The highlight of our year ⁠— Summer Performances repertoire announced

Our annual Summer Performances are a chance for students to learn how to prepare mentally and physically for the stage, how to transform the ballet vocabulary they’ve been mastering into a magical experience for the audience, and have the special opportunity to see themselves in the roles that they may go on to dance professionally in the future.

Performances will take place this July at beautiful Opera Holland Park and on the iconic main stage at the Royal Opera House, and represent the culmination of the School year and a joyful celebration of the extraordinary prowess and achievements of all of our young students.

This year, expect to see the Dream Scene from Carlos Acosta’s vibrant Don Quixote for The Royal Ballet performed by Upper School 1st Year, 2nd Year and Pre-professional students. Created in 2013, the piece—Carlos Acosta’s first venture directing one of ballet’s 19th-century classics—will be performed at all three venues.

You’ll also be able to see Konservatoriet, August Bournonville’s vaudeville work for the Royal Danish Ballet performed by our White Lodge students with 1st Year Upper School soloists. This is a particularly exciting piece for the School because our own System of Training evolved from the traditional styles of schools of classical ballet across Europe and Russia, including the Danish, of which Bournonville is the father.

Fans of contemporary will find lots of exciting works, including Bold by Goyo Montero created with students from 24 ballet schools around the world at this year’s Prix de Lausanne to celebrate 50 years of the iconic competition, and a special creation from choreographer and dance filmmaker, Morgann Runacre-Temple, performed by our White Lodge Year 11 students.

Audiences will be treated to Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s inventive The Four Seasons set to three Verdi operas; and in a first for the School, excerpts from acclaimed alumnus Christopher Wheeldon’s glowing contemporary masterpiece, Within the Golden Hour and alumnus Jiří Kylián’s irresistibly witty Sechs Tänze, and a wistful pas de deux from Sir Frederick Ashton’s quintessentially charming ballet The Two Pigeons.