Angels' Atlas & Passion & UtopiVerse

Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, France has been the site of consequential performances since its opening in 1913, when it hosted the infamous world premiere of Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring. The National Ballet of Canada will revisit this legendary stage following the successful tour of Nijinsky in 2017, this time with an all-Canadian programme of newly acquired work and pieces created specifically for the National Ballet: Crystal Pite’s Angels’ Atlas, James Kudelka’s Passion and William Yong’s UtopiVerse.

Angels’ Atlas

Overview

Canadian choreographer Crystal Pite created the Dora Award-winning Angels’ Atlas for The National Ballet of Canada in February 2020 to rapturous reviews. The ballet unfolds against a morphing wall of light that carries the illusion of depth and a sense of the natural world. Here, the dancing body becomes a sign of humanity’s impermanence and – equally – its vitality within a vast, unknowable world.

Set to original music by Owen Belton and choral pieces by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Morten Lauridsen, Angels’ Atlas is a profound work from one of the world’s leading contemporary choreographers.

Fast Facts

• The impetus for Angels’ Atlas came from Crystal Pite’s partner and set designer Jay Gower Taylor who worked with lighting designer Tom Visser to develop an analog method of manipulating reflective light to create complex, painterly images. 
   
• A quote from writer and critic Max Wyman about dance greatly inspired Pite: “No other artform speaks so directly about the fragile, temporary quality of life, or about the human instinct to transcend those bonds and aim for that perfect moment of self-realization.”
   
• Pite wanted Angels’ Atlas to evoke “a fierce pulse of life.” She achieves this in part through the score, which includes electronic music by her longtime collaborator Owen Belton featuring samples of clicking sounds, voices, bells and a heartbeat.

Watch and Learn 

Angels’ Atlas Trailer

The Creator

A former dancer with Ballet British Columbia and Ballett Frankfurt under William Forsythe, Crystal Pite is now a leading contemporary choreographer. She is Associate Choreographer of Nederlands Dans Theater, Associate Dance Artist of Canada’s National Arts Centre and Associate Artist at Sadler’s Wells, London. Her company, Kidd Pivot, performs her original creations around the world. 

The Score

The ethereal score for Angels’ Atlas incorporates original music by Canada’s Owen Belton with two liturgical choral works composed more than 100 years apart: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Opus 41, No. 6: Cherubic Hymn and Morten Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium, which dates to 1994. The mystical quality of these works and their connection to the body through the voice makes Angels’ Atlas what one reviewer called “a religious experience“.

Reviews

“Human yearning is evoked powerfully onstage… Crystal Pite has a gift for bringing out the very best in dancers.” – Toronto Star

“Pite’s [Angels’ Atlas] seemed not only genius in its craftsmanship, but prophetic – a brilliant tragedy that defines a moment in history through music, lighting and movement” – The Globe and Mail

“Mind-blowingly good” – CP24

“Pite has created another masterpiece.” – Ludwig van Toronto 

“Angels’ Atlas ventures higher, into the celestial realm, to make us question the limits of knowledge and our own fleeting existence.” – Fjord Review

Passion

Overview

Created for Houston Ballet in 2013, Passion is a love story whose meticulous structure mirrors the music, the first movement of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Concerto for Piano in D, Op. 61a. Two couples – one classical, the other contemporary – weave within the Corps de Ballet like musical themes, evoking complex relationships of passion.

Passion Trailer

Fast Facts

• Kudelka describes Passion as having three parts: two couples and the Corps de Ballet. He developed each part in a different studio to be a complete idea, saying: “It was very important, almost necessary, that each group not know what each other group was doing, so that everyone felt they owned the floor.”
   
• The ballet’s three parts are stylistically unique and align with the structure and mood of Beethoven’s music. One couple is contemporary and the other is classical, with the former exhibiting raw desire and the other more reserved.
   
• The contemporary couple closely follows the piano and their choreography is full of tension and passion. At times they appear to stalk one another around the stage.

Watch and Explore

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The Creator

James Kudelka served as Resident Choreographer of The National Ballet of Canada following his nine years as Artistic Director. He creates works of incredible musicality and vision for companies internationally, from original full-length ballets to short contemporary works and remounted classics. Kudelka was Resident Choreographer of Coleman Lemieux & Compagnie from 2008 to 2020.

