The National Ballet of Canada presents Frontiers at Sadler’s Wells

The National Ballet of Canada presents Frontiers:

Choreographers of Canada
Pite / Kudelka / Portner
Sadler’s Wells Theatre, EC1R 4TN
Wednesday 2 – Sunday 6 October 2024
Tickets: £15 – £85
Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com

The National Ballet of Canada presents the UK premiere of Frontiers: Choreographers of Canada at Sadler’s Wells on

Wednesday 2 – Sunday 6 October 2024.

This triple bill includes works by three leading choreographers hailing from Canada: Crystal Pite’s Angels’ Atlas, Emma Portner’s islands and James Kudelka’s Passion. 

Founded by Celia Franca in 1951 the company is renowned for its diverse repertoire ranging from traditional ballets to contemporary work. The company encourages the creationof new ballets as well as the development of Canadian choreographers. The company is returning to Sadler’s Wells for the first time since 2013 when they presented Alexei Ratmansky’s Romeo and Juliet.

Hope Muir, Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada said, “Sadler’s Wells was my home theatre for several years, and it is exciting to be returning with The National Ballet of Canada in the capacity of Artistic Director. I have a unique relationship to the theatre as Rambert was the first company to perform there after the rebuild in 1998 and I feel that I developed as an artist and performer on that stage. It will always feel like a creative home to me, and I am thrilled to be coming back with our extraordinary company.”

Sir Alistair Spalding CBE, Sadler’s Wells Artistic Director and Co-Chief Executive, said, “It is an honour to welcome The National Ballet of Canada back to the Sadler’s Wells stage with three outstanding Canadian choreographers, demonstrating the fantastic choreography and dance this company produces.”  

Acclaimed choreographer and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Crystal Pite presents her much anticipated work Angels’ Atlas, created especially for the company, which originally premiered in Toronto in 2020. The Dora Award-winning ballet unfolds against a morphing wall of light that carries the illusion of depth and a sense of the natural world. The dancing body becomes a sign of humanity’s limitations within a vast, unknowable world. The ballet is set to original music by Owen Belton and choral pieces by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Morten Lauridsen. 
In a choreographic career spanning three decades, Pite has created more than 50 works for dance companies in Canada and around the world. Pite made her Royal Ballet choreographic debut in the 2016/17 Season with the Olivier Award-winning Flight Pattern. In 2022, Pite’s Light of Passage was the Royal Ballet’s first full-length work by a female choreographer in almost 30 years. 

In 2002, Pite formed her company Kidd Pivot in Vancouver which tours nationally and internationally. The company recently toured Assembly Hall, a co-creation with playwright Jonathon Young including a run at Sadler’s Wells. Pite has been an associate choreographer with Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT) since 2008 and has recently worked with Simon McBurney, Artistic Director of Complicité, on Figures in Exctinction [1.0] which premiered at Sadler’s Wells in 2023 as part of a new four-year collaboration.

Emma Portner’s islands is a sculptural duet for two women in which the dancers are joined, fusing their bodies together as one. The work is set to an eclectic compilation of music by contemporary artists and original music by Forest Swords, bringing together hip-hop, dub, guitar loops and electronic sampling for a rhythmic, avant-garde sound.   

Portner created islands for the Norwegian National Ballet in 2020, this was her debut as a ballet choreographer, and in the following commissions she has continued to challenge the conventions of the artform. Portner is on track to create five ballets by her 30th birthday in November of this year. She has made dances for Justin Bieber, collaborated with Michelle Dorrance, and worked on the West End musical Bat Out of Hell.

James Kudelka’s abstract ballet Passion which he created for Houston Ballet in 2013 is a love story set to the first movement of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Concerto for Piano in D, Op. 61a. Two couples each stylistically unique – one classical, the other contemporary – weave within the corps-de-ballet, evoking complex relationships of passion.  

Kudelka has choreographed for many of the world’s leading ballet companies and was Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada from 1996 to 2005. During his tenure, Kudelka became renowned for his distinctive versions of classical ballets including The Nutcracker and Cinderella which continue to be signature works of the company.

Crystal Pite is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist

The National Ballet of Canada Frontiers: Choreographers of Canada Pite/ Kudelka/ Portner is part of Sadler’s Wells year-round Ballet with attitude programme.

About The National Ballet of Canada 

One of the top international ballet companies, The National Ballet of Canada was founded in 1951 by Celia Franca. Today, the company is among the world’s finest, with 70 dancers and its own orchestra. The National Ballet has a history of pre-eminent Artistic Directors and in January 2022, welcomed Hope Muir to the role. Renowned for its diverse repertoire, the company performs traditional full-length classics, embraces contemporary work and encourages the creation of new ballets as well as the development of Canadian choreographers. The company’s repertoire includes works by Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, Aszure Barton, Marie Chouinard, John Cranko, William Forsythe, Alonzo King, James Kudelka, Wayne McGregor, Kenneth McMillan, John Neumeier, Rudolf Nureyev, Crystal Pite, Emma Portner, Alexei Ratmansky, Christopher Wheeldon, William Yong and the company’s Choreographic Associates Robert Binet and Guillaume Côté, among other creators. The National Ballet tours in Canada, the USA and internationally with appearances in Paris, London, Moscow and St. Petersburg, Hamburg, New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and San Francisco.


