2024/2025 Season Announcement

Featuring two world premieres, a Company premiere and the return of audience favourites, English National Ballet’s 75^th Season celebrates tradition whilst forging innovation – an ethos that has shaped our Company’s rich history and will continue to inspire our future.

Watch the trailer for our 2024/2025 Season

English National Ballet’s 75th Season will include:

• The World Premiere of a new production of Nutcracker choreographed by Artistic Director, Aaron S. Watkin, and Olivier Award winner Arielle Smith
• The Forsythe Programme at Sadler’s Wells, featuring the World Premiere of a new work created for English National Ballet by William Forsythe
• Akram Khan’s Giselle returns to London for the first time since 2019
• Mary Skeaping’s Giselle can be seen in the same season, following five star reviews in 2024
• English National Ballet marks its 75^th Season with a free, 10-day digital celebration

An extensive programme of Engagement work is also offered alongside performances.

In this, English National Ballet’s 75th Season, we will be celebrating the myriad ways that ballet can excite, entertain, and inspire. Be it the renewal of a beloved classic with our new Nutcracker, cherished revivals, or a return to the ground-breaking works of Akram Khan and William Forsythe – this is a season that showcases the many wonderful things that ballet can offer.

I am thrilled that English National Ballet continues to attract world-class creative talent. I can’t wait to have Arielle Smith and William Forsythe back in our studios to create work and I know our dancers will be inspired by their presence.

Finally, its hugely important to me that we welcome as many people as possible to celebrate our 75th Season with us. I am therefore delighted that we will be presenting a free digital celebration that will enable us to connect with ballet fans and new audiences alike, all around the world.

Aaron S. Watkin, Artistic Director of English National Ballet

Performances for 2024/2025

Akram Khan’s Giselle

Having been seen by over 156,000 people in 10 countries and 16 cities around the world, Akram Khan’s Giselle opens English National Ballet’s 2024/2025 season with a return to London (Sadler’s Wells) for the first time since 2019.

In this acclaimed reimagining of the iconic ballet, Khan tells a story of love, betrayal, and redemption. The production features an imposing set designed by Academy Award-winner Tim Yip and a powerful score by Vincenzo Lamagna.

Tickets will go on sale in spring.

Mary Skeaping’s Giselle

Offering audiences the opportunity to see two versions of one of the great Romantic ballets in the same season, Mary Skeaping’s Giselle will also be performed, touring to the Liverpool Empire and Manchester’s Palace Theatre in the autumn, before returning to the London Coliseum in January 2025. With its beautiful classical language and thoughtful staging, this Giselle features some of ballet’s most dramatic scenes and otherworldly images.

Tickets go on general sale on Wednesday 21 February. Priority booking opens on Friday 16 February to Friends of English National Ballet.

UK Tour Week Production Sponsor: Cunard

Nutcracker 

Christmas 2024 will see the World Premiere of a new production of the classic festive ballet, Nutcracker, choreographed by English National Ballet’s Artistic Director Aaron S. Watkin and Olivier Award-winner Arielle Smith.

The production will take audiences on a fantastical adventure as they join Clara on her journey of discovery, from Edwardian London to the Land of Sweets & Delights.

Nutcracker is brought to life by exquisite dancing, spectacular new costumes and sets by Dick Bird, lighting by Paul Pyant, and Tchaikovsky’s instantly recognisable score played live by English National Ballet Philharmonic.

Nutcracker holds a special place in English National Ballet’s history and in the hearts of our audiences. The Company has performed a version of it every year since it was founded in 1950, and it is an honour to be working with Arielle and Dick, to bring new magic and wonder to this much-loved ballet.

Aaron S. Watkin, Artistic Director and Co-Choreographer

Continuing the Company’s commitment to UK touring and sharing world-class ballet with the widest possible audience, Nutcracker will receive its world premiere at Southampton’s Mayflower Theatre before performances at the London Coliseum.

For the first time, English National Ballet will present a relaxed performance of Nutcracker, at the London Coliseum on 9 January 2025.

Tickets go on general sale on Wednesday 21 February. Priority booking opens on Friday 16 February to Friends of English National Ballet.

The creation of this new production has been made possible by Charles Holloway, Lead Supporter of Nutcracker.

The Forsythe Programme

In spring 2025, English National Ballet returns to Sadler’s Wells, London, with The Forsythe Programme, a triple bill showcasing highlights of master choreographer, William Forsythe’s, broad catalogue of work.

Combining ballet classicism and athleticism with the music of Barry White, Natalie Cole and Khalid to name just a few, audience favourite Playlist (EP) makes a welcome return for 2025. New Suite, an arrangement of eight early Forsythe pas de deux set to scores by Händel, Berio and Bach, will be presented by English National Ballet for the first time.

