Preview: Sleeping Beauty at Newcastle Theatre Royal

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MATTHEW BOURNE’S SLEEPING BEAUTY  A GOTHIC ROMANCE REVIVED AT THE THEATRE ROYAL FOR 2 WEEKS ONLY

Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Tuesday 5^th – Saturday 16^th April 2016.

The UK’s most popular dance company, New Adventures, returns to Newcastle Theatre Royal this Spring with Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty, a gothic tale for all ages. This ground-breaking production heads to Newcastle Theatre Royal from Tuesday 5^th– Saturday 16^th April 2016.

Directed and choreographed by probably the ‘hottest’ choreographer in the world right now, Sir Matthew Bourne OBE,and from the UK’s most popular dance company, Sleeping Beauty is a revival of this new classic, giving audiences one more chance to see the final piece in the trio of Tchaikovsky masterpieces.  With sumptuous sets, costumes and evocative lighting, the audience will be transported in time.

Returning to the central role of Aurorain this first revival is rising star Ashley Shaw. Ashley recently played Lana in the triumphant revival of The Car Man, also played Kim in Edward Scissorhands, Sugar in Nutcracker! and the title role in Cinderella. Cordelia Braithwaite made her debut with New Adventures in Swan Lakein 2013 and has since featured in this year’s revival of The Car Man, covering the role of Lana. Cordelia makes her debut as Aurorathis season; her first Principal role with New Adventures.

Matthew Bourne’sSleeping Beauty premiered in 2012, and was the fastest selling production in the company’s history. Sleeping Beauty was created for New Adventures 25th birthday celebrations and completed Sir Matthew Bourne’s OBE trio of re-imagined Tchaikovsky ballet masterworks that started in 1992 with Nutcracker! and, most famously, in 1995, with the international hit Swan Lake. This dazzling production has won the hearts of thousands and smashed box office records across the UKand at Sadler’s Wells. 

The leading role of Leo will once again be played by Dominic North and Chris Trenfield who co-created the role in 2012.

Perrault’s timeless fairy tale, about a young girl cursed to sleep for one hundred years, was turned into a legendary ballet by Tchaikovsky and choreographer, Marius Petipa, in 1890. Bourne takes this date as his starting point, setting the Christening of Aurora, the story’s heroine, in the year of the ballet’s first performance; the height of the Fin-de-Siecle period when fairies, vampires and decadent opulence fed the gothic imagination. 

As Auroragrows into a young woman, we move forward in time to the more rigid, uptight Edwardian era; a mythical golden age of long Summer afternoons, croquet on the lawn and new dance crazes. Years later, awakening from her century long slumber, Aurorafinds herself in the modern day; a world more mysterious than any Fairy story!

Tickets:

Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty appears at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Tuesday 5^th – Saturday 16^th April 2016 (Evenings: 7.30pm, Matinee: Thursday 2pm, Saturday Matinee 2.30pm). Tickets are from £17.00 and can be purchased at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 (calls cost 7ppm plus your phone company’s access charge).

Review: Stomp at Newcastle Theatre Royal

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Spectacular Cacophony of Rhythm

Stomp

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Until Saturday 20^th February 2016

There is something delightful about a show that appeals to everyone from 6 to 106. Theatre should be inclusive and Stomp is just that. It is a spectacular cacophony of rhythm.

The show was conceived in Brighton during the summer of 1991 by Luke Creswell and Steve McNicholas. This talented pair of creatives is still involved and directed the 2016 show.

The show starts simply enough. One member of the ensemble of eight starts sweeping the stage. He soon produces a number of rhythms with his brush against the floor and the set. Soon he is joined by the rest of the cast and very quickly you are consumed by the intricate percussion patterns and dance routines.

As the show progresses numerous objects will be used to create the sounds. From pipes to literally the kitchen sink. Sometimes the patterns resemble tap dancing hand bell ringers, except using the contents of a DIY store rather than conventional bells.

Where Stomp really scores with the audience are the opportunities to join and the humour between cast members. For a show with no dialogue, the theatre was frequently filled with laughter.  The clapping routines are infectious and everyone was happy to get involved.  Stomp does a cracking job in pulling down the barriers and entertaining everyone.

