English National Ballet ended its Christmas season at the Coliseum in spectacular fashion on Saturday night with every ‘swan’ in the Company receiving a single red rose. The gifts were presented on stage at the London Coliseum, while the sell out audience offered tumultuous applause throughout.
Saturday’s evening performance of Swan Lake brought to a close English National Ballet’s critically acclaimed Autumn/Winter season. Michael Corder’s The Snow Queen and Derek Deane’s Swan Lake were performed at the London Coliseum and on tour in Liverpool, Bristol, Southampton and Oxford. Christopher Hampson’s The Nutcracker was performed at the Coliseum.
English National Ballet is delighted to announce that this 2007/08 season is the Company’s most successful yet. During the London season over 88,900 tickets were sold and £2.88 million was taken at box office. The Autumn Tour sales add to these record breaking figures, with over 63,000 people seeing performances in Liverpool, Southampton, Bristol and Oxford with £1.3 million taken at box office. This is a 30% increase on box office sales from 2006/07.
The success of the 2007/08 Autumn Tour and Christmas season is largely due to the enormous popularly of Michael Corder’s new ballet The Snow Queen illustrating the nation’s thirst for new work. English National Ballet is delighted to announce that it will continue creating new work and commissioning ballets not seen before in the UK thanks to the new initiative The Fund for New Work founded in memory of the Company’s former Patron Diana, Princess of Wales, supported by proceeds from Concert for Diana.
On 1 July 2007 English National Ballet took part in Concert for Diana, a celebration of the life of Diana, Princess of Wales at Wembley Stadium, made possible by Princes William and Harry. All net proceeds from the Concert will go to the five charities supported by the late Princess at the time of her death, and to chosen charities of which her sons are Patrons. All money received by English National Ballet will be directed to The Fund for New Work. The first new production to benefit will be a sumptuous re-working of the family favourite, The Nutcracker, due to have its UK premiere in December 2009.Craig Hassall, Managing Director of English National Ballet says;
“To continue the Legacy of Diana’s work with English National Ballet is very important. During her time as Patron she did so many wonderful things for the Company, to be able this work by continuing to produce new and exciting productions in her memory is very special.”
The Company continues to break new ground in 2008, with a tour of Swan Lake in Beijing in early February, a new work from Wayne Eagling for the Royal Festival Hall in July, and brand new dance extravaganza Strictly Gershwin presented by Raymond Gubbay and the Royal Albert Hall in June.
If you would like to help support the future artistic vitality of English National Ballet by making a donation to the Fund for New Work please call Development on 020 7581 1245 or email
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, or visit www.ballet.org.uk.
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