North Ballet's New Version of ROMEO AND JULIET to Play the Marlowe This Autumn

Northern Ballet bring a new version of the romantic classic Romeo And Juliet to The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury, next month.

Set to Prokofiev's score, played live by Northern Ballet Sinfonia, this modern interpretation of a classical ballet is from Jean-Christophe Maillot's Les Ballets de Monte Carlo. It captures the raw sensuality and the essence of the story as Romeo and Juliet embark on their impulsive love affair. As the lovers are caught in the throes of ecstatic joy and crushing heartbreak, this production will see Northern Ballet's dancers at their dramatic best, bringing the intensity and extreme emotions of this classic tale to the stage.

Romeo And Juliet is Northern Ballet's first collaboration with Maillot, an acclaimed choreographer who recently created a new version of The Taming Of The Shrew for the Bolshoï Ballet. The UK première of Romeo And Juliet took place at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre in February 2015 - the first time this version had been performed in the UK.

Maillot said: "In this adaptation of Romeo And Juliet, my primary objective is to sincerely portray the powerful emotions to the audience so that they share in the passionate love of the young couple and take a journey with them."

Northern Ballet's Artistic Director David Nixon said: 'Jean-Christophe's Romeo And Juliet is an inspired contemporary response to the classic play and our talented dancers are ideally suited to interpret his wonderful language. This is a new production for our audiences to experience and reflect upon and I am delighted that we were the first British company to present this piece of work.'

Northern Ballet's Romeo And Juliet is at The Marlowe Theatre at 7.30pm from Tuesday 20 to Saturday 24 September, with 2.30pm matinees on the Thursday and Saturday. Tickets, priced from £18 to £40 (concessions available; booking fee applies), are from the Box Office on 01227 787787, or marlowetheatre.com.

For blind and partially-sighted customers, there will be an audio-described performance at 2.30pm on Saturday 24 September.

Voted Best Company at the 2014 Taglioni European Ballet Awards and Winner of The South Bank Sky Arts Dance award 2016, Northern Ballet are one of the UK's five large ballet companies. Based in Leeds, the Company perform throughout the UK as well as overseas. Northern Ballet's productions mix classical dance and theatre, embracing popular culture and taking inspiration from literature and opera, or giving a unique interpretation of popular classical ballets.

Northern Ballet are the busiest touring ballet company in the UK, typically on the road for about 32 weeks of the year. The company of 45 dancers tours a combination of full-length new work and established repertoire to cities throughout the UK, and is the only large scale ballet company to do so. In 2015, Northern Ballet introduced a new strand of touring, widening the company's already extensive reach. The new mid-scale tour has seen the company perform in nine additional venues.

Northern Ballet tour widely tour with their ballets for children, which have been adapted for TV by CBeebies, and also perform mixed programmes showcasing the versatility of their dancers.

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