Category: Dance

Pinging across eclectic points of reference, French collective (La)Horde channels hyperlink culture into dance.

One experiences their work as one would a fervid, late-night Wikipedia binge, making synaptic links as influences from David Cronenberg, Kim Kardashian, Gene Kelly, Will Wright and Ludwig Wittgenstein collide and collapse onstage. Offstage and in the crowd, influential fans and collaborators like Léa Seydoux and Spike Jonze take in repeat visits, with devotee Marion Cotillard well onto her fifth performance.      

Cotillard needn’t travel far when she wants to see them again. Though co-founders Marine Brutti, Jonathan Debrouwer and Arthur Harel have brought shows to Los Angeles and New York in recent years, and have creative directors of choreography for Madonna’s ongoing Celebration Tour, they remain artistic directors of the Ballet National de Marseille – where they might stay, if they so choose, until 2029.

They are also very likely to turn up at next month’s Cannes Film Festival as part of the team for Gilles Lellouche’s “Beating Hearts” — an ambitious, decades-spanning romance expected to make a Croisette premiere.

Still, don’t expect the august perch to change (La)Horde’s approach. The collective’s three millennial artists share a generational view forged by 1990s video stores and 2000s Queer nightlife, and fed by a plugged-diet supercharged by social media.

“We always try to stay alert,” says co-founder Marine Brutti. “Whether you’re on social networks, in a movie theater, on the street or in the air, the world is always coming at you. So we try to monitor those sensations, and once something intrigues us, we get into the studio to unpack and understand.”

Age of Content

All of those threads entwined in (La)Horde’s most recent production created with Ballet National de Marseille, “Age of Content” – a playfully postmodern show that remixed Tik Tok dances with Old Timey musical numbers, while casting Juicy Couture clad dancers as video-game characters, programmed by an unseen hand.

“As a collective, we ask ourselves what are the issues facing us today,” says co-founder Arthur Harel. “And we try to answer by offering another perspective, a different way of looking at the world.”

“Video games and social media have opened new idea of the self, as bodies move through these virtual and digital spaces,” says Debrouwer. “Only if street dance is omnipresent on social networks, it’s also robbed of all history and political meaning by a format that requires movement at a ten-second clip.”

The three collaborators then connected this programmatic choreography to video game NPCs (non-playable characters) and to midcentury Broadway – where social malaise became spectacle.

“There’s any irony to ‘West Side Story,’ to watching a dozen people sing ‘America’ while crammed into a small room,” says Harel. “The audience doesn’t know if they’re smiling out of pleasure, out of duty, if they’re happy, or if they’re tired. There’s something cynical, and at the same time extremely pleasurable and performative about it – and we wanted to push those sliders all the way to the max, to make everything explode.”

The collective took evident delight in another irony as well: The fact that video game designers often looked towards dance to give virtual characters some heft.

“We had a lot of fun imagining how to imitate those who have tried to imitate us,” says Brutti. “What would happen when we reappropriated what digital characters took from human bodies? Would we mimic them, would we return to our original ways, or would [this copy-of-a-copy] leave an influence?”

Celebration Tour

When envisioning new numbers for Madonna’s Celebration Tour, the trio drew influence from the singer’s own past. Of course, given the Material Girl’s five-decades on the pop charts, such a choice was often a product of necessity.

“Practically all of our sets had already been choreographed,” says Brutti. “So we were playing with this idea of a retrospective. Sometimes we had to refresh an older choreography, and sometimes we got to be a bit more meta, comparing the icon today against who she was at the time. And that was particularly moving.”

When asked to tackle, “Papa Don’t Preach,” for instance, the trio knew better than to one-up a previous version.

“We couldn’t compete with the number from the Blond Ambition tour,” says Harel. “So rather than running against it, we chose to run alongside. The original version had Madonna pleasuring herself in bed, so we put her back on the same bed – only now she wasn’t alone.”

The choreographers introduced a double – an image of the star from four decades before – and had the duo recreate the familiar routine as the present interacting with the past.   

“She was rediscovering herself,” says Brutti. “Reclaiming her body.”