About Hope Muir
An acclaimed dancer, teacher and director, Hope Muir’s over 30-year career spans both the classical and contemporary worlds and two continents. Born in Toronto, her family relocated to the United Kingdom when she was 15. She studied ballet in London, England at Peter Schaufuss’ newly formed London Festival Ballet School (now English National Ballet School). Upon graduation, she danced with English National Ballet, performing choreography by Sir Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, August Bournonville and John Cranko among others. In 1994, she joined the renowned Rambert Dance Company (RDC), under the direction of Christopher Bruce CBE. She performed with RDC for 10 years, dancing repertoire of Christopher Bruce, Jiří Kylián, Mats Ek, Ohad Naharin, Twyla Tharp, Javier De Frutos and Merce Cunningham. In 2004, she crossed the Atlantic again to dance with the famed Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, adding William Forsythe, Nacho Duato and Lar Lubovitch to her repertoire.

After a 20-year career as a dancer, Hope retired from the stage and became a sought-after guest teacher and rehearsal director. She joined Scottish Ballet in 2009, becoming Assistant Artistic Director in 2015. In 2017, she was appointed Artistic Director of Charlotte Ballet in North Carolina. On January 1, 2022, Hope was named Joan and Jerry Lozinski Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada.

About Crystal Pite 

In a choreographic career spanning three decades, Crystal Pite has created over 50 works for companies including The Royal Ballet, Paris Opéra Ballet, Nederlands Dans Theater I, Cullberg Ballet, Ballett Frankfurt, The National Ballet of Canada, Ballets Jazz Montréal (resident choreographer 2001 – 2004) and Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet. Crystal is a Member of the Order of Canada and recipient of numerous awards including the Benois de la Danse, Canada Council Jacqueline Lemieux Prize, Grand Prix de la danse de Montréal, two UK Critics’ Circle Dance Awards, four Laurence Olivier Awards and the 2022 Governor General’s Performing Arts Award. She began her dance career as a company member of Ballet British Columbia (Ballet BC), then William Forsythe’s Ballett Frankfurt and is currently Associate Choreographer of Nederlands Dans Theater I, Associate Dance Artist of Canada’s National Arts Centre and Associate Artist at Sadler’s Wells in London. She holds an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from Simon Fraser University and is a Member of the Order of Canada. In 2002, she formed Kidd Pivot in Vancouver.

About Emma Portner 

A prominent voice in the movement industry, Emma Portner has become widely known for her inimitable quality and complex devotion to the craft of dance. The actor, dancer and director-choreographer has been recognized for her unique and “almost-paranormal” ability.

In 2012, Emma moved to New York City to study at The Ailey School and soon thereafter became the youngest woman in history to choreograph the musical Bat Out of Hell on London’s West End. Before she was 20 years old, she had garnered millions of international views through dance on film and worked with some of the music industry’s biggest names.

Her most recent work includes collaborations with Apple, Netflix, Vogue, Norwegian National Ballet, Sony Studios and indie music stars Maggie Rogers, Blood Orange and Sylvan Esso. Emma’s work has been featured by Guggenheim Museum, Jacob’s Pillow, New York City Center and Théâtre Champs-Élysées. She has been hailed as “beguiling” by The New York Times and listed as “100 people to watch in 2019” (Paper Magazine).

Most recently, Emma’s work Bathtub Ballet premiered to critical acclaim at Royal Swedish Opera and her ballet islands shared a tour with quintessential choreographers Crystal Pite, Jiří Kylián and Ohad Naharin. Emma’s newest work for Göteborg Danskompani premieres in Spring 2024. Emma portrayed Gozer the Gozerian in Ghostbusters: Afterlife and stars in A24’s 2024 festival I saw the TV Glow directed by Jane Schoenbrun.

About James Kudelka 

James Kudelka is among today’s most versatile and innovative dance artists. He has choreographed for many of the world’s leading ballet companies and for smaller contemporary troupes. His creative range reflects his eclectic musical interests, command of diverse movement idioms and commitment to working collaboratively with artists from other disciplines. James is renowned for distinctive versions of such classics as The Nutcracker and Cinderella – signature works of The National Ballet of Canada where he served as Artistic Director, 1996 to 2005. Equally, James excels in making smaller-scaled dances that are rich in psychological implication and human drama.

Born in Newmarket, Ontario and trained by Canada’s National Ballet School, James began choreographing as a student and continued throughout his dancing years with the National Ballet, 1972 to 1981, and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal,1981 to 1990. He began an affiliation with Toronto’s Citadel + Compagnie in 2006 and has been resident choreographer since 2008 where he has experimented with cross-disciplinary collaborations. As a teacher, James has worked with Vancouver Arts Umbrella, Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) and Canada’s National Ballet School, and he continues to work internationally as a choreographer. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2005 and is among the 2020 Dance Collection Danse Hall of Fame inductees. In 2023, James was the recipient of the prestigious Governor General’s Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Performing Arts.