The Score

Movement and music are deeply intertwined in Passion, set to the First Movement of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Concerto for Piano in D, Op. 61a, a revised arrangement by the composer of his well-known violin concerto. As two couples perform simultaneously among the corps de ballet, the choreography illuminates the structure of Beethoven’s music while revealing the choreographer’s emotional and intellectual response to it. An unusual feature of the piece is the extended cadenza for solo piano and timpani. 

Reviews

“Passion is a study in contrast – classic versus modern, romantic fantasy versus lusty reality.” – Houston Press 

“At the emotional heart of the ballet is a starkly contrasted contemporary couple, similarly dancing in their own bubble. Their visceral attraction to each other is fraught and passionately unrestrained, cueing no-holds-barred athletic partnering.” – Dance International

UtopiVerse

Overview

Toronto-based choreographer William Yong’s first commission for The National Ballet of Canada, UtopiVerse, made its world premiere in Toronto in March 2024. The futuristic ballet integrates Yong’s muti-disciplinary experience and showcases the versatility of the National Ballet artists. Founder of two companies that serve as incubators for his work, Zata Omm Dance Projects and W Zento Production, Yong has an international presence as a respected dancer, choreographer and director.

Fast Facts

• Hailed as the "biggest staging sustainability experiment" (My Entertainment World) on Canadian stages, Yong's 2015 piece vox:lumen partnered with the energy sector to invent several technology devices that captured and stored solar and kinetic energy that powered the the entire full-length dance production.
   
• Yong has been profiled in several documentary shorts, including the 2015 film about the creation of vox:lumen for Harbourfront Centre’s World Stage, by filmmaker Timothy Garrett.
   
• An accomplished performer, Yong and has worked with such companies as Wayne McGregor’s Random Dance, Matthew Bourne’s Adventures in Motion Pictures, Toronto Dance Theatre, Peggy Baker Dance Projects and Côté Danse, run by Principal Dancer Guillaume Côté.

Watch and Explore

William Yong's UtopiVerse: Navigating the Unknown

UtopiVerse: Come Behind the Scenes

UtopiVerse

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The Creator

William Yong is a Canadian choreographer, dancer, designer and director. Trained at Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and the London Contemporary Dance School, he works internationally to create technology-driven work for stage and film. Yong holds an M.A. from the University of Kent where he completed a dissertation on dance and film.

The Score

A curated selection of pieces by Benjamin Britten featuring strings was the musical impetus for William Yong’s UtopiVerse. Beginning with the first movement of Britten’s Violin Concerto, Yong chose several string quartet movements along with selections from the Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge. Canadian composer Constantine Caravassilis partners with Yong and filmmaker Thomas Payette for a multidisciplinary and futuristic experience.

Reviews

"Yong’s reflections on the human aspiration for some indefinable ideal world and the inevitable fact that it’s unattainable has much to commend it." – Toronto Star 

"The choreography is sophisticated and very physical." – Ludwig van Toronto 

"Yong's visionary choreography seamlessly intertwines with multimedia elements, including video projection, ambulant lighting and a giant suspended mobile metallic set design, creating a fascinating fusion of movement and visual spectacle." – Critics at Large 

"For those with a craving for the cutting edge in dance, there’s William Yong’s UtopiVerse, a dreamy multi-media spectacle… a high concept feast for the senses." –Susan Walker’s Artsblog

Credits

Angels’ Atlas

Choreography:
Crystal Pite

Original Music:
Owen Belton

Additional Music:
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Opus 41, No. 6:  
Cherubic Hymn
Performed by Valery Polyansky and the USSR Ministry of Culture Chamber Choir. Courtesy of Firma Melodia Music Ltd.
Morten Lauridsen, O Magnum Mysterium
Used by Arrangement with Southern Music Pub. Co, Inc., Publisher and Copyright Holder
Performed by Polyphony conducted by Stephen Layton. Courtesy of Hyperion Records Ltd, London 

Reflective Light Backdrop Concept:
Jay Gower Taylor  

Reflective Light Backdrop Design:
Jay Gower Taylor and Tom Visser 

Lighting Design:
Tom Visser  

Costume Design:
Nancy Bryant  

Assistant to the Choreographer:
Spencer Dickhaus 

Premiere: The National Ballet of Canada, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto, February 29, 2020 

Produced and commissioned by The National Ballet of Canada. 

