One @ the Ballet

This unique One @ the Ballet will take you behind the curtain to showcase different aspects of the training, creation of a ballet and on to performance aspects. All the elements of choreography, music, set, costume design, as well as choice of repertoire in each of our six annual seasons will be part of this exploration of Singapore Ballet. Special sections of ballets that are presently in rehearsal will be demonstrated as part of the process. Several of our dancers will be interviewed for our audience’s enlightenment.

24th February 2024 – Sleeping Beauty

Singapore Ballet first performed its current version of Sleeping Beauty in 2010, which is based on the original ballet by Marius Petipa. He was widely considered to be the father of classical ballet. His choreography includes Swan Lake, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker, Raymonda and numerous other beloved ballets. Tchaikovsky was his collaborator for Sleeping Beauty and it was originally created for the Imperial Ballet in Russia. The lineage of this ballet can be traced back to the very roots of full-length classical ballet works and Singapore Ballet presents it with great authority. Our dancers, in preparation for their first performances of the season, will show famous segments of each of the ballet’s significant moments.

16th March 2024 – Music & Dance

Dance has a long and completely intertwined history with music and composers for hundreds of years. Famous musicians like Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky, Delibes, and Minkus have all made works especially designed for dance. Ballet’s history has compositions that were created originally for famous ballets and went on to become well known for their memorable beauty. The relationship between dance and music, how dancers “count” and remember phrases of choreography, will all be part of our focus for this unique One @ the Ballet.

20th April 2024 – The Landscape of Movement

The progression of classical ballet, neoclassical and on to contemporary dance is often misunderstood. This session of One @ the Ballet shows the hallmarks of the traditions that once defined ballet as an art form and how they progressed into the next developments of professional dance. The dancers of Singapore Ballet will present defining examples of each form of ballet, as we explore the progression of choreographers and choreography from classical to contemporary.

18th May 2024 – A Passion to Dance

Ballet companies are inspired by the world famous professional organizations that have preceded them. Each company develops their own unique identity with the repertoire they present and the style of the dancers onstage. Singapore Ballet has a different story than almost any other professional dance company and its significance and importance has been reflected in its history and the promise of its future. Ballets and choreographers that have been the essence of Singapore Ballet are the feature of this month’s session.

29th June 2024 – Singapore Ballet

Singapore Ballet was co-founded as Singapore Dance Theatre by Anthony Then and Goh Soo Khim with just seven professional dancers. In 36 years, we have grown to the point where we now have 36 dancers and six performance seasons that span though the calendar year, as well as international touring. The repertoire has included some of the most well-regarded international choreographer’s works in newly created and established pieces as well as full-length classical ballets. The company is now one of the most significant arts organizations in Singapore. The path we have travelled towards building the company will be shown with several examples of our repertoire presented in segments.

27th July 2024 – A Day in the Life of a Dancer

We will examine the arc of a professional dancer’s career from student through their performing career. How long does it take to train a dancer to professional status and what elements define a successful talent? What are the rewards in a dancing career? What do dancers do once they retire from performing? All these questions will be asked and answered.

17th August 2024 – Pas de deux, Variation and Coda

The pas de deux forms the central moment of many pieces of choreography. At the heart of pas de deux work is emotion, even in what seems to be the most abstract of ballets. Often dancers develop partnerships that are based on several factors including personality, temperament, timing and physical type. Dancers create important bonds of security and trust in working with each other on a daily basis. How dancers achieve complex overhead lifts, partnered promenades, pirouettes and balances will be shown and explained.

28th September 2024 – Dance, the Noble Art Form

As Mr. Balanchine once said “I do not want people who want to dance, I want people who have to dance”.  Dancers are a unique and beautiful breed of artists. A person who has trained and danced professionally will forevermore describe themselves first and foremost “I am a dancer”. How they prepare and progress to professional status, why they choose to pursue careers in dance, as well as their life of rehearsal, performances and touring is all part of the rewards of a life of a dancer. This One @ the Ballet will focus on the special quality that dancers share with each other as friends and artists. The trust and bonds that dancers share is demonstrated in the segments of ballets presented for this session.

26th October 2024 – Creating a Legacy

“It’s good to look back, but try not to stare…” Singapore Ballet, as most repertory based ballet companies, endeavors to build on the classical ballet heritage with new directions in choreography, as well as the overall look, development and abilities of the dancers. Just adding new repertoire into the performances is only the first step and who, where and how the next generation of dancers, choreographers comes to the forefront is how dance will remain a relevant art form. We want to show you how where we came from has led us to where we are now and where we hope to progress to for our audiences.

23rd November 2024 – Swan Lake

Swan Lake is the most well-known of all ballets and probably the most misunderstood. We will explore some of the history and myth associated with this remarkable work. The Singapore Ballet dancers will show segments of two different acts of the Ballet. We first performed the full ballet in December 2007 and, since then, the ballet has become a significant part of the company’s repertoire. Repeated viewings of a work such as this deepen the appreciation of such a masterpiece. Different casts bring out multiple aspects of the character of this particular ballet so this will be the basis of our One @ the Ballet session.