A season of stories retold at Leeds’
Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre
DeNada Dance Theatre | 2Faced Dance Company
Ballet Central | Seeta Patel Dance
Expressions 2020
April – July
The Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre in Leeds has announced a new season opening in April 2020. Telling old and new stories through dance, the season will include performances by returning companies DeNada Dance Theatre and 2Faced Dance Company, and Seeta Patel Dance will perform at the theatre for the first time in collaboration with Leeds-based South Asian Arts-uk.
Following an incredible Leeds debut in 2018, DeNada Dance Theatre returns on 03 April 2020 to open the season with Mariposa. A transgender retelling of Puccini’s Madame Butterfly, this new dance-drama from Artistic Director Carlos Pons Guerra is set in post-revolution Cuba and passionately explores what we are ready to sacrifice in order to be loved and accepted.
On 23 April 2020, 2Faced Dance Company also return with a new triple bill of dance, EVERYTHING [but the girl]. Renowned for dance of extreme physicality, the programme features choreography by Tamsin Fitzgerald and Fleur Darkin. 7.0 (Fitzgerald) looks at our responses when everything we know is taken away from us, The Qualies (Darkin) brings to life US writer David Foster-Wallace’s study of tennis player Michael Joyce, and Hollow in a World Too Full (Fitzgerald) follows one man’s journey through an overwhelming world.
In an exciting first for the theatre, Seeta Patel Dance will reimagine the iconic ballet The Rite of Spring in the powerful Indian dance style Bharatanatyam. A retelling of the pagan folk story set to Igor Stravinsky’s famous score, the performance will showcase some of the finest Indian classical dance talent. Opening with a short performance from South Asian Arts-uk, The Rite of Spring will be performed for one night only on 13 May 2020.
The season will also host the annual return of graduate dance company Ballet Central on 26 April 2020. In a captivating programme by six internationally-acclaimed choreographers, see the next generation of dancers from London’s Central School of Ballet embark on their professional careers.
In addition, Northern Ballet & Partners will host Expressions 2020 on 06 – 09 July 2020. An annual celebration of inclusive dance, Expressions returns bigger than ever this year to showcase the work of community and professional disabled dance groups from across the UK. The only event of its kind in Yorkshire, this year there will also be professional development opportunities on inclusive dance practice and teaching, including a free conference, panel discussions and networking opportunities. More information about the full programme can be found at northernballet.com/expressions
The Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre’s spring season is an unmissable opportunity to see high quality dance at great value, performed in a local intimate setting. Tickets can be booked online at theatreleeds.com, by calling the Box Office on 0113 220 8008 or in person at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre, Northern Ballet, Quarry Hill, Leeds LS2 7PA.