Canadian ballet company
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
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Name
| Royal Winnipeg Ballet
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Previous names
| - Winnipeg Ballet
- Winnipeg Ballet Club
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Year founded
| 1939
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Founding choreographers
| Gweneth Lloyd and Betty Farrally
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Location
| 380 Graham Avenue
Winnipeg
,
Manitoba
R3C 4K2
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Principal venue
| Centennial Concert Hall
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Website
| www
.rwb
.org
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Chief Executive
| Andre Lewis
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Company manager
| Chris Turyk
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Artistic Director
| Andre Lewis
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Deputy Director
| Tara Birtwhistle
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Ballet Master in Chief
| Johnny Chang (Zhang-Wei Qiang)
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Ballet Master
| Jaime Vargas
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Ballet Mistress
| - Vanessa Lawson
- Caroline Gruber
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Principal Conductor
| Julian Pellicano
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Orchestra
| Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
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Official school
| Royal Winnipeg Ballet School
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Formation
| - Principal
- First Soloist
- Second Soloist
- Corps de Ballet
- Apprentice
- Aspirant
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The
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
is Canada's oldest
ballet company
and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America.
[1]
[2]
History
[
edit
]
It was founded in 1939 as the "Winnipeg Ballet Club" by
Gweneth Lloyd
and
Betty Farrally
(who also founded the ballet school The Canadian School of Ballet in British Columbia). The name was changed to the "Winnipeg Ballet" in 1941 and the company began touring Canada in 1945. In 1948, with the initiative of the Winnipeg Ballet, the
Canadian Ballet Festival
was formed.
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet was granted its royal title in 1953, the first granted under the reign of
Queen Elizabeth
II. It completed its first American tour in 1954. In June that year the RWB's rented premises were devastated by fire; the company's entire stock of costumes, original music, choreographic scores and sets were destroyed. Conductor
Eric Wild
served as the company's music director from 1955 to 1962.
The company solidified its reputation under the artistic directorship of Saskatchewan-born
Arnold Spohr
from 1958 to 1988. Spohr, who first joined the company as a dancer in 1945, during his tenure maintained a strong focus on developing Canadian talent, and, at the same time, he developed the RWB as an international touring company, and actively engaged with choreographers and dancers from around the world to expand the ballet.
[3]
Spohr was succeeded by RWB principal dancer Henny Jurriens who was formerly assistant to
Dutch National Ballet
director
Rudi van Dantzig
.
[4]
Jurriens, however, died in a car accident in April 1989.
[4]
In 1990
John Meehan
from
American Ballet Theatre
became artistic director but left in 1993 following the company's persistent financial difficulties.
[4]
William Whitener
, formerly the artistic director of
Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal
, was chosen to succeed Meehan. Continuing financial problems and dancer "unrest", Whitener was released in less than two years later.
[4]
Andre Lewis was appointed in 1996 as artistic director. Lewis' decades-long association with the RWB began in 1975 when he was accepted into the Professional Division at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School. In 1979, he was joined the Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company and performed as a dancer with the RWB until 1990. Lewis' roles include: Gunther in
Nutcracker
; Mercutio in
Romeo and Juliet
; and Jamie Paul in
The Ecstasy of Rita Joe
.
[5]
Company Music Director and Conductor is Tad Biernacki and Senior Ballet Master is Johnny W. Chang.
In 1981 the company participated alongside the
National Ballet of Canada
,
Les Grands Ballets Canadiens
, le Groupe de la Place Royale, the Danny Grossman Dance Company, the
Toronto Dance Theatre
, Winnipeg Contemporary Dancers and the Anna Wyman Dance Theatre in the Canadian Dance Spectacular,
[6]
a dance show at Ottawa's
National Arts Centre
which was filmed by the
National Film Board of Canada
for the 1982 documentary film
Gala
.
[7]
The dancer most associated with the RWB has been
Evelyn Hart
; it also included many other notable dancers including
Mikhail Baryshnikov
. Born in
Toronto
,
Ontario
, in 1956, Hart made her professional debut with the RWB in 1976. In 1980, she was awarded the bronze medal at the World Ballet Concours in Japan, and the gold medal at the
Varna International Ballet Competition
where she also received the Exceptional Artistic Achievement Award. Both medals were awarded for her performance of Belong pas de deux, created by internationally acclaimed choreographer
Norbert Vesak
as part of his work
What To Do Till the Messiah Comes
. Hart was awarded the
Order of Canada
in 1983. She left the RWB in 2005.