Collaboration is Key

Perhaps given the security (and responsibility) that comes with their perch in Marseille, the collective’s founders haven’t exactly chased after such international collaborations, though this play-it-cool approach has evidently added to (La)Horde’s luster.

In 2020, Spike Jonze first wrote a script for the trio to direct before sponsoring them to the join the roster at production outfit MJZ, while their “Unholy” video with Sam Smith and Kim Petras was born of a backstage encounter. They first spoke with Madonna over Instagram DMs – responding to a message that she sent.

“We never thought that one day we’ll be working for any pop star,” says Harel. “We chose this profession to be free, so the work has made sense [in that regard]. But when Madonna talked to us about her life and desire to work with us, it was hard to say no. She’s very persuasive!”

“We joke that next we’ll work with Rihanna,” says Brutti. “But that’s also not a wider goal.”

“Working as a collective ensures a constant exchange,” she continues. “Everything we do becomes highly intellectualized –necessarily so — because we first have to align before we can get into action. And then, once everything has been said, we head to the studio to be moved, to find moments of grace and of elevation that are beyond analysis, beyond words.”

“Once you’ve said everything there is to say about an idea, what else can you do but turn it into an emotion,” adds Debrouwer. “Dance is a universal language, so the dancers pick up where the conversation ends.”

Cinematic Inspiration

Alongside various forms of new media, cinema remains a constant (and constantly renewing) source of inspiration.

“We’re always watching Cronenberg,” says Debrouwer.

“Nobody focuses on the body in quite the same way,” he continues. “He is often accused of subjecting the body to violence, but Cronenberg is the only director to avoid slow-motion when shooting a car crash. He depicts action at the speed at which it actually happens, without sublimating. You get the impression that it’s more violent, but that’s just because it’s more raw.”

More to the point, the trio sees wider parallels in their very creative practice — and are currently fielding various offers to make their feature directorial debut.

“We are directors,” Harel explains. “We’re really directing an overall vision rooted in a very specific [lexicon]. Obviously, choreography and dance are key to our work, but we’re not [austere and academic], staging the dance in the middle of nowhere, in the dark. We need a set, we need lighting, we need costumes, and we need a context.”

Cannes Then and Now

Keeping with that cinematic verve, the trio recently orchestrated four musical sequences in Gilles Lellouche’s “Beating Hearts” – coming up with showstoppers and set-pieces performed by Adèle Exarchopoulos and François Civil, among others.

The most ambitious French production of the year, “Beating Hearts” is hotly tipped for Cannes.

But then, Cannes’ Palais des Festivals is already familiar ground for (La)Horde, who ran rampant inside and outside the familiar site for their 2022 performance “We Should Have Never Walked On The Moon” — a line Gene Kelly once told Buzz Aldrin at a Hollywood dinner party.

“Intellectually, politically, and physically, Gene Kelly felt that walking on the moon was a form of vandalism,” says Brutti. “And to know that one of the greatest of all dancers – one of the most elegant stars of all time – felt such passion really kickstarted our imagination.”

(La) Horde channeled that outrage into a raucous piece that mixed Cannes Film Festival iconography with visions of civic unrest, leaving the famous red carpet smoldering. Should the troupe return to the Croisette in May, they’ll have to find a more genteel expression for their showmanship – and are keen to take up the challenge.

“We can’t dare to be as punk in more formal situations,” adds Brutti with a laugh. “But why not? We could pull something off – can you imagine?!”   

In a first for the Frederick Ashton Foundation, this partnership will allow private and recreational dance students training in the Royal Ballet School ‘s ATAP methodology to study and learn Ashton repertoire in their ballet classes, alongside movement and contextual studies. 

Young dancers will have the one-of-a-kind opportunity to learn iconic Ashton repertoire, including Les Rendezvous, The Dream and Les Patineurs, as part of their training syllabus. Dance teachers trained in the ATAP methodology will have exclusive access to written materials and online resources through the School’s on-demand platform, including videos of each solo and videos of repetiteurs from the Foundation coaching students. This will equip Affiliate teachers with the skills to teach the repertoire and prepare their students for examinations. 

