Dates

9-19 Nov 2022

Location

Tour, The Netherlands

Running time

2:10, incl. 2 intervals

Tickets

n.a.

Balanchine / Van Manen / Arqués

Three generations of leading choreographers

‘See the music, hear the dance’. These winged words by George Balanchine, the greatest choreographer of the twentieth century, are masterfully expressed in Balanchine / Van Manen / Arqués. Three leading chorographers from different generations show how they make music ‘visible’, as it were. Alongside well-known masterpieces by Balanchine and Hans van Manen, this special touring programme includes a recent creation by the successful young choreographer Juanjo Arqués.

Photo: Marta Syrko

Three generations of leading choreographers

Ingenious, tricky choreography

The Four Temperaments is one of the most significant works by the Russian-American George Balanchine (1904-1983). Besides being a key work in his oeuvre, it was also the first Balanchine ballet to be taken into Dutch National Ballet’s repertoire, in 1961. It is hard to believe it has now been around for over 75 years. The ingenious, tricky choreography that frequently crackles with energy still adds a magical dimension to Hindemith’s composition of the same name. 

 

Turbulent and melancholy 

According to the dance critics, Frank Bridge Variations, by Dutch master Hans van Manen (1932), gives the only possible danced answer to Benjamin Britten’s Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge. In melancholy duets, heated solos and powerful group sections, he indulges in contrasts: sharp and flowing, precise and free, angry and melancholy. But no matter how diverse, together the nine sections form a natural, stunning unity. 

 

Masculinity 

The third work in this programme is Manoeuvre, created for Dutch National Ballet in 2020 by the Spaniard Juanjo Arqués (1977). Although the piece is abstract, it is inspired by thoughts about the changing views in our Western society of the concept of masculinity. Arqués set the work to Shaker Loops by John Adams, who is celebrating his seventy-fifth birthday in 2022. Arqués says, “It’s music that has been used by many choreographers before me, but I’ve always known that one day I’d want to give my own interpretation of it”. 

Credits

Manoeuvre

Choreography  Juanjo Arqués*

Music  John Adams



Frank Bridge Variations

Choreography  Hans van Manen

Music  Benjamin Britten

The Four Temperaments

Choreography  George Balanchine

Music  Paul Hindemith





Musical accompaniment  

Dutch Ballet Orchestra conducted by Fayçal Karoui

Piano (The Four Temperaments)

Ryoko Kondo

*Juanjo Arqués is represented by Stepping Grounds Arts/Culture Management

Manoeuvre | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre| Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre| Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre| Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Manoeuvre | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Frank Bridge Variations | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Frank Bridge Variations | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Dutch Ballet Orchestra

Dutch Ballet Orchestra

Dutch Ballet Orchestra’s mission is ‘to inspire movement in dance’. Since its inception in 1965, the orchestra has been the proud musical partner of Dutch National Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater. In every performance, the orchestra searches for inspiring synergy between music and dance, in order to give the audience a magical experience.

Dutch Ballet Orchestra

Led by principal conductor Matthew Rowe, Dutch Ballet Orchestra is the leading orchestra for dance in the Netherlands. The orchestra accompanies performances ranging from traditional ballet to modern dance, alongside and is active in music education and talent development.



Besides performances with Dutch National Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater, Dutch Ballet Orchestra has a long tradition of innovative – and award-winning – family performances. For instance, Creatures (in collaboration with ISH) received the international Young Audiences Music Award, and the production Hansel and Gretel (in collaboration with Orkater) won various Musical Awards. In these productions, the musicians play from memory, without a conductor and in costumes, so that they form an integral part of the performance. In 2022, the tradition will be continued with the production Beauty and the Beast, which will premiere in Philharmonie Haarlem. And finally, Dutch Ballet Orchestra has a long-term partnership with the Dutch National Ballet Academy. They are therefore involved in the music curriculum for pupils and students, facilitate student visits to orchestra rehearsals and provide music for the academy’s end-of-year performance, where possible. 



hetballetorkest.nl/en

In the media
Rave reviews

Phenomenal musicality, a masterly command of the space and a compelling choreographic development (The Four Temperaments)

19 March

Frank Bridge Variations is typically one of those pieces you'll never get tired of, no matter how many times you see it

4 October

Especially the canon form, in which the seven dancers pass on their movement vocabulary just a bit changed or they break out of the rows one after the other, makes MANOEUVRE a strong ballet.

22 October

Fascinating from start to finish (Frank Bridge Variations)

4 October