It will begin performances at Sadler's Wells Dec. 10 (prior to an official opening Dec. 18), for a run through Jan. 24, 2010. It will then tour to Woking's New Victoria Theatre (Jan. 26-30), Milton Keynes Theatre (Feb. 1-6), Birmingham Hippodrome (Feb. 8-13), Stoke's Regent Theatre (Feb. 15-20), Liverpool Empire (Feb. 22-27), Salford's Lowry (March 1-6), Cardiff's Wales Millennium Centre (March 8-13), Newcastle's Theatre Royal (March 16-27), and Bradford's Alhambra (Mar. 29-April 3). A New Adventures production, it is presented by Back Row Productions UK Ltd. and Sadler's Wells.
The production has set the record for the longest-running ballet production ever to play in the West End or on Broadway. In New York, it played a run of 124 performances at the Neil Simon Theatre, where it began performances Sept. 26, 1998, prior to an official opening Oct. 8, and ran through Jan. 23, 1999. It has also played in Europe, Los Angeles, Australia and Japan, and undertaken four previous UK tours. Directed and choreographed by Matthew Bourne, with set and costume designs by Lez Brotherston and lighting design by Rick Fisher, it won the 1996 Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production, and the 1999 Tony Awards for Bourne for Best Director of a Musical and Best Choreographer, as well for Brotherston for Best Costume Design. Additionally, David Cullen was nominated for Best Orchestrations and Adam Cooper for Best Actor in a Musical, for playing the Swan. During its Broadway run, it also received the 1999 Astaire Award for Excellence in Dance on Broadway.
In press materials, the production is described as turning "tradition upside down, taking the dance world by storm." Blending dance, humor and spectacle, it has been called a provocative and powerful Swan Lake for our times that is now crowned as a modern-day classic. It is perhaps best known for replacing the traditional female corps de ballet with a menacing male ensemble.
Casting for the 2009 revival includes a mix of established New Adventures performers and newcomers. Richard Winsor and Jonathan Ollivier will both be making their debuts in the role of The Swan. Winsor has previously created the title roles in New Adventures's productions of Edward Scissorhands in 2005 and Dorian Gray in 2008. He has also appeared in the original cast of Bourne's Play without Words and was seen as Angelo in The Car Man and the title role of Nuctracker!. He will be seen in the 3D film "Street Dance," to be released next spring. Ollivier, who is making his debut with the company, graduated from the Rambert School in 1996, before joining the Cape Town City Ballet Company, where he became a principal dancer. In 1999, he returned to the U.K to join Northern Ballet Theatre, where he created many leading roles including Stanley Kowalski and Heathcliffe in ballet versions of A Streetcar Named Desire and Wuthering Heights, respectively. He joined the Alberta Ballet Company as a principal dancer in 2007 and returned to the U.K to pursue a freelance career in 2009.
The role of The Prince will be performed by two dancers with a long history with Bourne's Swan Lake, Christopher Marney (who first danced the role in 2005, but first appeared in the production in 1999 as a Cygnet, and will appear in London only), and Dominic North (who made his professional debut in the 10th anniversary production in 2004, and covered the role of The Prince several times but now takes it on full-time). Sam Archer will join the company in January when he will be making his debut as The Prince; he has worked with Bourne as part of Fagan's gang in the original 1995 production of Oliver! that Bourne choreographed at the London Palladium, and subsequently joined the company in 2002 to appear in The Car Man, then went on to roles in Play without Words, Nutcracker! and co-creating the title role in Edward Scissorhands. Returning to the role of The Queen will be American dancer, Nina Goldman, who has performed in various roles within the production, including The Girlfriend, since becoming one of the original Broadway cast in 1998. She has also performed in The Car Man and as Joyce Monroe in Edward Scissorhands. Sharing the role for the 2009 revival will be Charlotte Broom, a former principal dancer with The Cullberg Ballet and Northern Ballet Theatre, who is now making her New Adventures debut.
Scott Ambler, who created the role of The Prince in 1995 and Steve Kirkham, an original Cygnet, will be sharing the role of The Private Secretary and acting as Resident Directors on the 2009-10 tour. Leading New Adventures dancers Madelaine Brennan (Edward Scissorhands and Play Without Words) and Kerry Biggin (Kim in Edward Scissorhands, Clara in Nutcracker!, Rita in The Car Man, The Sylph in Highland Fling) will both be making their debuts as The Girlfriend.
Also featured in the cast are Ashley Bain, Tim Bartlett, Ben Bunce, Arielle Campbell, Tom Clark, Travis Clausen-Knight, Daniel Collins, Gavin Eden, Pia Driver, Ross Fountain, Philip Jack Gardner, Scott Jennings, Jack Jones, Simon Karaiskos, Daisy May Kemp, Franklyn Lee, Katy Lowenhoff, Luke Murphy, Gemma Payne, Gavin Persand, Sam Plant, Danny Reubens, Anwar Russell, Ashley Shaw, Paul Smethurst, Christopher Trenfield, Vince Virr, Chloe Wilkinson and Shelby Williams.
To book tickets for the London season at Sadler's Wells, phone the box office at 0844 412 4300 or visit www.sadlerswells.com. For full touring details, visit www.new-adventures.net.