Jeanetta Laurence, Chair of the Frederick Ashton Foundation, said: 

‘As Chair of the Frederick Ashton Foundation, I’m delighted that we’re able to partner with The Royal Ballet School in this innovative project which will increase awareness of and access to Ashton’s ballets across a new generation of young people, their teachers and parents. 

Choreography from three of Ashton’s ballets has been specially adapted by the Foundation’s repetiteurs for young dancers in the formative years of their training to engage their imagination and enjoyment of dancing through storytelling and theatricality. The accompanying resource packs, which include additional information on every aspect of these wonderful ballets, also contain each solo’s choreography written in Benesh Movement Notation as a practical skill for teachers.’

Mark Annear, Head of Training & Access at The Royal Ballet School said:

‘We are proud to have launched the ATAP programme to drive forward teaching and training standards in the recreational sector. Our partnership with the Frederick Ashton Foundation is a step towards this mission, allowing ATAP teachers and students the exclusive opportunity to learn ballets performed by some of the world’s leading dance companies.

This collaboration is a unique chance for many students and teachers in the recreational dance sector who have not had access to such opportunities before. This will undoubtedly enable both teachers and young dancers to reach their full potential by developing their classical ballet technique and love for the art form.’

Alongside Founder Dame Ninette de Valois, Ashton’s choreographic legacy has played an integral role in The Royal Ballet School’s history and development as a centre for excellence in ballet training. This partnership will allow young dancers to understand the significance of Ashton’s works and his indelible contribution to the art form and development of the English style of classical ballet. 

The Royal Ballet School’s Affiliate programme provides an alternative training model to traditional examination syllabi. The holistic approach to recreational training empowers dance teachers with the responsibility for guiding and assessing their own students’ learning, with assessments conducted by teachers themselves and moderated by The Royal Ballet School.

The Affiliate programme for teachers is delivered via a mix of intensive in-person training, virtual webinars and extensive video content distributed via a video-on-demand platform.  Teachers are then accredited to deliver the programme to students in their own dance schools.

Consisting of six training levels for dancers aged five and upwards, each emphasises the importance of developing classical ballet technique and performance skills alongside an understanding of the art form through repertoire, choreography, and appreciation. Levels 4-6 will launch in academic year 2024/25, with an enhanced stream for young dancers considering a career in the dance industry. 

Through learning and teaching this repertoire and experiencing the Ashton style, students and teachers will discover the importance of expression and the need to nurture individuality and creativity. 

For dancers, strengthening acting ability can enhance not only artistry and confidence but also storytelling onstage. After all, there is a lot of overlap between the two art forms. “Acting is mostly listening and being present,” says Isadora Wolfe, the associate artistic director of Sleep No More and a teacher of the Acting for Dancers class at The Juilliard School. “Dancers have those skills. That’s what we’re doing all the time: listening in a million different ways.”

Find Your Voice

Venturing into a new art form requires stepping beyond comfort zones and facing uncertainty. This discomfort can be a catalyst for growth, however, fostering adaptability and expanding creative horizons. Many dancers aren’t accustomed to using their voices onstage, so vocalizing for the first time onstage can be intimidating. Wolfe says a willingness to try is important: “When we’re embarrassed about our voice, or feel shame about it, or just feel funny about it because we haven’t used it a lot, we cut off a certain amount of impact and energy,­ even if we’re doing a project that’s completely silent.”

Wolfe recommends dancers practice a series of simple vocal­ warm-ups (see sidebar) to get more comfortable using­ their voice. It can also be helpful to practice delivering a monologue. “Start to listen to yourself saying the words,” Wolfe says. “You can video yourself. If you have someone else, whether that’s a friend or a roommate or a family member, becoming­ comfortable speaking words out loud in front of them is another way to start to become comfortable with your voice, be able to hear yourself, and loosen your inhibitions.”

Draw on Emotion

Learning to act involves exploring a range of emotions and an understanding of how to authentically portray them. Dancers who study acting can tap into a wider range of emotions, enabling them to convey more nuanced and compelling stories through their movements. Bharathi Penneswaran, a New York City–based bharatanatyam teacher, performer, and artistic director of Aalokam, says that paying attention to the way feelings affect the body in day-to-day life can help in expressing the same feelings onstage. “What happens when your body is happy? Do you move your limbs? Do you look very stiff? Or is it just your face that shows the expression?” she asks.

