Extra marks are in order for pushing through technical problems so substantial that compère Jamiel Devernay-Laurence gave up on a faltering microphone and continued with his introductory remarks without one, and the opening dance was halted when the accompanying soundtrack cut out completely. With Fringe schedules as tightly packed as they are, as your reviewer knows all too well, even a few minutes’ delay can wreak havoc with carefully curated plans, so the walkouts before the end were, I’d like to think, wholly and entirely to do with people to their next Fringe fix. It’s also worth pointing out that the Fringe edition of Ballet Nights is in Assembly Rooms, which isn’t quite the bustling Pleasance Courtyard or the sprawl of venues at Bristo Square and George Square, but it’s positioned alongside comedy, concerts, circus and musical theatre happening at various time in the same venue. Most dance performances take place over in Dance Base, and while it makes sense for those companies and productions to utilise performance spaces especially designed for dance, what Ballet Nights is seeking to do is bring ballet and contemporary dance into the mainstream. Both physically and figuratively, it’s succeeding.
This works both ways, too, and there were people who had come to see “the ballet”, and I found myself stood in the queue line giving far more reassurances than normal, mostly to dance connoisseurs who were starting to get a little tetchy about the doors to the auditorium not opening until minutes before the published start time. The dance people have ventured out of Dance Base. Other Fringe punters are curious to discover why ballet has filled the 5:30pm slot at one of the largest venues previously filled earlier in the Fringe by none other than Julian Clary.
With no scenery to speak of, the focus was entirely on the choreography and footwork, and the performances as a whole were suitably varied. The sound effect of howling winds in the opening dance, performed by Joseph Taylor, helped to portray a character battling against the elements, ultimately in vain. The ‘dying swan’ was followed by something that could not have been more different. Uhuru was a display of jubilation and celebration, a high-octane expression of freedom from oppression – the context being choreographer and co-composer Mthuthuzeli November’s experiences in apartheid and post-apartheid South Africa.
Splice brought club and underground styles to the programme, and dancers Oliver Chapman and Phoebe Dowglass could barely keep their hands off each other, though they did eventually, albeit briefly, come apart for morsels of solo performances. A certain BBC Television programme, which I am reliably informed nobody in the dance business ever watches (on account of being too busy dancing themselves on a Saturday night), might have judged there to be “too much armography”. But it was mesmerising and occasionally bewildering stuff.
The interval-free, Fringe-friendly format was a good opportunity to shake up the usual order of service for Ballet Nights, and so Dominic Stokes took to the viola in the penultimate performance – the music-without-dance number usually occurs at the start of proceedings, breaking the audience in gently (or sometimes given the hair dryer treatment). I can’t and won’t profess to having heard Paul Hindemith’s Viola Sonata Op. 25 before, but it was a frenetic and energetic blast of music before the more majestic and sublime finale, which saw Sarah Chun and Joseph Taylor return to the stage to dance the Balcony Pas De Deux from Romeo & Juliet. It might at face value sound like a curious choice to close proceedings with an extract from a dance adaptation of a Shakespearean tragedy, but this was from early in the story, where young love abounded. Such an unusual experience at the Edinburgh Fringe, and yet one that was more than eclectic and energetic enough to fit right in.
Review by Chris Omaweng
Founded to bring world-class dance into accessible and intimate settings, Ballet Nights has built a reputation for showcasing established stars alongside emerging voices, creating programmes that break down barriers between audiences and performers. Its Fringe debut continues this mission, offering audiences a rare opportunity to experience internationally celebrated artists and new choreography within the vibrant atmosphere of the world’s largest arts festival.
La Muerte Del Cisne
Performed by Joseph Taylor
Choreographed by Michel Descombey
Composer: Camille Saint-Saëns
Uhuru
Performed by Sarah Chun
Choreographed by Mthuthuzeli November
Composers: Mthuthuzeli November and Alex Wilson
SPLICE
Choreographed and Performed by Eleido
Music by Floating Points
String Theory
Performed by Leila Wright and Dominic Stokes
Choreographed by Jordan James Bridge
Music by Dominic Stokes
A Ballet Nights New Commission made possible by the Aberrahim Crickmay Charitable Settlement
Still, I Forgot To Say
Danced by Amy McEntee
Choreographed by James Pett and Travis Clausen-Knight, PCK Dance
Viola Sonata, Op. 25 No. 1 Rasendes Zietmass. Wild. Tonschonheir ist Nebensache
Viola by Dominic Stoke
Composed by Paul Hindemith
Balcony Pas De Deux from Romeo & Juliet
Performed by Sarah Chun and Joseph Taylor
Choreographed by Massimo Maricone
Composed by Prokofiev
With thanks to Northern Ballet
Compèred by Jamiel Devernay-Laurence
BALLET NIGHTS
Assembly Rooms at the Edinburgh Fringe
24 to 30 August 2026
Ballet Nights returns to Theatre Royal Glasgow on Wednesday 2nd & Thursday 3rd September 2026 with an exceptional programme featuring international and Scottish talents.
Ballet Nights 012 will be at Cadogan Hall on Monday 28 September 2026.
