Dutch National Ballet

Made in NL

Rudi van Dantzig / Hans van Manen / Annabelle Lopez Ochoa / Ernst Meisner / Milena Sidorova / Zoë Greten

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Photo: Hugo Thomassen

Dates

8 February - 14 March 2025

Location

Tour, The Netherlands

Running time

2:00, incl. 2 intervals

Tickets

External sales

Photo: Hugo Thomassen

Young female dance makers alongside well-known ‘Dutch Masters’

Not only has Dutch National Ballet’s Junior Company already produced many talented new dancers, but the youth ensemble is also making sure it builds up its own diverse repertoire. In the new touring programme Made in NL, the group is presenting no fewer than three premiere works by female choreographers based in the Netherlands, combined with highlights from the oeuvres of ‘Dutch Masters’ Hans van Manen and Rudi van Dantzig. The programme is complemented by Embers, an intimate, melancholic duet by Ernst Meisner, who has led the Junior Company since its founding in 2013.

Young female dance makers alongside well-known ‘Dutch Masters’

Zoë Greten and Milena Sidorova are both creating new works for Made in NL. Greten, aged just 22, already won the TV programme Superkids in 2015 for her own solo. Afterwards, while a student at the Dutch National Ballet Academy, she created several works, and in 2022 choreographed her first piece for the Junior Company, If only I knew the right way, which received glowing reviews. Milena Sidorova, a Young Creative Associate with Dutch National Ballet since 2021 and appointed as Creative Associate in 2024, has also choreographed previous successful works for the Junior Company – Withdrawn in 2017 and Bloom in 2022 – and is once again diving into the studio with the Juniors for this programme.

Banksy

The third premiere piece in Made in NL is by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa. Following her hit production Frida – last performed by Dutch National Ballet in February 2024 – she is now making her debut with the Junior Company, with Scurry Night. Lopez Ochoa created this compelling work in 2021 for the American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, taking inspiration from artworks by the famous graffiti artist Banksy, which are reflected in both the choreography and the costumes.

Choreographic gems

Alongside the premiere works in Made in NL, the Junior Company is also taking up the challenge of a famous, technically demanding classic – the Pas de Six from Rudi van Dantzig’s highly acclaimed Swan Lake – and Hans van Manen’s Visions Fugitives (1990). In the latter work, Van Manen responds to the twenty short sections of Prokofiev’s piano composition of the same name with an equal number of choreographic gems. Another gem is Ernst Meisner’s Embers, set to music by Max Richter. ‘Embers’ refers to glowing remnants of fire – stones, coals, or pieces of wood. According to Meisner, this glowing effect can also symbolise a relationship: one where love is still felt, but for some reason, it no longer works. Meisner allows the dancers to determine that reason for themselves in each performance, giving the duet a unique colour and interpretation every time.

Credits

Pas de Six – Swan Lake
Choreography Rudi van Dantzig
Music Pjotr Iljitsj Tsjaikovski
Costume design Toer van Schayk

Embers
Choreography Ernst Meisner
Music Max Richter
Costume design Oliver Haller

Sonder
World premiere
Choreography Zoë Greten
Music Son of Dave, Marc Ribot, Gidge, Kurt Stenzel, Golden Age Inc
Costume design Oliver Haller
Lighting design Wijnand van der Horst

Scurry Night
European premiere
Choreography Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, created for ABT Studio Company (2021)
Music Ara Malikian, Patricia Kopatchinskaja
Costume design Mark Eric
Lighting design Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
Supervision lighting design Wijnand van der Horst

Ever After
World premiere
Choreography Milena Sidorova
Music Émile Waldteufel
Costume design Milena Sidorova
Lighting design Wijnand van der Horst

Visions Fugitives
Choreography Hans van Manen
Music Sergej Prokofjev
Costume design Keso Dekker
Lighting design Joop Caboort

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With a mix of classics and works by young female creators, the rich Made in NL showcases the promises of Dutch ballet.

9 February

Made in NL by the Junior Company is yet another delightful ballet evening—something the young ensemble of Dutch National Ballet seems to have patented by now.