Kristi DeCaminada, a principal character dancer at San Francisco Ballet, adds that it’s important to pay attention to facial expressions when focusing on emotion in dance performance. She recommends using the mirror to gauge whether facial expressions are matching the energy of the dancing, the music, and the story. “The expression on your face can’t be overexaggerated; it has to be natural and believable,” she explains.­ “It has to be something you would do—it has to be your own and how you would interpret that emotion.”

Stretch Your Artistry

Dancers interested in improving their acting can adopt various strategies as a starting point. Enrolling in acting classes, or workshops specifically designed for dancers, can provide a structured foundation. These classes often focus on fundamental principles, such as character development, emotional expression, and improvisation. Wolfe encourages dancers to take part in community theater productions as a way to gain invaluable experience. “If you can get involved with a non-Equity production or a community production, you will learn a ton about how a piece of theater is made,” she explains. “There will most likely be people in the room that have a ton of training, so just being in the rehearsal room in a production of any level will be an acting class in and of itself.”

DeCaminada highlights the value of observing other dancers in rehearsal and onstage, as well as on video. Pay attention to how they interpret a role, infuse each step with emotion, and use the choreography to tell a story. “Watching as much dance as possible, and watching as many movies and as much acting as possible, is so important,” she says.

Warm Up Your Voice

Isadora Wolfe, an Acting for Dancers­ teacher at Juilliard, recommends these vocal­ warm-ups for dancers learning to find their voices:

• Face and jaw massage: Gently massage the chin, jaw, sinuses, and temples with your fingertips. “Part of preparing your voice is relaxing as much as possible, to produce the healthiest and richest sound,” Wolfe says.
• Lip buzz/trill: Press your lips together and blow out slightly, making a buzzing sound. See if you can maintain this sound while changing octaves.
• Humming: Wolfe says humming, whether it’s a scale or your favorite song, is a great warm-up or cool-down exercise that won’t strain your vocal cords.

Boston Ballet Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen announces programming for the 2024–2025 season, featuring a collection of ballets that celebrate elegant contrasts, a variety of works, and stunning live music. The Company’s 61st season runs October 24, 2024 through June 8, 2025 at the Citizens Opera House.

“Our upcoming season is a bold collection of ballets that curate the best of the past and pave the way for the artists of the future. This programming is a glowing example of Boston Ballet’s versatility and expertise in performing diverse and challenging repertoire” said Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen. “Audiences will experience dance like never before with works by world-renowned choreographers, stunning classical ballets, and groundbreaking neoclassical and contemporary works.”

The season opens with the 2024 Fall Experience(October 24–November 3), featuring Crystal Pite’s The Seasons’ Canon, Sabrina Matthews’ Ein von Viel, Resident Choreographer Jorma Elo’s Plan to B, and a world premiere by Boston Ballet Principal Dancer Lia Cirio. Crystal Pite, one of the greatest choreographers on the world stage today, brings her must-see powerhouse The Seasons’ Canon to Boston for the first time. Set to Max Richter’s rendition of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, her choreography draws on human emotion from her own life experiences. Set to Bach’s beloved Goldberg Variations, Sabrina Matthews’ Ein von Viel is an intimate dance between two artists and a solo pianist. The piece was originally commissioned by Mikko Nissinen for Alberta Ballet in 2001 for two male dancers. Jorma Elo’s Plan to Bis one of the most dynamic and thrilling ballets ever created. Six dancers captivate the stage in a flurry of solos, duets, and trios that move with passion and velocity to the vivacious music of Von Biber. The ballet reflects on the inevitable unpredictability of life and the hesitation and nervous energy we experience when we take leaps into the unknown. Celebrating her 20th year with Boston Ballet, Principal Dancer Lia Cirio will create her second world premiere for the main stage. Her ballet will feature neoclassical pointe work and showcases a brilliant pairing of her own personal style and technique with her ability to highlight the unique talent of her fellow dancers.

