A STUNNING CELEBRATION OF THE REBIRTH OF THE LONDON CITY BALLET

By Francesca Killoran | Francesca Killoran ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Press Invite

There is a celebratory and exciting atmosphere in the air at Sadler’s Wells. Nearly thirty years since the London City Ballet was ‘pronounced dead’, the troupe is back on the same stage where it used to be a resident company. The performance begins with Larina Waltz which is choreographed by Ashley Page. When the London City Ballet was formed in 1978, it was made up of eight dancers. Tonight, ten take to the stage as five couples dance to Tchaikovsky. This opening number is beautiful and shows London City Ballet’s strength in classical and technical ballet. This lays the foundation so that as the audience are aware that the dancers are strong and capable of traditional ballet which makes the more contemporary and radical seem even more impressive. The women are dressed in white tutus with silver adorned bodices while their male partners are dressed fully in black.

Kenneth MacMillan’s Ballade opens after a short film which shows the history and prestige of the London City Ballet. There are a lot of clips of the company’s patron Diana, the Princess of Wales watching the dancers rehearse. In this second dance Alina Cojocaru wears a simple white dress while her three suitors (Alejandro Virelles, Joseph Taylor, and Nicholas Vavrečka) who are also dressed in white begin their courtship. Alina Cojocaru is a former principal of The Royal Ballet and English National Ballet. This is a very tender performance full to the brim with expressive emotion.

My personal favourite dance of the evening came just before the interval. Arielle Smith’s Five Dances featured Álvaro Madrigal, Arthur Wille, Bárbara Verdasco, Jimin Kim, Joseph Taylor, and Ellie Young. Every dancer is so strong and impressive as they maintain powerful control over every movement. Set to music by John Adams, these dances are distinct and different from everything that we have already seen this evening. Emily Noble’s costume design creates variations of shoulder cloaks and tunics over shorts and dresses three dancers in bright orange, two in teal, and one in red. This is a celebration of the joys of live performance. You could feel how much the dancers were enjoying themselves on the stage. These five dances are the most modern and experimental of the showcase and they are a joy to watch. Then Concerto (Second movement) features Isadora Bless and Joseph Taylor dancing an exquisite pas de deux in front of an orange sun.

With the last dance of the evening the company presents the performance with the strongest narrative. Cira Robinson plays the titular Eve with grace and elegance. Álvaro Madrigal plays the Serpent with inhuman control. The way he crawls across the stage is unsettling and utterly mesmerising. Robinson’s Eve is seduced but the focus of the story is not her fall, but instead the excitement for the future. As she dances, clutching the apple of knowledge in her teeth, more Adams and Eves roll out from behind the backdrop dressed in nude leotards which creates the illusion of complete nakedness. Andrew Murrell’s lighting design and Duncan McLean’s projection design adds to the artistry of this number as the tree of life is projected onto the backdrop and grows and the dancer’s shadows play with this imagery.

The final dance ends with the principal Eve (Robinson) and her Adam standing on the shoulders of the other Eves and Adams. This is a peaceful and symbolic moment to reflect on the way that this new revived London City Ballet is standing on the shoulders of the history of the company. The future looks very bright and beautiful.

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