Other Dances

Jerome Robbins created Other Dances in 1976 for the international stars Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov. The exquisite Chopin duet was intended as an occasional work, but was so successful that both American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet took it into their repertoire that same year. The fact that Dutch National Ballet is now following suit is no coincidence, says artistic director Ted Brandsen. “Our company has several principal couples at the moment for whom this special work is not only a wonderful gift, but whose talent and skill will make it a true gift for the audience as well.”

Breathtaking tempo

For this programme, leading choreographer Alexei Ratmansky is making his first creation in his new role as Associate Artist with Dutch National Ballet. For this premiere, he draws inspiration from three parts of Mauricio Kagel’s famous Rrrrrrr… series, performed live onstage by accordionist Vincent van Amsterdam (recently awarded the Dutch Music Prize). Ratmansky’s new ballet shares a striking connection with Hans van Manen’s masterful and delightful Solo, set to Bach’s Violin Partita, which is also featured in this programme. Both works are performed by three dancers, as the choreographers believe the music they use is “too rich and the tempo too extreme” to be embodied by just one performer.

Bordering on the impossible

Alongside these three works for a smaller cast, Other Dances includes two large-scale ensemble pieces. The programme opens with Ted Brandsen’s highly acclaimed The Chairman Dances (2023), to the compelling music of the same name by John Adams.  Like the composer, Brandsen gives a nod to ballroom dance in his creation. Swathed in transparent, gender-neutral white dresses, the dancers perform the graceful choreography for an ensemble, from which individuals regularly break free. The grand finale of Other Dances is David Dawson’s The Four Seasons, which was received with standing ovations at its Dutch premiere in 2021. To Max Richter’s atmospheric re-interpretation of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, Dawson explores the cycles of life in a work that combines all the elements of his unique artistry: lyricism, emotion, ecstasy and a movement idiom that borders on the physically impossible.