A cast of 98 talented young dancers from the local area will take to the stage at the Nottingham Theatre Royal next month, performing alongside international principal artists in a dramatic production of Swan Lake.
The English Youth Ballet production, running from Friday 17 to Saturday 18 July, is set in 1895 Imperial Russia and follows an emotionally charged story of love, rivalry, and greed.
The young performers secured their places after a highly competitive audition process at the Royal Concert Hall back in April, which saw nearly 200 hopefuls take part in a full ballet class before the final cast was selected.
Since then, the young dancers have been undergoing an exhaustive rehearsal schedule, training for 60 hours across 10 intensive days. The experience is carefully structured to mirror life in a professional dance environment, featuring daily warm-up classes and complex schedules across three large rehearsal studios.
Janet Lewis OBE, Director of the English Youth Ballet, praised the dedication of the regional performers.
“We aim to provide performance experience to aspiring young dancers in beautiful venues close to where they live,” she said. “The young dancers get to experience what life is like in a professional ballet company. They learn about developing their artistic and performance skills as well as improving their technique. I am always amazed at how quickly they progress and how positive they are when presented with new challenges.”
The production offers local dancers a rare opportunity to share the stage with principal dancers who have performed with leading international companies, including the English National Ballet, Vienna Festival Ballet, and Ballet Cymru.
