Latest news with #DutchNationalBallet
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Eyes say everything in Seoul Metropolitan Ballet double bill
Choi Young-gyu in Hans van Manen's '5 Tangos,' Kang Gyeong-ho in 'No More' It was only a five-minute rehearsal. But when ballet dancer Choi Young-gyu placed one hand on his hip and stepped into the sharp, pulsing rhythm of a tango, the effect was unmistakable. His gaze carried the intensity of the dance, his chemistry with his partner was evident, and his stage presence came through even in the briefest of moments. The glimpse gave a hint of things to come at Seoul Metropolitan Ballet's double bill, opening Friday at the Sejong Center in Seoul and running through Aug. 27. The program pairs legendary choreographer Hans van Manen's '5 Tangos' with 'No More' by choreographer Ryu Hoi-woong. Now in his 15th season with the Dutch National Ballet, Choi said the occasion carries special meaning. 'I've danced in many galas in Korea, but this is the first time I'm bringing a full piece back home,' the principal dancer said at a group interview Monday at a rehearsal studio on Nodeul Island. Set to the music of Astor Piazzolla, '5 Tangos' has long been performed in Europe, but this week marks its Asian premiere. Choi has worked closely with van Manen at the Dutch National Ballet, where the choreographer once served as artistic director and still holds the title of resident choreographer, so the piece feels familiar to him. 'The music has both passion and melancholy. When I dance and look into my partner's eyes, I feel what tango must be like -- the intensity, the excitement -- even though I've never actually danced it. It's thrilling for me, and because I enjoy it so much, I believe the audience will too.' Feline van Dijken, the stager for the ballet, emphasized that the essence of van Manen's choreography lies in how the dancers respond to one another. 'The way dancers look at each other and the connections they make are very essential for this work. The choreography is almost secondary to how they create the atmosphere on stage.' Choi is also taking on added responsibility as rehearsal director. 'Before, I only had to focus on my own part. Now I have to oversee the entire arc of the piece, from beginning to end. It's given me the chance to understand the work on a much deeper level.' 'No More' confronts life's anxieties with energy Also conjuring fiery rhythms, this time set to the pounding beat of live drums and percussion, 'No More' examines the anxieties of contemporary life. Dancer-turned-choreographer Ryu first unveiled the work at the company's pre-debut triple bill performance last year. For its return, marking the first anniversary of the Seoul City-run contemporary ballet company, Ryu has reworked the piece with expanded choreography, a larger cast and a sharper emotional focus. The piece reflects the fatigue and frustration of modern, hyper-competitive urban life — what Ryu calls the struggles of Korea's so-called 'N-Po Generation,' a term referring to the young generation that has given up on many things in life: dating, marriage, children, homeownership and even dreams. Yet rather than dwell on despair, the ballet emphasizes resilience. 'I hear people around me say, 'Life is too hard.' I wanted to find a way to give back positive energy,' Ryu said. This year's version adds scenes that blur the line between dream and reality, concluding with what he described as 'a message of encouragement: Let's keep moving forward.' Ryu said he worked with drummer Kim Geon-jae of the indie rock band Silicagel to use drumbeats that evoke both destructive and monotonous rhythms -- like footsteps and a racing heartbeat -- and to create movement expressing dialogue, competition and love. The piece reunites Ryu with dancer Kang Gyeong-ho, who gained stardom on Mnet's dance survival program 'Stage Fighter.' 'Last year, there were just seven dancers. This time, nearly twice as many join the cast, and the choreography feels more layered. The message has shifted from dwelling on hardship to offering comfort and strength,' Kang said.
South China Morning Post
07-04-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong Ballet's Frida is a visually powerful production, if lacking in clarity
Hong Kong Ballet's latest production, Frida, explores the life and art of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. Advertisement The full-length work by choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa was developed from a one-act ballet, Broken Wings, which she created for the English National Ballet in 2019, and the retitled two-act version for the Dutch National Ballet followed in 2020. Frida is not a narrative ballet as such. Instead, Lopez Ochoa offers a series of snapshots of key moments from Kahlo's life, interspersed with interludes featuring characters from her paintings. This kaleidoscopic concept would have worked as a one-act ballet, but a 90-minute production needs more clarity and structure to keep the audience engaged. This is a powerful production visually, full of striking, flamboyant images and there is some good choreography – the first duet for Kahlo and Rivera is outstanding; the scene where she miscarries, her body twisting into terrible contorted poses, is gruesomely dramatic. However, while Kahlo's admirers will enjoy the references to her paintings, their symbolism and the way Dieuweke van Reij's ingenious costume designs bring them to life, those not familiar with the paintings are likely to be left bemused. Advertisement Kahlo channelled her suffering – physical and emotional – into her art. She had a limp from childhood polio, and horrific injuries from a traffic accident when she was 18 left her struggling with pain and disability for the rest of her life.
New York Times
03-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Olga Smirnova, a da Vinci of Ballet, Settles Into a New Life, New Rep
Frantic corrections filled the main studio of the Dutch National Ballet on a recent afternoon. A new Shakespeare adaptation, 'Lady Macbeth,' was about to go onstage, and the choreographer, Helen Pickett, and her assistants crisscrossed the room to deliver last-minute changes or tweak the positioning of an arm. Then Olga Smirnova, a former star of the Bolshoi Ballet, stepped forward for a solo, and the room went still. With her back turned, Smirnova reached behind herself slowly. Her supple arms and fingers unfurled with a quiver, instantly conjuring Lady Macbeth's tangled emotions. 'It's like watching da Vinci work,' Pickett said with a contented sigh after the rehearsal. Until 2022, Smirnova's blend of technical mastery and dramatic intensity made her one of Russia's most in-demand ballerinas, with a vast repertoire of leading roles at the Bolshoi and the prestige that comes with it in her country. Then, weeks after country invaded Ukraine, she announced she would leave it all behind and join the Dutch National Ballet. In a post to the messaging app Telegram, Smirnova, who had a Ukrainian grandfather, wrote that she was 'ashamed of Russia' and opposed the war 'with all the fibers of my soul.' While a number of foreigners who worked in Russian ballet companies departed around the same time, Smirnova remains the most high-profile Russian dancer to have publicly made the move. Image Olga Smirnova and Timothy van Poucke rehearsing 'Lady Macbeth' at the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam. Credit... Jussi Puikkonen for The New York Times The personal cost has been significant, Smirnova, 33, said in an interview in Amsterdam. Three years on, she still has 'very little contact' with her former colleagues and friends in Russia. Her parents struggled to understand her decision; she has not seen them since the war began, although she's working to find a way: 'I still want to have my family as my family.' Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
