Hong Kong Ballet

Hong Kong Ballet
Hong Kong Ballet
General information
Name	Hong Kong Ballet
Year founded	1979
Website	hkballet.com
Artistic staff
Artistic Director	Septime Webre (since June 2017)

The Hong Kong Ballet (香港芭蕾舞團) is a classical ballet company founded in 1979.

History[]

The company was created in 1979.^[1]

Since 1997, The Hong Kong Ballet has concluded more than 30 tours to 10 countries in North and South America, Europe and Asia.

In January 2010, Faye Leung, the company's former top ballerina, revealed in a book that she was sacked from the HK Ballet on suspicious that she was dividing dancers and organizing a strike.^[2]

In June 2010, the Company took part in Expo 2010 Shanghai, presenting a mixed bill production and performing as part of Festive Hong Kong Celebration. The Hong Kong Ballet’s dancers also performed at the 4th and 5th International Dance Festivals held in Cali, Colombia; the 50th Anniversary International Gala in Brisbane, Australia; and the International Ballettgala XI in Dortmund, Germany. Most recently, the Company presented Firecracker in Macau in January 2012. In the summer of 2012, The Hong Kong Ballet toured the United States and Canada with a mixed bill featuring two specially commissioned contemporary ballets. The company made its debut appearance at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and then performed in Aspen, Montreal and Santa Fe.

In October 2013, the company was accused of self-censorship during a production of The Dream of Red Chamber. Originally shown at the end of the ballet, the 12-minute projection sequence depicted different stages in China's history. In the part depicting the Cultural Revolution, dancers in Red Guards uniforms waved copies of Mao Ze Dong's little red book. Following the premiere, the sequence was cut from the show. Wang Xinpeng, the choreographer, claimed he did not agree with the deletion of the scene.^[3]

In June 2017, Septime Webre, of Cuban-American origins, previously the artistic director of The Washington Ballet for 17 years, was named Artistic Director of the Ballet. For 2018, he planned a contemporary program which featured the music of the Beatles.^[4] He also organized Ballet in the City, outdoors dancing events in different art galleries of the city, and a series of other events "to insert the company and its dancers into the social fabric of the city".^[5]

Description[]

Repertoire[]

The Company performs a repertoire that combines 19th to 21st century classical, contemporary works and newly commissioned ballets. This repertoire reflects both the heritage and origin of ballet in Europe as well as contemporary influences, and includes commissions focused on Hong Kong’s culture and history, such as Firecracker by local choreographer Yuri Ng. The company’s repertoire encompasses full-length ballets such as Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker and Giselle, and the finest classical and neo-classical works of the 20th and the 21st centuries, including George Balanchine's Rubies and Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux; Rudi van Dantzig's Romeo and Juliet; Ronald Hynd's The Merry Widow and Coppélia; and Wang Xin Pang’s Serenade and Pas de Six from Mozart. The company has also performed contemporary ballets such as William Forsythe's Steptext, Nils Christe’s Symphony in Three Movements, Stephen Mills's Hush, and Stanton Welch's Clear. The Hong Kong Ballet's commissions include Natalie Weir's Turandot, and Stephen Baynes's The Way Alone.

Company[]

The Hong Kong Ballet has an artistic team of over 40 dancers. The majority of the dancers are from China, others are international recruits.

Artistic Director – Septime Webre (since June 2017)^[6]
Ballet Mistress – Tang Min
Ballet Master - Luis R. Torres
Ballet Master - Yuh Egami
Guest Ballet Master – Liang Jing
Choreographer-in-residence: Wu Song Wei Ricky
Pianist – Nicholas Lau
Sports Practitioner - Arlene Mackinlay

Principal dancers[]

Name	Nationality	Training
Chen Zhiyao	People's Republic of China	Beijing Dance Academy
Venus Villa	Cuba	Cuban National Ballet La Scala Theatre Ballet School
Ye Feifei	People's Republic of China	Xun Yan Ballet School Goh Ballet Academy
Li Jiabo	People's Republic of China	Shanghai Far East Ballet School Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
Li Lin	People's Republic of China	Beijing Dance Academy
Shen Jie	People's Republic of China	Zhejiang Vocational Academy of Art Guangzhou Dance School Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
Wei Wei	People's Republic of China	Shenyang Conservatory of Music (Dance Major)

Soloists[]

Name	Nationality	Training
Dong Ruixue	People's Republic of China	Beijing Dance Academy
Gao Ge	People's Republic of China	Beijing Dance Academy
Ma Renjie	People's Republic of China	Hang Zhou Art School Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

References[]

^ "Hong Kong Ballet Dances Through The Galaxy". Luxury-insider.com. 24 June 2009. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
^ Olga Wong (19 January 2010). "I was sacked for splitting HK Ballet, dancer writes". Scmp.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
^ Chan, Candy (4 November 2013). "Hong Kong Ballet 'self-censorship' spurs debate on freedom of expression". Scmp.com. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
^ "Why Septime Webre Believes The Beatles and the Ballet Are A Perfect Match". Asiatatler.com. 26 February 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
^ Simon Cartledge (9 November 2017). "Septime Webre has 3 years to make ballet relevant to Hong Kong: here's how he'll do it". Zolimacitymag.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
^ "Septime Webre Named New Artistic Director of Hong Kong Ballet". Hkballet.com. 6 June 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2018.

