Up and coming

I've two dance features coming up:

From my profile of Christopher Newton in the Winter edition of Dance Now

‘Fig’s forte is style’, Monica Mason, the Royal Ballet’s director told me, ‘and the restaging of Sylvia brought together all his talents. Because Fred was always very comfortable having Fig in the room when he was choreographing, he has a quite unique understanding of what Ashton wanted.’ I asked Newton if there were other revivable Ashton works. ‘There are not I’m afraid. There’s so much of the early stuff one would like to be able to do, but it’s a virtual impossibility and it’s a real shame.’

And I've been writing about teaching ballet to adults for December's Dancing Times

"Sandra Doling runs her own school, while also teaching aspirant professionals at Arts Educational, along with two adult classes at the RAD. Adult learners pose a specific creative challenge, she agrees, but there is a real sense of achievement. “I do get a high. Adults want to be there. They enjoy it and I enjoy it.” Doling adapts her approach for adult bodies. “I always look for exercises that make people feel like they’re dancing, balancés, for instance, but that also challenge them. If I tried to put batterie in, that would stretch most people. A pirouette in attitude is hard but most people can give it a go. People like the sense that they are performing.” "