Blogs

Northern Ballet Academy students Jenny Layton and Paul Smith were dancing in the aisles at the new Waitrose store in Meanwood this week, in celebration of the supermarket’s support of training for our budding ballet dancers.

It has been a very strange week for Northern Ballet Academy. With the Company only moving into the building last Monday we made the decision to move the Academy across a week later so that staff could fully get to grips with the building before more than 200 academy students came through the doors.

I have spent my week going back and forth from Quarry Hill in the daytime to West Park in the evenings and it really has made me realise quite how lucky the Academy is.

On Wednesday night 9pm BBC2 resumes its Wonderland series with a documentary about a group of boy cheerleaders in South Leeds. Northern Ballet features when one of the boys auditions for the Academy.

It's a brilliant documentary (not just for the winning performances from Cara, Hannah and Viki) and well worth watching. Visit the BBC website for further details.

It’s finally happened! On Monday Northern Ballet and Phoenix took up residence in our stunning new powerhouse for dance in the centre of Leeds. Don't forget to update your address book with our new contact details.

The first week has been very exciting, learning our way around the building and making use of the terrific facilities it has to offer.  By the time the Northern Ballet dancers return from their national tour on 18 October we will have settled in nicely and be ready to welcome them with open arms to their new home.

Three cells, three confined spaces, three chances to dance. In the depths of the town hall, explore the contradiction of being confined, yet moving, being a prisoner, yet dancing.

As part of Leeds' Light Night celebrations tonight Northern Ballet and Phoenix Dance Theatre will guide you through movement sequences and creative tasks as you explore life as a Victorian prisoner.

Since my last blog I am a year older, I had to pull out of the first night of Dangerous Liasions, we revised and performed A Christmas Carol, said our good byes to West Park and returned from Bangkok. And yes I am jet lagged !!!

We said ‛goodbye’ to West Park Centre on Friday, a day of packing boxes and the last chance to walk the corridors and offices that have been home to Northern Ballet for fourteen years.

Here are a few final thoughts from staff who have helped make this move possible and have made the Company what it is today...

We look forward to welcoming you to our new home in central Leeds where you will be able to watch us and others rehearse and perform, take part in a range of dance classes, hold your meetings, conferences and events or simply relax in our café.

The company were back to the theatre this morning for class and then our second and final performance of A Christmas Carol. Some of the Technicians also came in early to tidy up one or two of the lighting states.

The matinee was once again very well attended and it was interesting to observe that in both performances the audience was made up of 90% Thais which was quite unexpected. The performance was received very well by the audience who were very appreciative at the end with cheers and even some standing!

Friday evening I attended a dinner last night with our Promoter, Mr Uberoi. The dinner was in honour of the departing Taiwanese Ambassador & his wife and was attended by four further Ambassadors from South Africa, Slovakia, Korea and the EU. It was quite a memorable occasion and I have never been in the company of five Ambassadors at the same time before!!

Last night the Technical Staff continued the fit up in the humid conditions of the Cultural Centre while the dancers were taken to the home of Mr Uberoi for a lavish party.