External links[]

Official website

[1] "Hong Kong Ballet Dances Through The Galaxy". Luxury-insider.com. 24 June 2009. Retrieved 16 September 2018.

[2] Olga Wong (19 January 2010). "I was sacked for splitting HK Ballet, dancer writes". Scmp.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.

[3] Chan, Candy (4 November 2013). "Hong Kong Ballet 'self-censorship' spurs debate on freedom of expression". Scmp.com. Retrieved 29 March 2020.

[4] "Why Septime Webre Believes The Beatles and the Ballet Are A Perfect Match". Asiatatler.com. 26 February 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2018.

[5] Simon Cartledge (9 November 2017). "Septime Webre has 3 years to make ballet relevant to Hong Kong: here's how he'll do it". Zolimacitymag.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.

[6] "Septime Webre Named New Artistic Director of Hong Kong Ballet". Hkballet.com. 6 June 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2018.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

show v t Ballet companies
Africa	Cairo Opera Ballet Company Cape Town City Ballet
Asia	Ballet Manila Ballet Philippines Guangzhou Ballet Gwangju City Ballet Hong Kong Ballet Iranian National Ballet Company Israel Ballet K-ballet Korea National Ballet National Ballet of China New National Theatre Tokyo Philippine Ballet Theatre Seoul Ballet Theatre Shanghai Ballet Company Singapore Dance Theatre State Ballet of Georgia Tokyo Ballet Universal Ballet
Europe	Ballet Cymru Ballet Ireland Ballet Romand Ballet Zürich Les Ballets Persans Ballets Russes Barcelona Ballet Bayerisches Staatsballett Béjart Ballet Berlin State Ballet Birmingham Royal Ballet Bolshoi Ballet Cork City Ballet Royal Danish Ballet Donetsk Ballet Dutch National Ballet Eifman Ballet English National Ballet Finnish National Ballet Sukhishvili Georgian National Ballet Greek National Opera Hamburg Ballet Hungarian National Ballet Kyiv Ballet La Scala Theatre Ballet Mariinsky Ballet Mikhailovsky Theatre Ballet National Opera and Ballet Theatre of Moldova The Monte-Carlo Ballet National Opera and Ballet of Bulgaria Northern Ballet Norwegian National Opera and Ballet Novosibirsk Theatre Ballet Original Ballet Russe Paris Opera Ballet Perm Theatre Ballet Polish National Ballet National Ballet of Portugal The Royal Ballet Rambert Dance Company Russian State Ballet of Siberia Saint Petersburg Ballet Theatre Scottish Ballet Spanish National Dance Company Stanislavski Ballet Stuttgart Ballet Royal Swedish Ballet Théâtre du Silence Turkish State Opera and Ballet Vienna State Ballet
North America	Alabama Ballet Alberta Ballet Company Alexandra Ballet Alonzo King LINES Ballet American Ballet Theatre American Midwest Ballet American Repertory Ballet Anaheim Ballet Aspen Santa Fe Ballet Atlanta Ballet Atlanta Festival Ballet Ballet Arizona Ballet Austin Ballet BC Ballet Des Moines Ballet Fantastique Ballet Hispanico Ballet Magnificat! Ballet Memphis BalletMet Ballet Minnesota Ballet Nouveau Colorado Ballet Quad Cities Ballet San Jose Ballet Theatre of Maryland Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo Ballet West Ballez Bay Pointe Ballet Boston Ballet Les Grands Ballets Canadiens California Riverside Ballet Carolina Ballet Charlotte Ballet Chicago Ballet Chicago Festival Ballet Cincinnati Ballet Cleveland Ballet (1935 · 1972 · 2014) Colorado Ballet Complexions Contemporary Ballet Cuban National Ballet Dance Theatre of Harlem Dayton Ballet Greensboro Ballet Houston Ballet Joffrey Ballet Kansas City Ballet Los Angeles Ballet Louisville Ballet Moscow Ballet (United States) National Ballet of Canada National Ballet Theater of Puerto Rico New Jersey Ballet New York City Ballet Oklahoma City Ballet Oregon Ballet Theatre Pacific Northwest Ballet Pennsylvania Ballet Pittsburgh Ballet Royal Winnipeg Ballet San Francisco Ballet The Washington Ballet Tulsa Ballet
Oceania	The Australian Ballet Ballet Theatre of Queensland Queensland Ballet Melbourne City Ballet Royal New Zealand Ballet West Australian Ballet
South America	Ballet Municipal de Lima Chilean National Ballet Colon Theater Ballet National Ballet of Uruguay