The story appears on

Page A7

February 26, 2017

GET this page in PDF

Free for subscribers

View shopping cart

Related News

Home » Sunday

Classic titles for new ballet season

WITH a lineup that includes “Swan Lake,” “Giselle,” “Hamlet” and “Jane Eyre,” Shanghai Ballet’s 2017 spring season centers on epic tales told in both classic and contemporary dance language.

In total, 11 performances of the four productions will be staged from March 24 to April 15 at both Shanghai Grand Theatre and Shanghai International Dancer Center’s Grand Theatre, a venue that opened its doors last year.

“The four productions for the spring season were developed and premiered over a decade — they reflect the challenges, opportunities and progress of Shanghai Ballet throughout the years. For us, they are filled with memories, changes and also hopes for the future,” said Xin Lili, artistic director of Shanghai Ballet.

Over recent years, Shanghai Ballet has worked with leading international choreographers to stage both classic and modern ballets.

In 2012, Shanghai Ballet and Shanghai Grand Theatre produced the contemporary ballet “Jane Eyre,” created by German choreographer Patrick de Bana, who’s known for developing groundbreaking and bold works that bring historical characters to the stage.

“Jane Eyre” has been a major success for the company at home and abroad. In 2015, de Bana created another contemporary ballet, “Echoes of Eternity,” based on Bai Juyi’s poem “Song of the Everlasting Sorrow,” which tells of the love affair between Yang Guifei and Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618–907).

Both Shanghai Ballet’s “Swan Lake” and its original production “Hamlet” were created by British choreographer Derek Deane, who is adept at large productions and telling epic stories through innovative interpretations.

Performed to the music of Tchaikovsky, “Hamlet” premiered last October at Shanghai International Dance Center, in commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death. It was co-produced with Shanghai Grand Theatre.

“‘Jane Eyre’ and ‘Hamlet’ are Shanghai Ballet’s new classics... they witnessed the growth of Shanghai Ballet dancers as well as our collaborations,” said Zhang Xiaoding, general manager of Shanghai Grand Theatre. “Though the works have been staged in the past, new things are constantly being discovered and developed through continuous performance. We believe they can seed a deeper message in every performance.”

Fan Xiaofeng, first principal dancer at Shanghai Ballet, has been with the company since 1996, upon graduating from Shanghai Dance School. Her 20-year career on stage has included various vivid. Though she’s not as strong physically as in her youth, Fan now focuses more on expressing emotions and building characters.

“’Jane Eyre’ gave me the opportunity to create a character using the language of my body. It’s the transformation from classic to dramatic that extends my career as an artist, while my role as Gertrude in ‘Hamlet’ freed me from pursuing technique to enjoy the stage with all my heart,” she said.

Jane Eyre

Date: 7:15pm, March 24-25

Tickets: 80-580 yuan

Hamlet

Date: 7:15pm, March 28-29

Tickets: 80-680 yuan

Venue: Shanghai Grand Theatre, Lyric Theatre

Address: 300 People’s Ave

Giselle

Date: 7:30pm, April 14-15

Tickets: 80-680 yuan

Swan Lake

Date: 7:30pm, April 8-12

Tickets: 80-680 yuan

Venue: Shanghai International Dance Center, Grand Theatre

Address: 1650 Hongqiao Rd




 

Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

沪公网安备 31010602000204号

Email this to your friend