Completing the programme is the World Premiere of a new work created for the Company in which Forsythe takes inspiration from the 2^nd movement of Prokofiev’s piano concerto number 3 in C major Opus 26; “Tema con Variazioni”.

Tickets will go on sale in the autumn.

Principal Benefactor: The Wigoder Family Foundation
Production Sponsor: Cunard

My First Ballet: Swan Lake

For younger audiences, English National Ballet and English National Ballet School revive My First Ballet: Swan Lake at Sadler’s Wells’ West End venue, the Peacock Theatre, in April 2025.

The perfect introduction to the artform, this is a specially adapted version of the world’s most iconic ballet. Featuring choreography by Antonio Castilla, English National Ballet’s Repetiteur, and with a narrator to guide the audience, the production is accessible to children aged three upwards.

The run will also include a relaxed performance as part of the My First Inclusive Ballet outreach programme as well as a series of on-stage family workshops.

Tickets will go on sale in the autumn.

Choreo Labs

In summer 2025, English National Ballet continues its investment in Emerging Talent programmes with the launch of Choreo Labs – a supportive and inspiring environment for Company dancers to develop their skills and explore new choreographic ideas. Open to dancers across the Company, the series will culminate with an in-house sharing session.

Choreo Labs is part of English National Ballet’s future commitment to create a wider Emerging Talent performance programme, which will bring together its existing Emerging Dancer event and Choreo Labs.

ENB@75 Digital Celebration

To mark English National Ballet’s 75th Season, a free, 10-day digital celebration will be presented in June 2025. Showcasing English National Ballet’s past, present and future, ENB@75 will feature performance excerpts filmed especially in the Company’s Holloway Production Studio as well as interviews, archive footage and exclusive behind-the-scenes insight.

Recognising the important role digital content plays in engaging and inspiring new audiences, English National Ballet offers this as a free to view event. This will be an inclusive opportunity for online audiences around the world to celebrate with the Company at this significant moment in our history.

English National Ballet in the Community

With its extensive Engagement programme for 2024-2025, English National Ballet continues to be a leader in creative health and learning and participation practice.

The Shared Ground Space Scheme and co-curated Ideas Incubator Labs provide valuable platforms for artist development and support.

Alongside this, English National Ballet’s Dance for Parkinson’s, an evidence-based programme delivered nationally via six hub partners, and Dance for Dementia, offer creative health interventions that contribute to better health and well-being through artistry, creativity and community.

Insights into the creative industries continue to be offered through our schools programme, Ballet Explored, and there will be celebrations of co-created dance from our youth companies and community performance groups through Re-Play, an annual sharing platform at English National Ballet’s studios.

Following its launch in February 2024, the Company’s Ballet Club for children, young people and families resident in Newham, East London, also returns for the 2024/2025 season.

Ballet Futures

Ballet Futures, English National Ballet’s talent pipeline project to incentivise children from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds (African Diaspora, Caribbean, South Asian and South East Asian heritage) to participate in professional training, continues throughout 2024 – 2025. Now with over 30 students across five schools nationally, this year will see the inclusion of further performance opportunities for the programme’s participants.

Music

2024/2025 marks Music Director Maria Seletskaja’s first season in post. Alongside Principal Guest Conductor, Gavin Sutherland, Seletskaja will conduct English National Ballet Philharmonic for performances of Akram Khan’s Giselle, Mary Skeaping’s Giselle and Nutcracker. Also conducting performances of Nutcracker are Daniel Parkinson and Kingsley Lin.

Artistic Guests

Associate Guest Repetiteur Cynthia Harvey, Guest Repetiteurs Alessandra Ferri and Alejandro Parente, and Guest Teacher Lynne Charles, continue to work as part of the Artistic Team for the 2024/25 Season, enhancing the studio experience for English National Ballet dancers with their extensive knowledge and experience.

Acknowledgements

English National Ballet is a National Portfolio Organisation supported by Arts Council England.

Ballymore is Principal Building Partner of English National Ballet.

English National Ballet is an Associate Company of Sadler’s Wells.

The New Work Fund is kindly supported by Ceri & Doug King, Fatima & Mark Grizelle and other supporters who wish to remain anonymous.

English National Ballet’s Dance Health programme is supported by Tower Hamlet’s Mayor’s Community Fund, Derrill Allatt Foundation, D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust, The Vandervell Foundation, Linbury Trust, City Bridge Trust, G&K Boyes Charitable Trust and Backstage Trust.

Ballet Futures is supported by Leverhulme Trust, Old Possum’s Practical Trust, Eggardon Trust, and Alexis and Frances Prenn.