The show runs for 100 minutes without an interval. During that time the talented cast work extremely hard and the pace doesn’t drop. Ultimately the show reaches a fabulously loud climax that had the Theatre Royal crowd on its feet.

Stomp is an exhilarating experience that is well worth checking out.

Read the original North East Theatre Guide preview here: http://nomorepanicbutton.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/preview-stomp-at-newcastle-theatre-royal.html

This review was written by Stephen Oliver for Jowheretogo PR (www.jowheretogo.com). Follow Jo on twitter @jowheretogo, Stephen @panic_c_button or like Jowheretogo on Facebook www.facebook.com/Jowheretogo

Tickets:

Stomp is at the Newcastle Theatre Royal until Saturday 20^th  February 2016. It plays evenings at 7.30pm, matinees on Thursday 2pm and Saturday 2.30pm. Tickets from £13.00. Tickets can be purchased online at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 (Calls cost 7ppm plus your phone company’s access charge.)

Preview: Rambert at Newcastle Theatre Royal

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RAMBERT TO BREW UP A PERFECT STORM OF ART, SCIENCE AND NATURE

Rambert

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Tuesday 2^nd – Thursday 4^th February 2016

The UK’s longest established contemporary dance powerhouse, Rambert are back in Newcastle next year with a brand new show celebrating the dual forces of nature and art.  Thought provoking, visually stunning, and featuring Tyneside-born dancer Adam Park, the new tour is set to blow audiences away at Newcastle Theatre Royal in February 2016.

The tour programme features two new pieces – the Picasso-inspired The 3 Dancers and Frames, which takes us into a choreographer’s world, and a third piece, which was one of the huge successes of 2014 - The Strange Charm of Mother Nature.

The 3 Dancers is inspired by the tragic love triangle behind Picasso’s masterpiece of the same name.  A new work from former Rambert dancer Didy Veldman, it will explore the eternal themes of the painter’s work: love, desire and death. An internationally-renowned choreographer, Veldman uses a total of six dancers, three dressed in white and three as their shadows or darker selves in order to delve into the social, psychological and human elements of Picasso’s work.

Veldman, well known for her theatrical style and earthy choreography, reveals how Cubism can be applied to movement to create the fragmented world which is so characteristic of Picasso’s work. The 3 Dancers features an original score by Australia’s leading composer Elena Kats-Chernin.

Frames is a new work from another Rambert alumni, Alexander Whitley, which lays bare the process of making a dance performance. Twelve performers assemble and dismantle the set, move lighting and change angles, constantly creating new spaces and playing with what’s revealed and what’s hidden in their sequences of highly technical dancing.

This thought-provoking work, which sees dancers create a stage within a stage, is a continuation of Whitley’s collaboration with award-winning visual artists Tuur Van Balen and Revital Cohen and is accompanied by a new score from Icelandic composer Daníel Bjarnason.

The Strange Charm of Mother Nature, which premiered in September 2014, is inspired by particle physics and the recent discovery of the Higgs boson ‘God Particle’. Continuing choreographer Mark Baldwin’s fascination with science which has seen previous pieces inspired by the theories of Einstein and Darwin, the show sees dancers fizz with the energy of the miniscule building blocks that created life, the universe and everything. The work is set to a musical score of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No.3, Stravinsky’s Dumbarton Oaks and a new piece by Cheryl Frances-Hoad.

This season, the company once again features north-east born dancer Adam Park, aged 24, of Jesmond who trained at Dame Allan’s and Dance City and has been in the company for four years.  Adam last performed with Rambert at Newcastle Theatre Royal in 2012 as part of the Seven for a Secret tour.

Tickets:

Rambert appears at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Tuesday 2^nd – Thursday 4^th February 2016.

(Evenings: 7.30pm, Matinee: Thursday 2pm). Tickets are from £12.00 (pay less online) and can be purchased at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 (calls cost 7ppm plus your phone company’s access charge).

Preview of the Autumn 2015 Season at Newcastle’s Dance City

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Preview of the Autumn 2015 Season at Newcastle’s Dance City Theatre

Dance City the North East’s leading theatre for dance is excited to announce its autumn 2015 Season. The biggest dance performance programme outside London, sees some of the UK’s leading dance companies performing live in Dance City’s purpose-built theatre.

