Summer ballet in Denmark

[Estreiiita]

  I may critisize Nicolaj Hubbe a lot, but I'm willing to forgive him for bringing summer performances of the dancers from RDB to the most remote corners of Denmark. This year the performances will last for two weeks and are free of charge for the spectators.

  Last Monday, the 5th of June, I happened to be present at the performance of the Royal Summer Ballet in Kolding. Here are the excerpts we could see - please take in account that it's a temporary scene, there's some wind and a lot of things that can distract the artists. I myself am very glad for this opportunity that allows us to see if not the best technical abilities of the dancers, their willingness and joy of performing the beautiful dance pieces for the public that maybe has this only chance a year to watch them.

1) The Swan lake - italian dance: Silvia Selvini, Vitor de Menezes (former dancer at ENB) and Samuel Zaldivar (former graduate from RBS in London)

2) The flower party in Genzano (1858) - pas de quatre: Mayo Arii (former dancer with Hamburg ballet and Houston ballet), Tara Schaufuss (daughter of Peter Schaufuss, former dancer of Queensland ballet, who also got an education as choreographer and next season the Royal Danish ballet will perform her work together with the creations of Tobias Praetorius and Matteo di Loreto in a programme "Koreorama", Guilherme de Menezes ( former dancer at ENB, like his twin brother Vitor), Meirambek Nazargozhayev

3) The Swan lake -the black pas de deux: Astrid Elbo (not only the soloist of RDB but also a talented actress taking part in numerous projects) and Ryan Tomash (former graduate of the ballet school of National Ballet of Canada)

 

4)The excerpts from "Gotta dance", recent creation of Gregory Dean, RDB's premier:

Mayo Arii, Emma Riis-Kofoed, Eukene Saques, Tara Schaufuss, Silvia Selvini, Jonathan Chmelensky, Guilherme and Vitor de Menezes, Meirambek Nazargozhayev, Mathieu Rouaux and Ryan Tomash

 

 

5) The dying swan: Stephanie Chen Gundorpf

 

6) The little nightingale (choreography of Eliabe D'Abadia, dancer from RDB's corps de ballet): Eukene Saques (she was presenting her own work for not so long time ago at Linbury theatre, I believe, as part of young choreographers' programme) and Samuel Zaldivar

7) Napoli - pas de six and tarantel: Mayo Arii, Astrid Elbo, Stephanie Chen Gundorph, Emma Riis-Kofoed, Eukene Saques, Tara Schaufuss, Silvia Selvini, Jonathan Chmelensky, Guilherme and Vitor de Menezes, Meirambek Nazargozhayev, Mathieu Rouaux, Ryan Tomash and Samuel Zaldivar

 

 

Edited June 7, 2023 by Estreiiita
Error with the video clip

[Emeralds]

Gorgeous, thank you for the videos and your report (with “cast lists”), @Estreiiita!! I’ve always wanted to see what it looked like at one of these. It looks like a fun, informal picnic of ballet! The Napoli pas de six and Tarantella can put a smile on anyone’s face. Even with recorded music, it’s so delightful to see it danced outdoors in the sunshine  against nature’s “scenery” of blue skies and swaying trees. The dancing is gorgeous. Not enough hearts to say how much I enjoyed it- thank yo! 😍💐💛💙❤️🧡💜💚💗💝👏

Edited June 7, 2023 by Emeralds

[Ondine]

On 07/06/2023 at 11:21, Estreiiita said:

their willingness and joy of performing the beautiful dance pieces for the public that maybe has this only chance a year to watch them.

 

 

This was such a treat,  thank you for posting all this, what a great idea to get the dancers 'out and about' and allow people there and also here in the UK to see these open air performances.  Well done too to the dancers who hadn't the most ideal of conditions in which to perform, but an appreciative audience no doubt makes up for a great deal.

 

(I had to laugh at the 'disembodied heads' walking past behind the dancers!)

[Jan McNulty]

Is there anything more joyous than the Tarantella from Act 3 of Napoli!!

[Estreiiita]

I am very much looking forward to watching this programme again tomorrow in Billund, this time with my grandchildren. By the way, there is a morning flight from Stansted to Billund and evening flight from Billund to Stansted, the weather should be nice, so you are welcome to come and see the performance!

