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L’Heure exquise, Royal Opera House
Inspired by and filtered through the lens of Samuel Beckett’s play Happy Days is Maurice
Béjart’s portrait of a retired ballerina looking back on her career as she slips in and out of happy
memories. It was slightly loopy but, thanks to an astounding star turn from Alessandra Ferri,
remarkably affecting.
English National Ballet, Sadler’s Wells
The company returned to the stage for the first time in 16 months with live performances of
a show first released on film during lockdown. The highlight was Arielle Smith’s Jolly Folly, an
exhilarating and zany piece inspired by the physicality of silent movies and the heyday of
Hollywood musicals. The dancers, especially the men, were sensational.
Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker!, Sadler’s Wells
The perfect alternative to traditional Christmas fare, Bourne’s production is a witty and poignant
take on the Tchaikovsky classic. It starts in a grim Dickensian orphanage but soon sends young
Clara into a marvellous confectionery fantasy inspired by the glamour and glitter of golden-age
Hollywood musicals.
Rooms, streamed
Rambert’s dancers tried out their acting chops in the Norwegian choreographer Jo Stroemgren’s
hour-long dance film. From birth to death, love to hate, laughter to tears — and everything in
between — his piece was a colourful tapestry of contemporary urban living that played out over
a series of fascinating rooms.
