In this edition, the Dutch National Ballet Academy will pay tribute to Ted Brandsen and Rachel Beaujean, bid farewell to Artistic Associate Mthuthuzeli November and reflect on the departure of the academy’s artistic director, Ernst Meisner, who will succeed Ted Brandsen as the director of Dutch National Ballet in August. With live accompaniment from the Dutch Ballet Orchestra, all 165 pupils and students from the academy will showcase their talents in an exceptionally diverse and dynamic programme during this special and festive tribute.
Pure ballet technique and spirited character dance
The Dutch National Ballet Academy attaches great importance to the close working relationship it has maintained with Dutch National Ballet for many years now. In this edition of Dancers of Tomorrow, the academy will therefore be turning the spotlight on the company’s two departing ‘hotshots’ – director Ted Brandsen and deputy artistic director Rachel Beaujean – to thank them for their enormous contribution to Dutch dance and to the Dutch National Ballet Academy in particular. The academy will be doing this, first of all, through the performance of the third act from Beaujean’s successful production of Raymonda – an exceptionally challenging piece of choreography for the students, in which pure classical ballet technique and spirited character dance combine to form a spectacular whole.
Vibrant, powerful premieres
The academy is also losing two of its own ‘shining lights’: Ernst Meisner, who will soon be succeeding Ted Brandsen at Dutch National Ballet, has now handed over the reins of the academy to Dario Elia, and the academy is also bidding farewell to Mthuthuzeli November, who has served as Artistic Associate there in recent years. To mark Ernst’s departure, the academy will be dancing – for the first time – his vibrant and energetic piece No Time Before Time, which he created in 2016 for the final of the prestigious Prix de Lausanne ballet competition. Mthuthuzeli, now a highly sought-after choreographer worldwide, will also go out with a ‘bang’, an extremely powerful new work for four graduating students, entitled Opaque.
William Forsythe
When programming the Dancers of Tomorrow performances, the academy always seeks to align itself with the repertoire of the Dutch National Ballet and the new artistic director, Dario Elia, is therefore exceptionally proud and grateful that, in this edition – with the permission of the Forsythe Foundation – the school is able to present a work by William Forsythe, one of the leading choreographers with whom the company frequently collaborates. Amy Raymond, ‘Forsythe Technologies’ teacher at the academy, has created a collage especially for the occasion from Kammer/Kammer, an earlier work by the master choreographer that is rarely performed these days, yet brimming with complexity and intrigue. Or, as the British newspaper The Guardian wrote: ‘This is dance theatre at its most mysterious and expansive.’
Inventive, playful and groovy
The academy will also be presenting even more premieres this year. Choreographer and former Dutch National Ballet dancer Peter Leung is creating a new (pointe) piece, specifically tailored to the age and abilities of the pupils from years 5, 6 and 7 of the Dutch National Ballet Academy, combining classical and contemporary dance techniques. The youngest pupils – Dutch National Ballet Academy years 1 to 4 – can be seen in a new collaborative piece by World Dance teacher Iva Lešić and Creative Dance teacher Dian IJkhout. For this inventive, playful and groovy choreography, the two are collaborating with a group of musicians from the Bijlmer Steelband, who will perform a unique rendition of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Also new to the general public is Siren’s echo performed to the music of Astor Piazzolla’s evocative Primavera Porteña, with which dance student Jason Owens made a big impression last November during the Dutch National Ballet Academy’s seventh Choreographic Project.
Grand Défilé
As in previous years, the festive finale of Dancers of Tomorrow will consist of a Grand Défilé (Grand Parade) featuring all pupils and students, culminating in choreographic fireworks for the upper classes of the school, compiled this year by teacher Rinat Gizatulin.
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