Mikko Nissinen’s critically-acclaimed The Nutcracker(November 29–December 29) returns after record-breaking attendance in 2023 to enchant audiences. The beloved production features costumes and sets by award-winning designer Robert Perdziola, the renowned score by Tchaikovsky, and technically challenging choreography by Nissinen. Named as the “gold standard” (The Boston Globe), The Nutcracker remains a beloved holiday tradition for audiences of all ages.

The spring season opens with Mikko Nissinen’s Swan Lake (February 27–March 16, 2025). One of the most celebrated ballets in classical repertoire, Swan Lake is a timeless story of love, betrayal, and sacrifice. The classical masterpiece follows the Swan Queen Odette and Prince Siegfried in a tale of romance, sorcery, and deceit. The second act, originally choreographed by Lev Ivanov, is historically considered the finest piece of classical choreography for the corps de ballet. The production showcases the technical precision and emotional tonality of dozens of dancers, brilliantly transformed by Robert Perdziola’s impeccable costume design and set to the timeless score by P.I. Tchaikovsky.

The 2025 Winter Experience (March 20–30, 2025) features George Balanchine’s Mozartiana and Symphony in Three Movements, Claudia Schreier’s Slipstream, and Leonid Yakobson’s Vestris. Mozartiana is a wonderful example of neoclassical ballet with an enchanting romantic feel. The musical choreography is set to Tchaikovsky’s Suite No. 4, Mozartiana, and Op.61. Opening at the 1981 Tchaikovsky Festival, it was Balanchine’s third ballet set to the composer’s homage to Mozart and is one of the last ballets the choreographer created before his death in April 1983. Balanchine’s Symphony in Three Movements is a large ensemble work that premiered on opening night of the 1972 Stravinsky Festival. Set for 32 dancers, the work is considered one of Balanchine’s most celebrated leotard ballets. Claudia Schreier’s Slipstream is an innovative, unusual, and captivating ballet commissioned in 2022 for Boston Ballet’s ChoreograpHER program. Schreier brings her distinctive choreographic voice to Boston audiences, fusing together neoclassical technique with contemporary vocabulary. Leonid Yakobson’s Vestris is a solo originally created for Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1969 and performed by the best male dancers in history. Vestris is about embodying the flamboyant flavor of Auguste Vestris, a renowned Parisian dancer in the 1700’s. Boston Ballet is the only American company trusted to present this work today.

Spring Experience 2025 (May 15–25, 2025) features three ballets that showcase the breadth and beauty of ballet today: Jiří Kylián’s 27’52” and Petite Mort and Mikko Nissinen’s Raymonda. 27’52” is made for six dancers, who form three duets. When the ballet was created, four dancers from the original cast were inspired by various poems in the creation process. Quotes from these poems are also included in the work. The ballet was developed through a unique collaboration between choreographer and composer, as German composer Dirk Haubrich created the music specifically for this piece. One of Kylián’s most beloved ballets, Petite Mort is a sensuous exploration of what it means to be human. Known for its molded skirts and sword play, it is truly one of the most provocative and beautiful works in ballet today. Nissinen’s reimagined Raymonda returns after a successful world premiere in 2024. Featuring rechoreographed sections by Florence Clerc, Alla Nikitina, and Nissinen, the world premiere was praised for its lavish costumes, brilliant dancing, and sumptuous score. The ballet stays true to Boston Ballet’s values by removing outdated and offensive stereotypes and characters and focusing solely on preserving the classical choreography.

The season concludes with the Company’s premiere of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette (May 29–June 8, 2025). The ballet is a beautifully fresh take on the timeless Shakespearean tale set to the radiant Prokofiev score performed to new heights by the Boston Ballet Orchestra. There are many versions of the ballet performed by companies from around the world; the first production was by the Kirov in 1940 (Galina Ulanova & Konstantin Sergeyev). Other versions have been created by Cranko, Lavrovsky, MacMillan, Ek, Nureyev, Ratmansky, and Vinogradov. Boston Ballet most recently performed Cranko’s version in 2018. Maillot’s version features contemporary choreography with elements of cinematography that flows freely to allow the dancers to embody the full emotion of the characters. The movements, even in moments of tragedy, are full of graceful elongation and musicality.

