Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes – learning projects celebrating the legacy
To recognise and celebrate the incredible legacy of Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, English National Ballet’s Department of Learning is collaborating with new partners to inspire students across art forms to develop original work. Following the revival of the famous Ballets Russes repertoire for English National Ballet’s Sadler’s Wells season in June 2009, two major learning projects entitled Ballets Russes - Encounters and Ballets Russes - Design Perspectives explore the innovation of Ballets Russes in dance, music and design.

Ballets Russes – Encounters finished with an inspiring and diverse evening of performance at the Peacock Theatre on 29th March 2010. The evening included performances by Gable Hall School, Copthall School, Barking Abbey School, Tiffin Dance Company and Company of Elders alongside professional pieces by English National Ballet (David Dawson’s Faun(e)), Russell Maliphant and Wayne McGregor|Random Dance. See the full programme here. For more information about Ballets Russes – Encounters see the ‘Project Archive’ pages.

Ballets Russes - Design Perspectives is delivered in partnership with London College of Fashion and the Victoria and Albert Museum. It is exploring the influence of Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes on a significant period of design. This exciting partnership is giving over 250 London College of Fashion students the opportunity to realise the fantastical embodiment of fashion and theatre, style and fantasy, couture and limitless design. The project spans seven BA (Hons) courses on offer at London College of Fashion including Fashion Design Technology, Active Sportswear and Fashion Illustration. Participating students have taken inspiration from English National Ballet resources by seeing a performance from the Sadler’s Wells Ballets Russes season in June 2009, visiting the storage facility in Marden to see set and costumes and observing a rehearsal at English National Ballet’s studios. Students are currently designing their collections and a limited number will be chosen, by a panel of experts from the fashion and ballet industries, to be showcased in a special event at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The finale event will be in the autumn 2010, complementing and enhancing the Victoria and Albert Museum’s exhibition, ‘Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballets Russes’. Live performance, installation and a specially choreographed catwalk show will be performed by English National Ballet dancers.