Ockham’s Razor’s Tipping Point Photo: Nik Mackey

 

 

The season includes Ockham’s Razor’s Tipping Point, an impressive and dynamic new piece with circus tricks, theatrics and aerial dance; Joss Arnott Dance perform an incredible triple bill including a live performance with GRAMMY award-winning Dame Evelyn Glennie and music and dance combine for a stunning evening where Scottish Ensemble and Andersson Dance perform the extraordinary Goldberg Variations.

The season has three great shows for children and families which will also appeal to an adult audience. Two performances form part of Juice Festival:-  Shhh!by C-12 Dance Theatre is a lively, visual and fun piece that tells the tale of a local community who come together when their local library is threatened with closure and Just Jam Intl: Jam and Juice, a celebration of North East and International Hip Hop talent. The Little Match Girl is a stunning festive show based on the classic tale by Hans Christian Andersen, with great contemporary dance, live music, fabulous sets and beautiful costumes.

Tickets:

Tickets are available online at www.dancecity.co.uk, in person by popping into Dance City or by calling the Ticket office on 0191 261 0505. Ticket prices start at just £5.

Book 2 shows for £22, 3 shows £33 or 4 shows £44. Book tickets for both Shhh! and The Little Match Girl for £10.

Performances:

Dance Edits

Thursday 24 September, 6pm

Age: all

Tickets: £5

Dance Edits is a night of new work by dance makers based in the North East. The pieces are all short (5-10 minutes), and the work will be extremely varied. There are 8 different pieces commissioned by Dance City in a range of styles. If you want a snapshot of contemporary dance it’s a really good event to attend to explore dance and find out more. Dance Edits features work by Adam Russell, Surface Area Dance Theatre, Newton's Ladder, James Southward, Tim Rubidge, Lizzie J Klotz, Viv Wood & Co and Tess Chaytor.

#danceedits

Autumn Tour

National Dance Company Wales

Saturday 3 October, 8pm | Sunday 4 October, 2pm

Age: all

Tickets: £15, £12.50 concession, £6 students & under 18’s

Wales’ National Dance Company are coming back to Dance City, with three contrasting pieces by three leading choreographers. Enjoy the theatricality of Walking Mad, the humour of Tuplet and the rock soundtrack of A Mighty Wind. This brilliantly fun production will leave you feeling full of life, inspired and with a smile on your face.

#NDCWales15

DANCE CLASS: a performance

Gillie Kleiman

Thursday 8 October, 6.30pm & 8.30pm

Age: 14+

Tickets: £5

This dance class wants to be a show (it wants to shine, be in the limelight). In the dance class performance all the participants do some dancing and do some watching (even at the same time). Open to all levels of dancers and spectators. Come in comfortable clothing and be prepared to watch and dance without shoes. You won’t sweat too much, honest. 
#danceclass

Falling in Love with Frida

The Life, Loves and Legacy of Frida Kahlo

Caroline Bowditch

Thursday 15 October, 7.30pm

Age: 16+

Tickets: £12.50, £9.50 concession, £6 students & under 18’s

Falling in Love with Frida, merges visual arts, spoken word and dance and you’re given an insight into Frida Kahlo’s life that will not only open your mind, but reflect on how other people are viewed in society. It’s a unifying experience for the entire audience. Glasgow based performance artist and choreographer, Caroline Bowditch, describes herself as a performer, maker, teacher, speaker and mosquito buzzing in the ears of the arts industry in the UK and further afield. This performance will be BSL interpreted.
#FridaTour

Shhh!

C-12 Dance Theatre

Wednesday 28 October, 2pm & 4pm

Age: 7+ and adults

Tickets: £6

A story of love, flying overdue library books and a dancing librarian. Shhh!is a lively, visual and fun piece that tells the story of a group of people whose local library is at the heart of their community. When a developer wants to knock it down they come together to try and save it. Expect dancing, jumping, climbing and acrobatics. Children and adults will be enthralled. Presented as part of Juice Festival. For details of accompanying workshops visit www.juicefestival.co.uk 
#Shhh!

