Northern Ballet Gears up for all New Yorkshire Season

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas – Leeds and Hull

A Celebration of Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Master Choreographer – Bradford

The Little Mermaid – Sheffield and Leeds

Yorkshire audiences are in for a treat this autumn as Northern Ballet prepares to present an ambitious season of new work in the county. The Company will perform The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas; A Celebration of Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Master Choreographer; and The Little Mermaid at Yorkshire venues for the first time as well as reviving its popular children’s ballet Ugly Duckling.

Northern Ballet will open its autumn season with its new adaptation of John Boyne’s bestselling novel The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, following a successful première this spring. Telling the story of an unlikely friendship blossoming through the disturbing events of World War II, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas sees a child’s innocent curiosity lead to a devastating conclusion. Choreographed by Northern Ballet’s Artistic Associate Daniel de Andrade, Northern Ballet will perform The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas at West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds from 5 – 9 September, and Hull New Theatre from 18 – 21 October.

From 5 – 7 October, Northern Ballet will hold the Company première of A Celebration of Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Master Choreographer at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford. One of the leading choreographers of his generation, Sir Kenneth MacMillan enjoyed a choreographic career spanning nearly four decades during which he created almost 100 works. Northern Ballet’s programme offers audiences the rare opportunity to see three of MacMillan’s most famous short works performed outside of London: MacMillan’s Las Hermanas, a tense psychological drama about five sisters and the consequences that follow a life of harsh repression; Gloria, inspired by Vera Brittain’s wartime memoir Testament of Youth; and Concerto, a dazzling classical piece set to music by Shostakovich.

Following its world première in September, Northern Ballet will perform its new adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’sfairytale The Little Mermaid at the Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield (28 November – 2 December) and Leeds Grand Theatre (5 – 17 December). Choreographed by Artistic Director David Nixon OBE, The Little Mermaid tells the story of a young mermaid who is willing to give up everything she knows in a search for love and the desire to gain a human soul.

In addition to these three new productions, Northern Ballet will also bring back its much-loved pioneering first children’s ballet Ugly Duckling. Created especially to introduce young children to live ballet, theatre and music, Ugly Duckling will be performed at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre, Leeds from 23 – 28 October.

Tickets for all productions are on sale now. See northernballet.com/whatson for details.