David Peregrine
, Hart's long-time partner, joined the Royal Winnipeg Ballet as a member of the corps in 1975 and became a soloist three years later and principal dancer in 1980; that year the pair both performed in Varna. Peregrine was made an officer of the
Order of Canada
in 1986.
[8]
Other Honorable mentions for dancers include principal Laura Graham, who was awarded a Silver medal at the 14th Varna International Ballet Competition in 1990. Her team included principal Steven Hyde, receiving a best non-competing partner honor, and soloist Mark Godden receiving best new choreography for 'Myth'. Principal dancer Suzanne Rubio followed in 1991 winning a Bronze medal at the 2nd Helsinki International Ballet Competition.
In 1992, Gweneth Lloyd, co-founder of the company, became the first recipient of the
Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement
.
[9]
The company spends 20 or more weeks a year on the road, presenting more than 100 performances every year in both large and small centres. The company also mounts four productions a year in Winnipeg's performing arts venue, the
Centennial Concert Hall
.
Royal Winnipeg Ballet School
[
edit
]
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School is composed of two divisions, Recreational and Professional, and is home to the more than 1,500 students annually.
[10]
The current building opened in January 1988, and features 12 spacious, sprung-floor studios, and a 224-seat performance space.
[11]
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, Recreational Division provides training and instruction to students age 3+ in various disciplines including Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical/Contemporary, Pointe, Musical Theatre, Modern, Creative Movement and Hip Hop.
[12]
The Recreational Division features an audition-only competitive Dance Ensemble program for high level Junior to Senior students. The school also offers an Intensive Training Program for students who have shown ability and dedication for more intense, specialized training in classical ballet. In this program, numerous ballet classes are supported with additional classes such as pointe, RWB School Dance Ensemble performance groups, conditioning and modern. Students are prepared using the
Cecchetti method
for classical ballet exams.
[13]
Alumni have gone onto careers on Broadway,
Rainbow Stage
and
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre
and have continued their education with Arts Umbrella,
Goh Ballet
,
Alberta Ballet
,
Boston Conservatory
and the School of Contemporary Dancers. Students work closely with RWB School Artistic faculty, including award-winning choreographers, and perform new works in festivals and competitions.
[13]
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, Professional Division is an exclusive, full-time classical ballet training program for students in grades 6 through 12. The school includes approximately 72 young dancers, selected from around the world, and graduates have international careers in top companies in Canada and abroad. The Professional Division instructs students using the Vaganova method of ballet.
David Lee Moroni
, a former principal dancer with the RWB, headed the company's professional training program from 1970 to 2003.
[14]
Moroni's notable students included:
Evelyn Hart
,
David Peregrine
, Andre Lewis,
Tara Birtwhistle
, and
Jennifer Welsman
. In 1990 Moroni received the
Order of Canada
.
[15]
From 2003 until 2016, Arlene Minkhorst was Director of the school; in 2016, Stephane Leonard assumed the role. Since 2015, Suzanne Andre has been the Principal of the Professional Division, and since 2016, Nicole Kepp has been the Principal of the Recreational Division.
Choreography
[
edit
]
In 2002, The Royal Winnipeg Ballet's interpretation of the story of
Dracula
, choreographed by Mark Godden, was filmed in a made for television titled
Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary
directed by
Guy Maddin
. The film was later released theatrically. Godden, who became the RWB's first choreographer in residence in 1991, has created several other major works for the company, including:
Angels in the Architecture
;
Dame Aux Fruits
;
A Darkness Between Us
;
Shepherd's Wake
; and
Svengali
Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet is the first organization to present a theatrical or dance production of the works of
Leonard Cohen
. During the RWB tenure of Artistic Director Arnold Spohr (1958?1988), in Summer 1970, Brian Macdonald choreographed
The Shining People of Leonard Cohen
which debuted in Paris. That July, it was staged at Canada's National Arts Centre in Ottawa ? with eclectic band
Lighthouse
opening the show.
[16]
In 2002, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet commissioned American choreographer
Val Caniparoli
for the first full-length ballet, entitled
Val Caniparoli's A Cinderella Story
[17]
using the music of composer Richard Rodgers. "The story was familiar, yet original; the choreography sleek, yet classical; the music, a fresh-sounding amalgam of jazz riffs and swirls, based on the themes of one vintage composer. And it is the belle of the ball".