A co-production of The National Ballet of Canada and Ballett Zürich. 

Philanthropic support for Angels’ Atlas is generously provided by An Anonymous Donor, Rosamond Ivey, Ira Gluskin & Maxine Granovsky Gluskin, The Producers’ Circle, The Volunteer Committee of The National Ballet of Canada and The Gail Hutchison Fund.  

Passion

Choreography:
James Kudelka

Music:
Ludwig van Beethoven, Concerto for Piano in D, Op. 61A, First Movement

Costume Design:
Denis Lavoie

Lighting Design:
Michael Mazzola

Premiere: Houston Ballet, Houston, Texas, September 5, 2013

The National Ballet of Canada Premiere: Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto, November 10, 2023

Passion is generously supported by The Gail Hutchison Fund.

UtopiVerse

Choreography:
William Yong

Music:
Benjamin Britten

Violin Concerto, Op. 15 I, Movement I - Moderato con moto - Agitato - Tempo primo (1940)*
Alla Marcia (1933)**
String Quartet in F, II. Andante (1928)**
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 94, IV. Burlesque (1975)**
Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge, Op. 10, II. Adagio, IX. Funeral & X. Chant (1937)* 
The Last Rose of Summer (1957)*

* By arrangement with Boosey & Hawkes, Inc., publisher, and copyright owner.
** Used by arrangement with European American Music Distributors Company, Canadian and U.S. agent for Faber Music Ltd., London, publisher and copyright owner.

Violin Soloist:
Alexi Kenney

String Quartet:
Aaron Schwebel, Jamie Kruspe, Sheila Jaffe & Maurizio Baccante

Additional Music:
Constantine Caravassilis

Set & Costume Design:
William Yong

Lighting Design:
Noah Feaver

Projection Design:
Thomas Payette / Mirari

Content Creation & Generative Design:
Hugues Kir

Metal Head Pieces Design:
Elijah Secrest

Rehearsal Director and Assistant to Choreographer:
Anisa Tejpar

Rehearsal Director:
Stephanie Hutchison

Video Content

Director and Editor:
William Yong

Director of Photography:
Jason George

Colourist:
Oliver Salathiel

First Camera Assistant and Focus Puller:
Jurek Osterfeld

Artists featured:
Isabella Kinch and Matthieu Pagès

Grid and Gaffer:
Oscar Weinstein

Make-up and Hair Design:
Alexandre Deslauriers

Production Assistant and Director’s Assistant:
Juliette Coleman

Production Assistant:
James Kendal

World Premiere: The National Ballet of Canada, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto, March 20, 2024

Produced and Commissioned by The National Ballet of Canada.

William Yong would like to thank Zata Omm rehearsal assistants and collaborators: Carleen Zouboules, Willem Sadler, Katherine Semchuk, Natasha Poon Woo, Christian Lavigne, Jessica Mak, Zachary Seto, Evan Webb, Judy Luo and Caiti Carpenter.

Lead philanthropic support for UtopiVerse is provided by an Anonymous donor, The Catherine & Maxwell Meighen Foundation, The Hal Jackman Foundation and The Hal Jackman Foundation Fund with additional support by The Producers’ Circle.

The Producers’ Circle (2024): Gail & Mark Appel, John & Claudine Bailey, Laura Dinner & Richard Rooney, Gail Drummond & Bob Dorrance, Ira Gluskin & Maxine Granovsky Gluskin, The William & Nona Heaslip Foundation, Anna McCowan-Johnson & Donald K. Johnson, O.C., Judy Korthals & Peter Irwin, Mona & Harvey Levenstein, Jerry Lozinski, O.C. & Joan Lozinski, O.C., The Honourable Margaret Norrie McCain, C.C., Julie Medland, Sandra Pitblado, C.M. & Jim Pitblado, C.M., The Harry & Lillian Seymour Family Foundation, The Jack Weinbaum Family Foundation and Alexander Younger & Sarah Richardson.

The National Ballet of Canada’s tour to Paris is presented by Productions Internationales Albert Sarfati as part of the TranscenDanses series, in collaboration with the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées.