“Wot? No piano?” At the very first Ballet Nights, ‘Ballet Nights 001’, much was made of a Yamaha piano donated to the Lanterns Studio Theatre in East London and previously used by Sir Elton John. And ever since there’s been a piano piece, without dance accompaniment, to open each Ballet Nights performance. But even the piano number, a mainstay of the Ballet Nights repertoire, gave way to something else this time around. Quartet Concrète, a string quartet, opened both parts of proceedings at ‘Ballet Nights 012’ with energetic numbers. Lovers of classical music might have wished for something a tad more off the beaten path than the crowd-pleasing, but nonetheless well-performed ‘Largo al factotum’ from Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. There was no doubting, however, the lightheartedness in the piece, which carried through much of the second half.
The first, however, felt increasingly heavy, having started with the waltz from Sleeping Beauty and the pas de deux (literally, ‘step of two’ – a dance for two performers) from Spring Waters, the latter making a repeat appearance at Ballet Nights. The aptly named ‘There Were Storms’, performed by Scottish dancer Harris Bell, had a curious intensity about it: is the aftermath of a series of storms more tumultuous than the freak weather itself?
‘BREATH’ (all block capitals, apparently) is a duet set in a post-apocalyptic world. The costumes, garish as they were, were a perfect fit for the setting. The two dancers, Liam Woodvine and Taylor Hughes, played characters who cooperated with one another in the immediate aftermath of a nuclear fallout. Dramatic tension arises when one wants to remain and the other wishes to leave (no, this isn’t a dance about That Referendum). Taking the mask off and leaving the safety of where they are could have potentially fatal consequences…
Ballet Nights has a new compère – by which I mean an additional one – with Anaish Yilma Parmar making his hosting debut. An assured first outing, Anaish – first-name terms for a host with such disarming charm – held their nerve, speaking without notes or cue cards, remembering the names of various performers, composers, choreographers and other creatives as if he’d been at the helm for years.
Two dances were performed by principals from Cape Town City Ballet. The first was sufficient in itself in terms of demonstrating skill and flexibility – Garry Trinder’s ‘Pie Jesu’, set to three movements of Fauré’s Requiem, was as poignant as one might reasonably expect. The big surprise, at least for me, was the dance in the second half, ‘Orpheus in the Underworld’, which, despite the title, is a comedic ballet. In this version of the story, Orpheus, rather than mourning the death of his beloved Eurydice, is either indifferent or even relieved to be rid of her, seeing as she has run off with Pluto.
What really had much of the Ballet Nights audience enthralled, though, was the ‘Don Quixote Suite’, performed by Mako Egawa and Alejandro Rosa Constantino of the Acosta Dance Foundation. Based on these extracts, I couldn’t possibly tell you what any of it was about, and it seemed to be more of a showcase for ever more exciting and impressive dancing feats. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve compared pirouettes and fouettés at Ballet Nights to a washing machine spin cycle, but the alternative analogy would be the sort of spinning found in politics, which would be most unkind given the professionalism and skill on display here.
An eclectic mix of dance and music, which seemed to lean more towards classical than contemporary on this occasion, whilst retaining an aura of having something for (almost) everyone.
Review by Chris Omaweng
Ballet Nights returns to Cadogan Hall to celebrate its third birthday! Three years of celebrating the artists, championing the art form.
World Ballet stars from The Royal Ballet and Opera return alongside Lead Principals of English National Ballet, joined by the UK debut of Cape Town City Ballet. Contemporary dance takes centre stage with a powerhouse UK company, a London Premiere commission, and rising talent from English National Ballet School. Live music is at the heart of the evening with Quartet Concrète performing at Cadogan Hall.
PART I
Sleeping Beauty Waltz
Performed by Quartet Concrète
Composed by Tchaikovsky
Arranged by Dominic Stokes
Spring Waters Pas De Deux
Performed by Royal Ballet Principals Yasmine Naghdi and Reece Clarke
Choreographed by Asaf Messerer
Composed by Sergei Rachmaninov
With thanks to The Royal Ballet
Pie Jesu
Danced by Cape Town City Ballet Principals in their UK debut, Hannah Ward and Leusson Muniz
Choreographed by Garry Trinder
Produced by Tracy Li
Composed by Gabriel Fauré
There Were Storms
Performed by Harris Bell
Choreographed by Travis Clausen-Knight, PCK Dance
Composed by Valentin Silvestrov
BREATH
Performed by Liam Woodvine and Taylor Hughes
Choreographed by Liam Woodvine
Costume by Asli Ozuak
A Ballet Nights New Commission made possible by The Abderrahim Crickmay Charitable Settlement
On the Nature of Daylight
Performed by Sangeun Lee and Gareth Haw
Choreography and Concept by David Dawson
Composed by Max Richter
Costume by Yumiko Takeshima
PART II
‘Largo al factotum’ from Il Barbiere di Sivglia
Performed by Quartet Concrète
Baritone: Michael Lafferty
Composed by Gioachino Rossini
Arranged for string quartet by Dominic Stokes
Orpheus in the Underworld
Danced by Cape Town City Ballet Principals Hannah Ward and Leusson Muniz
Choreographed by Veronica Paeper
Produced by Tracy Li
Music arranged by Michael Tuffin
Costumes by Peter Cazalet
Don Quixote Suite
Performed by Mako Egawa and Alejandro Rosa Constantino, Acosta Dance Foundation
Choreography by Carlos Acosta
Staged by Aydmara Cabrera
Composed by Ludwig Minkus
With thanks to the Acosta Dance Foundation
Excerpt from LOKI
Danced by James Wilton and Sarah Jane Taylor
Choreographed by James Wilton Dance
Excerpts from Elite Syncopations: ‘Stoptime Rag’ and ‘Bethena Rag Waltz’
Performed by Royal Ballet Principals Yasmine Naghdi and Reece Clarke
Choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan
Composed by Scott Joplin
Costumes by Ian Spurling
With thanks to the MacMillan Trust
BALLET NIGHTS 012
Cadogan Hall
28 September 2026
