Celebrating World Ballet Day 2023
On Wednesday November 1, the School participated in the 10th anniversary of World Ballet Day, a day bringing together over 50 of the world’s leading ballet and dance companies to celebrate the art form.
An initiative of The Royal Ballet, The Australian Ballet and San Francisco Ballet, World Ballet Day provides audiences with a behind-the-scenes perspective into dance companies across six continents. From Joburg Ballet to Acosta Danza and Staatsballett Berlin, the day featured live streams from across the world, showcasing ballet classes, rehearsals, performance previews and discussions from some of the ballet’s biggest stars and upcoming performers.
Behind the scenes of The Royal Ballet
We were thrilled to be involved in The Royal Ballet’s five-hour live stream of classes, rehearsals and exclusive interviews with Company members and Artistic staff, hosted by two of the School’s alumni, Kristen McNally and Alexander Campbell.
The day began with the ever-captivating Company class taught by Olga Evreinoff, Principal Guest Teacher at The Royal Ballet. We were then treated to rehearsals of The Dante Project with alumnus of the School and Principal Dancer William Bracewell, and fellow Principal Fumi Kaneko. Rehearsals continued throughout the day, with viewers gaining an insight into Don Quixote with Principals Reece Clarke and Natalia Osipova, Anemoi with choreographer Valentino Zucchetti, The Cellist with Mayara Magri and Lukas B. Brændsrød and a special guest appearance from Northern Ballet in their rehearsal of Intimate Pages by Tiler Peck.
Rehearsing Frederick Ashton’s Rhapsody
Artistic Director & CEO Christopher Powney spoke with Shane Kelly, Clinical Director of The Royal Ballet, about advancements in healthcare and training in the ballet industry. Christopher Powney discussed the School’s Healthy Dancer Programme and its role in helping students cope with the demands of full-time vocational training and their transition into the industry.
Viewers were given a behind-the-scenes video look at how the School trains future ballet stars, particularly in pas de deux and partnering. Four Pre-professional Year students, Jules, Alejandro, Tianie-Finn, and Katie, then displayed how training and healthcare come together, rehearsing the captivating Rhapsody pas de deux by Frederick Ashton.
The students were rehearsed by ballet teacher Stuart Cassidy and Guest Répétiteur and Royal Ballet Coach for the Pre-professional Year, Zenaida Yanowsky. It was incredible to see the transformation of the challenging pas de deux as the students applied Stuart and Zenaida’s expert feedback.
Watch our talented students and the full Royal Ballet stream for a limited time on YouTube:
World Ballet Day highlights
A highlight of World Ballet Day is always seeing Royal Ballet School alumni performing in companies worldwide. If you missed the day’s events, you can still relive the magic of World Ballet Day below:
Thank you to everyone who tuned in and supported our students on World Ballet Day 2023. We are endlessly grateful to participate in this momentous occasion among such esteemed ballet companies and artists.
