TALK: Three Visionary Women who Shaped the Story of British Ballet
Tuesday 22 October 2019 starting at 1700. Talk on Three Visionary Women who Shaped the Story of British Ballet to the British Federation of Women Graduates and the Centre for the History of Women’s Education at Winchester University. The talk is free but donations will be appreciated.
The full details are as follows: Three Visionary Women who Shaped the Story of British Ballet Venue: St Alphege Building (building 19 on the PDF of the campus map) at the King Alfred’s Campus of Winchester University.
COURSE: Prokofiev’s ballet genius – from Romeo and Juliet to Cinderella
Tuesday 29th October 2019 at Dillington House, Somerset (see page 31 of Dillington’s Programme of Courses and Events July 2019-June 2020)
As a young man the famous Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev was championed by Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes. His early masterpiece for that company, Prodigal Son (1929) is still performed today.
After living in the West the pull of his homeland proved too much and Prokofiev returned from exile to live in Russia. Here he composed his three full-length narrative ballets: Romeo and Juliet (1938), Cinderella (1948) and The Stone Flower (1954).
This presentation will explore Prokofiev’s fascinating early life, looking at what happened to the ballet scores rejected by Diaghilev but used by other avant-garde choreographers in the 1920s and 1930s. It will then focus on the three narrative ballets, centering on the magnificent Romeo and Juliet – from its beginnings in Russia to its glorious realisation by Sir Kenneth MacMillan, for many the definitive version of Romeo and Juliet.
Presentation: this presentation is illustrated by PowerPoint slides, along with archive film clips and DVDs shown to illustrate the topic.
For full details see the Dillington website
Or call Bookings & Enquiries: 01460 258 613
Or email: dillington@somerset.gov.uk
COURSE: Bournonville – Denmark’s ballet gift to the world
Wednesday 30th October 2019 at Dillington House, Somerset (see page 32 of Dillington’s Programme of Courses and Events July 2019-June 2020).
The history of ballet starts in Renaissance Italy from where it spread throughout Europe. However for over 270 years the Kingdom of Denmark nurtured its own ballet company, away from all the fads and fashions. It is remarkable that it was only after World War II that the Royal Danish Ballet’s legacy was fully discovered. That this legacy is intact is due to one remarkable man August Bournonville (1805-1879). A talented dancer himself, he ignored the new fashion of favouring the ballerina over her male partner – in his ballets the men and women are equal. Bournonville developed a unique technique that has produced the most wonderful dancers, especially male dancers, famed for their musicality, lightness and jumps. In exploring his story we will look at his ballets (many will know that it is his version of La Sylphide that is still in the repertory today) how he developed his technique and the legacy that is today’s Royal Danish Ballet. We will also focus on Eric Bruhn, the ‘dancer’s dancer’, who epitomised the elegance and style that is the Danish/Bournonville style.
Presentation: this presentation is illustrated by PowerPoint slides, along with archive film clips and DVDs shown to illustrate the topic.
For full details see the Dillington website
Or call Bookings & Enquiries: 01460 258 613
Or email: dillington@somerset.gov.uk
COURSE: MUSIC, MYTH AND MAGIC
Strauss in the theatre: Die Frau ohne Schatten & Josephs-Legende
Friday 13th – Sunday 15th March 2020 at The Grange at Oborne, Sherborne, Dorset, with Terry Barfoot and Bridgett Vane.
Die Frau ohne Schatten (The Woman without a Shadow) is an outstanding display of virtuosity, presenting one of Strauss’s most complex and colourful scores. The three-act opera, with libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, is an exotic fairytale with a strong moral dimension, on themes of the unborn and the supernatural.
Josephs-Legende is a ‘ballet-drama’ also with libretto by Hofmannsthal, recreating the mythology of the Book of Genesis. Our music examples using CD and DVD will be played on excellent hi-fi equipment.
The Grange at Oborne is a beautiful three-star country house hotel, set within the rolling hills of West Dorset, just one mile from the charming town of Sherborne. Formerly a manor house, the building has undergone a transformation to a luxury country house hotel with eighteen bedrooms and a delightful restaurant overlooking the floodlit gardens.
Follow this link for full details and to book and click on the details for this weekend.
COURSE: How ballet shaped the American stage and film musical
Wednesday 10th June 2020 at Dillington House, Somerset (see page 66 of Dillington’s Programme of Courses and Events July 2019-June 2020)
What do On the Town, Oklahoma!, Carousel, Guys and Dolls, The Music Man, West Side Story, Oliver! and so many more have in common? These were choreographed by classically-trained dancers. There is no doubt that America led the way in developing the musical; however in the early days banal dance numbers were often inserted just to give the singers a rest, with no thought to how to use the dancers creatively. This all changed when classically- trained choreographers created numbers which progressed the story and fleshed out the characters. Step up George Balanchine, Agnes de Mille, Eugene Loring, Michael Kidd, Jerome Robbins and Onna White. This presentation looks at the legacy of their work, set against their fascinating life stories, with excerpts from the films that look as fresh and exciting as when they were first choreographed.
Presentation: this presentation is illustrated by PowerPoint slides, along with archive film clips and DVDs shown to illustrate the topic.
For full details see the Dillington website
Or call Bookings & Enquiries: 01460 258 613
Or email: dillington@somerset.gov.uk
COURSE: American joy – the ballets of Paul Taylor and Mark Morris
Thursday 11th June 2020 at Dillington House, Somerset (see page 66 of Dillington’s Programme of Courses and Events July 2019-June 2020)
The word joyous is not one that springs to mind when looking at some contemporary dance, yet this word and many other similar adjectives – ‘sunny’, ‘lyrical’, ‘humorous’ – can all be used to describe the works of these two master dance makers: Americans Paul Taylor and Mark Morris. The two choreographers share a common thread in how they have absorbed into their art influences from many different styles of dance: contemporary, ballet, flamenco and folk. Both are inspired by wonderful music – from Baroque to Bach, Beethoven, Brahms and the Beatles. Paul Taylor (1930-2018) studied with many of the greats of 20th-century dance: Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, José Limón, Merce Cunningham, Antony Tudor and George Balanchine. Mark Morris (1956-) danced with several companies – many founded by ex-Taylor dancers – before setting up his own. This presentation will showcase their work and feature particularly Taylor’s Brandenburgs (to music from Bach’s Brandenburg concertos 3 and 6) and Morris’ L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato by George Fredrick Handel.
Presentation: this presentation is illustrated by PowerPoint slides, along with archive film clips and DVDs shown to illustrate the topic.
For full details see the Dillington website
Or call Bookings & Enquiries: 01460 258 613
Or email: dillington@somerset.gov.uk
Ballet Talks 