It seems like everywhere you look—from Broadway shows to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular—dance performances are getting more and more high-tech. A top-notch production isn’t complete without a giant LED screen or an elaborate video system, creating effects directors could only dream about five years ago. That’s definitely true of Christopher Wheeldon’s fanciful ballet Alice’s […]
My old ballet studio has a cute tradition: A few of the school’s youngest students are asked to present flowers to the principal dancers at the end of each performance. And being chosen as a flower girl is just this impossible honor. I’m talking squealing, jumping-up-and-down excitement—8-year-old me still hasn’t gotten over it. Why? Well, […]
Oh, the power of stories. Much as I love abstract dance, few things move me the way a good story ballet does. And it seems like I’m in the majority: Story ballets are the bread-and-butter of nearly every ballet company’s repertory. If you want to see a packed house for a ballet performance, go see […]
Wheeldon works with Royal Ballet dancers on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Thanks to his innovative pas de deux, skillful use of space and lush musicality, Christopher Wheeldon has become one of the ballet world’s most in-demand choreographers. Born in Somerset, England, Wheeldon trained at The Royal Ballet School before joining The Royal Ballet in 1991. […]