English National Ballet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
English National Ballet is a renowned classical ballet company based at Markova House in London, England. One of three major ballet companies in Great Britain, English National Ballet is one of the leading ballet companies in Europe and is primarily a touring company, performing in theatres nationwide in the UK as well as conducting international tours and performing at special events. The company has 67 dancers and its own symphony orchestra which tours with it in the UK and also sometimes overseas. The company regularly performs seasons at the London Coliseum and has been noted for specially staged performances at the Royal Albert Hall, the Concert for Diana [1] and for producing a new ballet based on the animated TV character Angelina Ballerina[2]. The Patron of English National Ballet is HRH Prince Andrew, Duke of York
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[edit] History
English National Ballet was originally founded in 1950 by the renowned British dance couple, Alicia Markova and Anton Dolin.
Markova and Dolin were leading stars of the Ballets Russes, one of the most influential ballet companies of the 20th century. After the death of its director Serge Diaghilev in 1929, the company was disbanded and in 1931, one of its dancers, Ninette de Valois, founded the Vic-Wells Ballet company in London, with Markova and Dolin as Principal dancers, Markova becoming Prima Ballerina in 1933. Markova and Dolin left the Vic-Wells Ballet in 1935 to tour as the Markova-Dolin company and following the success of their performances, they decided to form their own company with the sole purpose being to tour both nationally and internationally, taking ballet to audiences that had not had the opportunity to see the art form.
The London Festival Ballet was founded in 1950 with the financial backing of the Polish impresario Julian Braunsweg. The name was inspired by the then imminent Festival of Britain, however the company would later be renamed to today's English National Ballet. Dolin was the company's first Artistic Director and established the company as a touring group both nationally in the UK and Internationally, touring abroad for the first time in 1951. Dolin also introduced a number of educational programs in the early years, deigned to make ballet accessible to new audiences. The decision to change the name to English National Ballet came in 1989 and was intended to reflect the company's role as Britain's only classical ballet company dedicated to touring ballets nationwide at an affordable price for audiences.
[edit] Dancers
[edit] Principal Dancers
| Name | Nationality | Training | Joined ENB | Rank | Other Companies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yat-Sen Chang | Cuban  |
Cuban National Ballet School | 1993 | Principal | National Ballet of Cuba Jeune Ballet de France |
| Thomas Edur | Estonian  |
Estonian State Ballet School | 1990 | Senior Principal | Estonia Opera Ballet Birmingham Royal Ballet |
| Elena Glurdjidze | Georgian  |
Tbilisi Choreographic School Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet |
2002 | Senior Principal | Russian Ballet Company St-Petersburg State Academic Ballet Theatre of Konstantin Tatchkin |
| Dmitri Gruzdyev | Russian  |
Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet | 1993 | Senior Principal | Kirov Ballet |
| Daria Klimentová | Czech  |
Prague State Conservatory | 1996 | Senior Principal | National Theatre Ballet, Prague Cape Town City Ballet, South Africa Scottish Ballet |
| Sarah McIlroy | British  |
Royal Ballet School | 1992 | Principal | |
| César Morales | Chilean  |
Santiago Theatre Municipal Ballet School Houston Ballet Academy |
2004 | Principal | Ballet Nacional de Santiago de Chile |
| Agnes Oaks | Estonian |
Estonian State Ballet School Bolshoi Ballet School |
1990 | Senior Principal | Estonia Opera Ballet Birmingham Royal Ballet |
| Fernanda Oliviera | Brazilian  |
Centro de Dança, Rio de Janeiro Royal Ballet School |
2000 | Principal | Ballet Nacional de Santiago de Chile |
| Erina Takahashi | Japanese  |
Kushiro Ballet Academy English National Ballet School |
1996 | Senior Principal | |
| Aroniel Vargas | Cuban |
Cuban National Ballet School Laura Alonso & Ivan Montreal |
2004 | Principal | Royal Winnipeg Ballet of Canada |
[edit] Soloists & First Soloists
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[edit] First Artists
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[edit] Artists
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[edit] Simone Clarke
In 2006/7, English National Ballet was the focus of the British media after The Guardian newspaper reported on 21 December 2006 that Principal dancer Simone Clarke was a member of the far right British National Party.[3] Following the report, a number of other stories appeared in the press and on television and Clarke became known as the "BNP Ballerina". [4]
The British National Party is a minor, but legitimate political party in the United Kingdom that is widely criticised for its apparently extremist and racist policies. Clarke admitted being a member of the BNP, stating that her reason was to oppose mass immigration in Britain. She voiced her belief that the BNP was the only political party willing to take a stand against immigration, stating that she would continue to be a member of the party.[5] Following a number of stories in the press and a protest at the Coliseum by anti-racism protesters, Clarke refused to comment further on the issue and English National Ballet denied calls to terminate her employment, releasing the following statement:
- "English National Ballet does not comment on political affiliations of any of its employees nor any other aspects of their personal lives. Any personal view expressed by one of our employees should not be considered as endorsed by the company. English National Ballet is an equal opportunities employer and prides itself in the ethnic diversity of all its employees."
Clarke has a daughter with her former partner Yat-Sen Chang, who is currently a Principal with English National Ballet and is of Chinese-Cuban origin. Whether for political or artistic reasons, Clarke was sidelined on a number of occasions following the stories and later left the company. She has since become engaged to the BNP Councillor, Richard Barnbrook and is currently an executive with an organisation that is reported to have links with the British National Party.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ BBC report on English National Ballet at Concert for Diana [1]
- ^ Video of Angelina Ballerina ballet [2]
- ^ Exclusive: inside the secret and sinister world of the BNP[3]
- ^ 'BNP Ballerina' returns to the stage [4]
- ^ Storm grows over 'BNP Ballerina'[5]
