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.
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.
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 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“.
“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
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.
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.
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.
“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
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.
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.
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.
"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
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.
Ticketing information coming soon.
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