November 2026. Inspired by the Nicholas Brothers, it draws on Taylor’s storytelling and her range of movement styles, and is set to an original score by the multidisciplinary artist Tru. The Times praised its “rhythmically alert sensibility in choreography that blends a dizzying host of styles”.
Auguries of Innocence follows in November 2027. Taking its cue from William Blake’s poem of the same name, Joo’s piece is a meditation on our connection to the natural and spiritual worlds, set to music by Pēteris Vasks. The Guardian wrote that it creates “an intense, immersive world through atmospheric visuals and score”.
Each film will be released together with a behind-the-scenes documentary – The Making of Bow Out and The Making of Auguries of Innocence – and both works will later be available on ENB’s own streaming platform, Ballet on Demand.
The music for both is played by the English National Ballet Philharmonic under its music director, Maria Seletskaja. The dancers in the new works include lead principals Aitor Arrieta, Gareth Haw, Emma Hawes and Sangeun Lee, and associate guest artist Ksenia Ovsyanick.
The choreographers
Taylor, who is based in Los Angeles, started out in hip-hop before moving into classical dance, and has created works for Paris Opera Ballet, Acosta Danza, NDT2, and Ballet BC. She is the founder and artistic director of The TL Collective, has appeared on Dance Magazine’s “25 to watch” list and won the 2025 Harkness Promise Award.
Korean-born Joo has choreographed for Complexions Contemporary Ballet and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, among others. His recent Divine, for Gwangju City Ballet, received the 2024 Korea Dance Artwork of the Year prize.
“Discover and return”
Edward Humphrey, Marquee TV’s chief executive, said the partnership reflected the role a global arts platform should play. “It’s not simply about making exceptional work available,” he said. “By investing in these two world premieres, we’re supporting new choreography, ensuring that international audiences can discover and return to these works for years to come.”
For ENB, artistic director Aaron S. Watkin said the deal would help new choreography live on beyond its first performances, “opening up the possibilities of ballet to more people, whoever and wherever they are”. It would give audiences more ways to experience the company’s work and to go behind the scenes, he added, and “see the creative process that brings our productions to life”.
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
