Scottish Ballet Announces Winter Programme Including Company's First Feature Film

With theatres remaining closed due to COVID-19, Scottish Ballet is committed to connecting with audiences and tour venues throughout the coming months. With the screen as its stage, the company continues to produce artistic work and community programmes, including the world premiere of the company's first full-length, feature film, The Secret Theatre.

Created by CEO/Artistic Director Christopher Hampson and long-term collaborator Lez Brotherston, alongside Co-Screen Directors Jess & Morgs, the film will bring the magic of theatre into people's homes this Christmas, with an online premiere on Monday 21 December at 6pm.

Seen through the eyes of a young boy as he stumbles into an empty theatre, this Christmas special will feature characters, choreography and music from Scottish Ballet's popular festive repertoire, as the worlds of the Snow Queen and the Sugar Plum Fairy collide.

Set against a score of Rimsky-Korsakov and Tchaikovsky, with music recorded live by the Scottish Ballet Orchestra, this new film will be an unforgettable adventure for all the family. It shares the company's love for our closed theatres, and the commitment that the show must go on. The film will be accompanied by a series of talks and workshops tailored to the communities Scottish Ballet tours to, delivered in partnership with venues.

This will follow the world premiere of short film The Swan, drawing on Scottish Ballet's sleek and stylish stage production of Swan Lake, and captured through the lens of Director and Editor, Eve McConnachie. Featuring David Dawson's visceral choreography from the first six minutes of Act IV, the film centres the strong, graceful Odette in a lake of light, surrounded by the arching backs, spiralling arms and mesmerising formations of the all-female cast. It will premiere online on Thursday 19 November at 7pm and is sponsored by Aberdeen Standard Investments.

Taking inspiration from the artistic programme, creativity weaves through Scottish Ballet's classes, resources, talks and workshops to keep people moving and motivated this winter.

The SB Health team will launch a new 6-week block of online classes of Elevate© and Time to Dance via Zoom from Monday 9 November, for people living with MS and dementia. These are in addition to the popular Dance for Parkinson's Scotland classes, run in partnership with Dance Base. SB Health is sponsored by Baillie Gifford.

Working with the Scottish Government and NHS Scotland, the Health at Hand series of breath and movement resources were produced for NHS staff and keyworkers, to help alleviate some of the physical and mental impacts of working over long periods. These are now available for everyone to benefit from online.

A brand new programme of adult and children's classes will also bring ballet directly into people's homes; allowing participants to practice and perfect their technique via Zoom. With courses ranging from Absolute Beginners to Advanced, classes will go on sale to Scottish Ballet members on Friday 23 October at 10am.

And, from today, anyone can sign up to become a Scottish Ballet member for free through the new membership programme. Audiences and class participants are invited to become part of the SB community, to make the most of all these digital offerings and to stay up to date with Scotland's national dance company.

CEO/Artistic Director of Scottish Ballet, Christopher Hampson, said:
'At Scottish Ballet, dance is our primary connector to each other and our communities, and we are committed to creating and developing work that continues to engage and inspire our audiences.

Whilst theatres remain closed, we have continued to pivot our creative energies towards digital output, allowing us to connect locally and engage globally. Our expertise and innovation within the digital field means we are excited to present new work that pushes the boundaries of production during these challenging times.

Dance is a medium that brings people together and now, more than ever, we need to connect with each other. By bringing new artistic and engagement work into people's homes this winter, we celebrate the benefits and importance of creativity in all its forms.'

Catherine Cassidy, Director of Engagement at Scottish Ballet, said: "Connecting with communities is at the heart of all that we do, and we are committed to creating programmes that engage with people from all walks of life.

We feel it is vital to help support and improve people's physical and mental wellbeing and so we are delighted to be offering a range of classes, resources, talks and workshops for people to access digitally this winter."

Bookings and more information can be found at https://www.scottishballet.co.uk/

To post a comment, you must register and login.