Subscriptions for the 2024–2025 season are on sale now. Tickets for The Nutcracker are also available as an add-on to your subscription or for groups 10+. Single tickets will go on sale on September 4, 2024. For more information, visit bostonballet.org or call 617.695.6955.

All performances take place at the Citizens Opera House (539 Washington Street, Boston, MA, 02111

Boston Ballet Season Detail

Fall Experience | October 24–November 3, 2024
World Premiere
Choreography: Lia Cirio

Ein von Viel
Choreography: Sabrina Matthews
Music: Johann Sebastian Bach
Costume Design: Carolyn O’Brien

Plan to B
Choreography: Jorma Elo
Music: Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber
Costume Design: Jorma Elo

The Seasons’ Canon
Choreography: Crystal Pite
Music: Max Richter (Recomposed by Max Richter: Antonio Vivaldi, The Four Seasons, 2012)
Scenic Design and Reflected Light Concept: Jay Gower Taylor & Tom Visser
Costume Design: Nancy Bryant
Lighting Design: Tom Visser, Staged By Douwe Beernink
Staging: Eric Beauchesne & Anna Herrmann

The Seasons’ Canon is a co-production with Boston Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet.

The Nutcracker | November 29–December 29, 2024
Music: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Choreography: Mikko Nissinen
Set & Costume Design: Robert Perdziola
Lighting Design: Mikki Kunttu

Swan Lake | Feb 27–Mar 16, 2025
Choreography: Adaptation and additional choreography by Mikko Nissinen, after original by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov
Music: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Set & Costume Design: Robert Perdziola
Lighting Design: Mark Stanley
Projection Design: Seághan McKay

Winter Experience | March 20–30, 2025

Mozartiana
Choreography: George Balanchine ©The George Balanchine Trust
Music: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Suite No. 4 Op. 61)
Costume Design: Rouben Ter-Arutunian
Lighting Design: Brandon Stirling Baker
Staging: Philip Neal

Slipstream
Choreography: Claudia Schreier
Music: Tanner Porter, Six Sides from the Shape of Us
Scenic Design: Evan Schreier
Costume Design: Erica Desautels
Lighting Design: Brandon Stirling Baker

Vestris
Choreography: Leonid Yakobson
Music: Gennadi Banshchikov
Costume Design: Robert Perdziola
Lighting Design: Brandon Stirling Baker
Staging: Joan Boada

Symphony in Three Movements
Choreography: George Balanchine ©The George Balanchine Trust
Music: Igor Stravinsky*
Lighting: Brandon Stirling Baker
Staging: Russell Kaiser

*Used by arrangement with European Music Distributors LLC, sole U.S. and Canadian agent for Schott Music GmbH & Co. KG, publisher and copyright owner.

Spring Experience | May 15–25, 2025

Petite Mort
Choreography: Jiří Kylián
Music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Piano Concerto in A Major – Adagio, Piano Concerto in C Major – Andante
Set Design: Jiří Kylián
Lighting Design: Joop Caboort
Lighting Adaptation: Joost Biegelaar
Costumes: Joke Visser
Staging: Urtzi Aranburu & Shirley Esseboom

27’52”
Choreography: Jiří Kylián

Music: Dirk Haubrich, composition inspired by the original Ur-Version of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony nr. 10 (1910)

Costume Design: Joke Visser

Stage Design: Jiří Kylián

Lighting Design: Kees Tjebbes

Video Registration: Rob de Groot

Assistant to the Choreographer: Gerald Tibbs

Raymonda
Original Choreography and Concept: Marius Petipa
Reimagined by: Mikko Nissinen
Music: Alexander Glazunov
Additional Choreography: Florence Clerc and Mikko Nissinen
Character Dance Associate: Alla Nikitina
Scenic and Costume Design: Robert Perdziola
Assistant Scenic Design: Nicholas Kostner
Lighting Design: Brandon Stirling Baker

Roméo et Juliette | May 29–June 8, 2025
Choreography: Jean-Christophe Maillot
Music: Sergei Prokofiev (Op. 64, 1935–1936)
Scenic Design: Ernest Pignon-Ernest
Costume Design: Jérôme Kaplan
Lighting Design: Dominique Drillot

Terms in Ailey II are more like a two-year audition, since the director of the first company is often around. “They have the inside track,” Waters said. That often starts at the Ailey School or the Ailey/Fordham bachelor’s program. The Ailey Student Performance Group, sometimes known as Ailey III, was founded in 1984 and has endured in various forms since then; some of its members graduate into Ailey II. There are also apprentices, who learn multiple roles so they can step in when someone is injured. (Only since 2021 have apprentices been paid. Ailey II dancers are not unionized, unlike those of the main company, and the Ailey organization does not share information about compensation.)