Just Jam Intl: Jam and Juice

Bad Taste Cru and Juice Festival

Saturday 31 October, 7pm

Age: All

Tickets: £12

Jam and Juice is a celebration of North East and international hip hop talent. Incorporating workshops during the day and a performance in the evening, this festival of B-boy and B-girl culture is a joyous collection of all things hip hop. It’s great fun. Commissioned by Juice Festival. For details of the full programme visit www.juicefestival.co.uk 
#JustJam8

Tipping Point

Ockham’s Razor

Wednesday 4 November, 7.30pm | Thursday 5 November, 7.30pm | Friday 6 November, 7.30pm | Saturday 7 November, 8pm.

Age: all

Tickets: £14-£18, £12.50 concession, £6 students & under 18’s

Ockham's Razor create original and ground breaking physical theatre and dance work. They return with their fourth full length production Tipping Point. The show is set in the round, the five performers enclosed within the circle of the stage. They take the simplest of equipment, 5 metre metal poles, and transform them into a rich landscape of images - a thin path picked through a mountain, the swell of the sea, a forest balancing on the tips of fingers…The performers balance, climb, spin and cling to this teetering, changing world, supporting each other as they wrestle and play with the moment when things begin to shift and tilt towards the tipping point. The audience are drawn close to the action as the toppling poles are cast out beyond the circle of the stage and over their heads. Produced by Turtle Key Arts.
#tippingpoint2015

5|0

Joss Arnott Dance and Dame Evelyn Glennie

Friday 13 November, 7.30pm | Saturday 14 November, 8pm

Age: all

Tickets: £20, £15 concession, £6 students & under 18’s

This autumn, critically acclaimed Joss Arnott Dance present a triple bill that will take you on a gripping journey through powerful, precise and heart-pounding choreography that has made the company one of the most exciting voices in British contemporary dance. Joss Arnott Dance has joined forces with GRAMMY award-winning and 2015 Polar Music Prize laureate Dame Evelyn Glennie, who has collaborated with the company's Musical Director James Keane, to create the thundering score she will perform live onstage for the climax of the triple bill - Wide Awakening. 5|0 is a birthday celebration marking the company’s 5th and Dame Evelyn’s 50th so expect a high-octane, adrenaline-fuelled evening of dance and live music. 5|0 is a co-commission between Blackpool Grand, DanceEast, Swindon Dance, Pavilion Dance, South East Dance, CAST and developed with Dance City. Supported using public funding by Arts Council England and PRS for Music Foundation.

#fiveO

Goldberg Variations

Scottish Ensemble and Andersson Dance

Friday 20 November, 7.30pm & Saturday 21 November, 8pm

Age: all

Tickets: £20, £15 concession, £6 students & under 18’s

Eleven musicians. Five dancers. One stunning new interpretation. 
This great Baroque piece of music, meshed with contemporary dance creates a passionate and inspired piece of music and dance. It’s a pleasure to watch how the dancers respond to the musician’s emotional rendition of Bach’s Goldberg Variations. A magical combination. The 11 musicians and 5 dancers perform Goldberg Variations as equal partners – both choreographed, the result is a singular experience of musician and dancer performing as one.
#goldberg2015

The Little Match Girl

Arthur Pita

Tuesday 1 December, 7pm | Wednesday 2 December, 1pm | Thursday 3 December, 1pm | Friday 4 December, 1pm | Saturday 5 December, 1.30pm & 6pm

Age: 5+ and adults

Ticket: £6

A Magical Dance Theatre Show and Festive Family Treat from celebrated Director and Choreographer Arthur Pita. Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s classic story, this touching tale of an impoverished young street girl’s hopes and dreams is beautifully told through dance, song and original live music by Frank Moon. A snowy stage sets the scene for an icy Christmas Eve where the Little Match Girl paces the emptying streets, shivering and desperate, trying to sell her matches. Cold, hungry and with just one final match flame to keep her warm, she sees a vision of her beloved grandmother, who guides her on a journey through the night sky to the moon, leaving her troubled life behind. Now on a clear night if you look closely you might see a shooting star….. or is it a match burning brightly? Suitable for children aged 5 and over and adults who love a great story, beautifully told.

#TheLittleMatchGirl