[Ondine]

24 minutes ago, Estreiiita said:

so you are welcome to come and see the performance!

 

If only I could!

 

 

Instead I'll rewatch all this again, it's such joyful dancing.

 

Anything with a tambourine is fun.  I should dig mine out and rattle it along with the dancers! 

 

 

[Estreiiita]

More videos from the Saturday concert of Summer ballet for those who love Bournonville, this time in Billund:

1) Excerpt from Pas de six :

 

 

2) Tarantelle:

 

[Ondine]

Oh such a summery treat thank you! 🙂

[Emeralds]

Thank you @Estreiiita! 💐💐💐🌹🌷🌸😍👏👏

 

Great filming! I must say the Napoli pas de six and Tarantella (in the traditional costumes of course) look wonderful in the sunshine in front of the trees. So pretty! 

 

Watching it makes want to live in Denmark! 😁 

[Estreiiita]

Sorry,  I've forgotten the start of pas de six from Billund (girl in green - Emma Riis-Kofoed, in blue - Tara Schaufuss, in red - Stephanie Chen Gundorf, in yellow - Mayo Arii; the guys are Mathieu Rouaux and Ryan Tomash:

Oh, and at least have in mind that Denmark is much worth of visiting; besides the performances of the Royal theater you have a chance to see Alban Lendorf also in a "christmas" performance "Dance ballerina dance" and in several musicals ("Dirty dancing" amongst them).

 It's a good transport connection from Copenhagen both to Stockholm and Hamburg. In July-August we'll have performances of "Verdensballetten" all over Denmark, in the most picturesque sites - I hope to be at one of them!

Edited June 13, 2023 by Estreiiita
Additional information

[Estreiiita]

Yesterday I was lucky to watch again the open air concert given by the dancers of the Royal Danish ballet. Lucky not only because it's a possibility to see the best artists dancing together but also because the weather permitted them to do that (it's always a matter of luck and unfortunately last week brought a lot of rain but yesterday the weather was fine).

  The main purpose of these concerts is to make ballet more popular all around Denmark and sometimes the performances take place in the most remote corners of the country, but yesterday it was Vejle, a picturesque town at the shore of Vejle Fjord.

  I managed to film the performance, so here's what we saw (I just want to remind that often it's a light version of the ballet pieces as it's difficult to perform in "field" conditions.

1) The Sleeping beauty, Rose Adagio (prima ballerina Emma Riis-Kofoed, premier Ryan Tomash, soloist Sebastian Pico Haynes, soloist Guilherme de Menezes, Mathieu Rouaux:

 

2) Bluebird pdd from "The Sleeping beauty" (soloist Tara Schaufuss and Meirambek Nazargozhayev):

 

3) White Cat and Puss-in-Boots (probably soloist Camilla Ruelykke Holst and Vitor de Menezes  - can't be quite sure as they wore the masks and in the programme there was indicated another artist but she was absent):

4) Etudes - pdd (prima ballerina Holly Sørger and Philip Duclos):

5) Summer Dance - new creation of Nikolaj Hubbe to Sergej Prokofjev's music (two prima ballerinas : Astrid Elbo (in red) and Stephanie Chen Gundorph (in black)):

6) Carnival in Venice, pdd (prima ballerina Holly Sørger and premier Jonathan Chmelensky:

7) Excerpts from the new ballet of the coming season, "Blood wedding", choreographed by the talented soloist Eukene Saques, based on the poems and music of Federico Garcia Lorca and Manuel de Falla (Guilherme de Menezes, then Tara Schaufuss and Vitor de Menezes and after that Emma Riis-Kofoed and Sebastian Pico Haynes):

 

😎 

😎 Raymonda, pas de dix (Lania Atkins, Astrid Elbo, Stephanie Chen Gundorph, Eukene Saques, Camilla Ruelykke Holst (?), Jonathan Chmelensky, Philip Duclos Meirambek Nazargozhayev, Mathieu Rouaux and Ryan Tomash):

 

[Scheherezade]

This looks so lovely, Estreiita. 

[DrewCo]

I just found this thread today--have watched four of the videos so far and am taking a break to say to  @Estreiiita Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

 

And yes, it's great that the company does this type of touring over the summer.