[18]
In May 2012, the company presented the World Premiere of
The Doorway - Scenes from Leonard Cohen
, a contemporary dance piece based on the words and music of Cohen, choreographed by Jorden Morris. Morris' previous works for the RWB include the highly successful full-length classical ballet
Peter Pan
(2006) and
Moulin Rouge - The Ballet
(2009 premiere). In this newest ballet, consisting of five vignettes, Cohen's recorded songs and interviews blend with live music.
Hallelujah
is performed by musician
Allison Crowe
(voice and piano) and dancers Sophia Lee and Jo-Ann Sundermeier alternating dates.
[19]
In November 2012 the RWB toured
The Doorway
to great acclaim with three live song performances by Crowe.
[20]
[21]
Dancers
[
edit
]
Dancers in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's 2023-2024 season include:
[22]
Principals
[
edit
]
- Elizabeth Lamont
- Alanna McAdie
Soloists
[
edit
]
- Stephan Azulay
- Yayoi Ban
- Jaimi Deleau
- Peter Lancksweerdt
- Michel Lavoie
Second Soloists
[
edit
]
- Katie Bonnell
- Marco Lo Presti
- Liam Saito
- Katie Simpson
Corps de Ballet
[
edit
]
- Jenna Burns
- Cleighden Butler
- Julianna Generoux
- Joshua Hidson
- Tymin Keown
- Emilie Lewis
- Parker Long
- Logan Savard
- Amanda Solheim
- Kyra Soo
- Brooke Thomas
- Maggie Weatherdon
Apprentices
[
edit
]
- Felix Jinga
- Myles Mackesy
- Rafe Perry
- Taisi Tollasepp
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
JENNIFER GOLDBERG.
"10 Attractions That Make Canada Great"
.
Reader's Digest
. Retrieved
25 September
2016
.
- ^
"Harper Government Commemorates National Historic Significance of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet"
.
Government of Canada
. 23 December 2014
. Retrieved
25 September
2016
.
- ^
"Arnold Spohr, 86, Leader Of Royal Winnipeg Ballet: Obituary"
,
The New York Times
, 22 April 2010. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Katherine Cornell; Max Wyman (3 April 2015).
"Royal Winnipeg Ballet"
.
The Canadian Encyclopedia
. Retrieved
13 June
2015
.
- ^
Michael Bennett (30 September 1972).
"Western Canada:Activity abounds on all fronts"
.
Billboard
. pp. 48?.
ISSN
0006-2510
.
- ^
Stephen Godfrey, "Dance Spectacular is just that".
The Globe and Mail
, May 30, 1981.
- ^
Stephen Godfrey, "Gala: a dance milestone makes a fascinating film".
The Globe and Mail
, May 1, 1982.
- ^
David Peregrine, Order of Canada
[
permanent dead link
]
- ^
"Governor General's Performing Arts Awards: Homegrown heroes"
,
The Ottawa Citizen
, 2 May 2012
[
permanent dead link
]
. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
- ^
"School"
.
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
. Retrieved
30 July
2018
.
- ^
"Campus & Facilities"
.
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
. Retrieved
30 July
2018
.
- ^
"Recreational Division"
.
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
. Retrieved
30 July
2018
.
- ^
a
b
"Auditions"
.
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
. Retrieved
30 July
2018
.
- ^
Moroni gala planned
[
permanent dead link
]
, Excerpt from
Winnipeg Free Press
, 19 May 2004
- ^
Order of Canada citation
- ^
"Winnipeg Ballet draws the young: With Lighthouse's help"
,
The Montreal Gazette
, 29 July 1970. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
- ^
"RWB star Wright retiring 'on high note'
".
Winnipeg Free Press
. 23 June 2007.
- ^
"Rodgers and Hammerstein"
.
Latest News
. Retrieved
3 March
2014
.
- ^
"Leonard Cohen's music comes to life at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet"
,
CBC News
, 9 May 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
- ^
"RWB technique, emotion dazzle in Halifax return"
,
Chronicle Herald
, 8 November 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
- ^
"A royal treat"
,
The Guardian
, 16 November 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
- ^
"Dancers"
. Royal Winnipeg Ballet
. Retrieved
17 January
2020
.
External links
[
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