Hong Kong Ballet

The Hong Kong Ballet (香港芭蕾舞團) is a classical ballet company founded in 1979.

Hong Kong Ballet
General information
NameHong Kong Ballet
Year founded1979
Websitehkballet.com
Artistic staff
Artistic DirectorSeptime Webre (since June 2017)

History

The Company was created in 1979.[1]

Since 1997, The Hong Kong Ballet has concluded more than 30 tours to 10 countries in North and South America, Europe and Asia.

In January 2010, Faye Leung, the Company's former top ballerina, revealed in a book that she was sacked from the HK Ballet on suspicious that she was dividing dancers and organizing a strike.[2]

In June 2010, the Company took part in Expo 2010 Shanghai, presenting a mixed bill production and performing as part of Festive Hong Kong Celebration. The Hong Kong Ballet’s dancers also performed at the 4th and 5th International Dance Festivals held in Cali, Colombia; the 50th Anniversary International Gala in Brisbane, Australia; and the International Ballettgala XI in Dortmund, Germany. Most recently, the Company presented Firecracker in Macau in January 2012. In the summer of 2012, The Hong Kong Ballet toured the United States and Canada with a mixed bill featuring two specially commissioned contemporary ballets. The Company made its debut appearance at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and then performed in Aspen, Montreal and Santa Fe.

In October 2013, the Company was accused of self-censorship during a production of The Dream of Red Chamber. Originally shown at the end of the ballet, the 12-minute projection sequence depicted different stages in China's history. In the part depicting the Cultural Revolution, dancers in Red Guards uniforms waved copies of Mao Ze Dong's little red book. Following the premiere, the sequence was cut from the show. Wang Xinpeng, the choreographer, claimed he did not agree with the deletion of the scene.[3]

In June 2017, Septime Webre, of Cuban-American origins, previously the artistic director of The Washington Ballet for 17 years, was named Artistic Director of the Ballet. For 2018, he planned a contemporary program which featured the music of the Beatles.[4] He also organized Ballet in the City, outdoors dancing events in different art galleries of the city, and a series of other events "to insert the company and its dancers into the social fabric of the city".[5]

Description

Repertoire

The Company performs a repertoire that combines 19th to 21st century classical, contemporary works and newly commissioned ballets. This repertoire reflects both the heritage and origin of ballet in Europe as well as contemporary influences, and includes commissions focused on Hong Kong’s culture and history, such as Firecracker by local choreographer Yuri Ng. The Company’s repertoire encompasses full-length ballets such as Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker and Giselle, and the finest classical and neo-classical works of the 20th and the 21st centuries, including George Balanchine's Rubies and Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux; Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet; Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow and Coppélia; and Wang Xin Pang’s Serenade and Pas de Six from Mozart. The Company has also performed contemporary ballets such as William Forsythe’s Steptext, Nils Christe’s Symphony in Three Movements, Stephen Mills’s Hush, and Stanton Welch’s Clear. The Hong Kong Ballet's commissions include Natalie Weir’s Turandot, and Stephen Baynes’s The Way Alone.

Company

The Hong Kong Ballet has an artistic team of over 40 dancers. The majority of the dancers are from China, others are international recruits.

  • Artistic Director – Septime Webre (since June 2017)[6]
  • Ballet Mistress – Tang Min
  • Ballet Master - Luis R. Torres
  • Ballet Master - Yuh Egami
  • Guest Ballet Master – Liang Jing
  • Choreographer-in-residence: Wu Song Wei Ricky
  • Pianist – Nicholas Lau
  • Sports Practitioner - Arlene Mackinlay

Principal dancers
Name Nationality Training
Chen Zhiyao  People's Republic of China Beijing Dance Academy
Venus Villa  Cuba Cuban National Ballet
La Scala Theatre Ballet School
Ye Feifei  People's Republic of China Xun Yan Ballet School
Goh Ballet Academy
Li Jiabo  People's Republic of China Shanghai Far East Ballet School
Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
Li Lin  People's Republic of China Beijing Dance Academy
Shen Jie  People's Republic of China Zhejiang Vocational Academy of Art
Guangzhou Dance School
Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
Wei Wei  People's Republic of China Shenyang Conservatory of Music (Dance Major)

Soloists
Name Nationality Training
Dong Ruixue  People's Republic of China Beijing Dance Academy
Gao Ge  People's Republic of China Beijing Dance Academy
Ma Renjie  People's Republic of China Hang Zhou Art School
Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

See also

References
  1. "Hong Kong Ballet Dances Through The Galaxy". Luxury-insider.com. 24 June 2009. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  2. Olga Wong (19 January 2010). "I was sacked for splitting HK Ballet, dancer writes". Scmp.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  3. Chan, Candy (4 November 2013). "Hong Kong Ballet 'self-censorship' spurs debate on freedom of expression". Scmp.com. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  4. "Why Septime Webre Believes The Beatles And The Ballet Are A Perfect Match". Asiatatler.com. 26 February 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  5. Simon Cartledge (9 November 2017). "Septime Webre has 3 years to make ballet relevant to Hong Kong: here's how he'll do it". Zolimacitymag.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  6. "Septime Webre Named New Artistic Director of Hong Kong Ballet". Hkballet.com. 6 June 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
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