Sometimes, advancement is accelerated. That happened to Yannick LeBrun, who was in his second year with Ailey II in 2007 when he was tapped to fill in for an injured dancer in the main company during its New York season. That was essentially his audition, and as soon as his term with Ailey II ended, he moved up, fulfilling the dream that had drawn him from his home in French Guiana. In 2019, he set a work of his own on Ailey II.

Not moving up is a disappointment, but not a career-ending one. Ailey II dancers have moved on to companies like Dance Theater of Harlem, the Martha Graham Dance Company, Philadanco and Ronald K. Brown/Evidence, as well as many Broadway shows.

Jasmine Guy, who was with Ailey II from 1980 to 1981, fell in love with the Ailey company the most common way: by seeing its signature work, “Revelations.” She decided not to audition for the main troupe, and because for her, no other company would do, she shifted into acting, starring in the sitcom “A Different World.” Her stint with Ailey II was “a magical time,” she said, that served as a foundation for the rest of her career.

“Everything I’ve done since, I thought, ‘What are you all complaining about?’” she said. “On TV, I couldn’t believe all the breaks you get. I was used to working a lot harder and longer.”

It is shortly after the announcement of her appointment as artistic director of the Vienna State Ballet, that I meet with Alessandra Ferri at the Royal Opera House, London. She tells me she has just been rehearsing Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell in Manon. “This is his last show before he goes off to direct the Royal Academy of Dance,” she says. “He needs to be completely abandoned to the character. When you get to your last show, it must be for yourself, not for anybody else!”

In June, Ferri will hang up her own shoes for good, appearing in a role created for her in 2015, in the New York premiere of Wayne McGregor’s Woolf Works with American Ballet Theatre. I ask her what it will be like to revisit it with another company. She explains, “After The Royal Ballet, I did it with La Scala, so it won’t be the first time. It’s very interesting when you’re doing a familiar piece. You have different energy, dynamics, style and it does reflect on the way you approach the role. Your relationship to your partner or whoever you interact with, is fresh. It’s great because you don’t fall into the trap of doing it the same as before. It’s stimulating and forces me to get in deeper.

“The experience of knowing the role very well, having had it created for me,” Ferri continues, “is very nice because I feel I can lead them into the ballet. I can be somewhat of an anchor to follow, like the leader of the pack. I think with ABT, it will be a very special feeling because I have such a history with them, the city, the stage at the Metropolitan Opera House. I know it will be the last time I do it.”

I have to press her on this – will it really be the last time? She is unequivocal: “Yes, for sure! I know I’ve said this before, but now my life is taking off in a different direction. I’m very excited about it and I’m 100% committed. At this stage in my life, dancing takes up the whole day, for my body, the training. I have the energy for one thing or the other. I think when you’re 35, you can do both things but at my age it’s too difficult. It makes no sense. I’m ready to be on the other side.”

I’m curious to know a little more about her coaching. “I don’t think it’s necessary to have danced everything in order to coach something,” she says. “Anyone who has had a vast career, has learned so much about dance generally. If you have an eye that can help with the technique, the refinement, in order to let that technique speak – because that’s what it's about, you can do it with any role.”

What about coaching the men? “I don’t find it difficult with technique, but I’m not very good at helping them with the partnering because I’ve never really concerned myself with that!” We burst out laughing, “I always had amazing partners. You know, that was their job, I had mine!” More laughter, “I have been lucky in that when I was coaching Manon, we had Ed Watson in the studio with us and we did it together. I don’t know what it takes to lift, but I was able to tell the girl how to help.”

I’m curious to know if she would ever consider doing any character roles such, as Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. Without drawing breath she replies, “No, no, no! I’m not looking to be on stage anymore. I want to be there for the dancers.”

The plan is to stop dancing after her last performance of Woolf Works – but is there a caveat? “Well, you know I was supposed to stop after doing Woolf Works here in London and then I had a very sweet phone call from John Neumeier two weeks after. I’d already put my shoes in the closet. I thought he was going to ask me to coach but he asked me to do his Nijinsky!” She couldn’t refuse. “It’s one thing to do something that was created on you but to do a completely new role at this stage in my career…”  

She explains that although she does not officially begin her tenure in Vienna until September 2025, she is travelling over regularly to get to know the company. “I’m doing the planning. It’s not a question of just picking ballets that we want to do, but we have to find out if it can be done. Does it fit in with the opera? It’s quite complex, a big puzzle. I like it a lot, which for me, is quite surprising! I knew I would be alright working with the dancers, but I’m actually really enjoying the management part. After 40 years of working in lots of different companies, I actually know more than I think.”

Does she feel that ballet comes second to the opera? “In any big European opera house that is the case. We all know that. For many reasons: historical, financial. The opera is a bigger machine and takes more space. I think what’s important – and I have this in Vienna – is to have an honest relationship with the Intendant, who may not know about dance. If it’s his intention to have a really great ballet company, he has to understand that he needs to give you the means to work. I’m not Don Quixote so I don’t have some illusion about having the same amount of performances as the opera.”

Ferri is understandably tight-lipped about what exactly she is planning for her first season, but explains why she will not be commissioning an original creation. “It’s a new company and a new house. So the first company premiere will be just a month after I arrive. I couldn’t possibly commission a creation so soon. Eventually we will. I believe very much that we must continue to create, but quality for me is incredibly important.

“I think any great opera house has a responsibility to respect the tradition and the roots, the identity of the company and the city, with its own history,” she continues. “I could not run the company without taking into consideration that it is Vienna. But you have to keep in mind that you are in 2025 and there has to be a balance: the roots and the new blooms! And the roots have to be healthy to develop into beautiful flowers.”

I wonder if she is concerned that she won’t be spending enough time in the studio. “No”, she says. “I have made sure that I’ll have a good team around me so that I can spend as much time as possible in the studio. Dancers need to be inspired, and as a director, I want to give that to them.”

Ferri maintains a self-deprecating sense of humour. “There is one really bad side to all this and that's my German – oh my God!” She throws her head back in horror. “In the theatre it’s not an issue, but I like to sit in coffee shops and be able to converse. I also believe that to really understand a culture, you need to speak the language. I want to learn it. After Woolf Works, that’s what I’ll do. I think languages have a certain musicality about them so even if I don’t understand everything, I will understand something!”

I ask her what she will miss when she stops dancing. She thinks for a moment and then grimaces, “Not the pain!” We’re laughing again and she says, “There is something very particular about dance and it’s quite hard to describe. It’s a sort of freedom. It’s a paradox because when I’m dancing, I almost feel like I’m free from my own body. It’s the transcending of oneself, of what we are, the flesh. It’s really beautiful. You’re not trapped inside the body.”

I’m interested to know if Ferri will find anything as rewarding as dancing. She responds, “When I’m coaching and I see that a dancer is improving and making progress, I find that very fulfilling.”

When I ask her what she is most looking forward to in this new chapter, she smiles. “Not doing class! No, I’m kidding! What I’m really looking forward to is learning, evolving. I love that my passion for dance evolves with my age. It’s not a matter of abandoning dance but being with it, in a different form. It’s super exciting to be learning a new skill.”

I ask her if she always thought she would direct and she responds with the usual candour. “Yes, maybe not always, but certainly in the last few years. When I feel something is right, it takes me a minute to say yes! I feel really joyful about Vienna. I hope to inspire the dancers and I'm really inspired by them. It’s my wish to share that beautiful human experience. I don’t ever want to forget what a privilege it is to work in such a blessed environment: the theatre, dance and music.”

Alessandra Ferri is Guest Repetiteur of The Royal Ballet