Published:
7:30 AM March 12, 2021
Jesse Baggett-Lahav photographed at a CAT performance at Dance East. Jesse has just landed a place at the National Youth Dance Company
- Credit: Alicia Clarke
Ipswich dancer Jesse Baggett-Lahav is the latest dance talent to be snapped up by a national company following in the footsteps of other local stars such as Gary Avis, Helen Crawford and Vincent Redmon.
The 17 year old, Northgate High School student, who is also a member of DanceEast’s CAT scheme (Centre for Advanced Training), has just passed a challenging audition to be selected to join the National Youth Dance Company, based at Sadler’s Wells in London.
Published:
7:30 AM March 12, 2021
Jesse Baggett-Lahav photographed at a CAT performance at Dance East. Jesse has just landed a place at the National Youth Dance Company
- Credit: Alicia Clarke
Ipswich dancer Jesse Baggett-Lahav is the latest dance talent to be snapped up by a national company following in the footsteps of other local stars such as Gary Avis, Helen Crawford and Vincent Redmon.
The 17 year old, Northgate High School student, who is also a member of DanceEast’s CAT scheme (Centre for Advanced Training), has just passed a challenging audition to be selected to join the National Youth Dance Company, based at Sadler’s Wells in London.
Dance review: The Royal Ballet Nutcracker thetimes.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thetimes.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Last modified on Mon 14 Dec 2020 08.48 EST
To the ballet then, while we can. As London waits to find out whether it will be moved into tier 3, theatregoers rush to enjoy traditional Christmas treats, like escaping into the warm fireside glow of the Royal Balletâs Nutcracker. Peter Wrightâs 1984 production, modelled on Lev Ivanovâs 1892 ballet, is a gorgeous spectacle. Julia Trevelyan Omanâs snowy 19th-century designs bring to life pre-Raphaelite angels, vintage toys and a sugarspun palace of delicate sparkle.
This is a necessarily adjusted experience, the audience reduced, and the orchestra, too, down to 44 players from 72, due to social distancing in the pit. Sometimes that doesnât make much difference, sometimes the depth of sound is missed (perhaps they could pick up the tempo a little in the first act to make up for it). The cast is slimmed down, too, primarily in the childrenâs scenes and the toy battle, which normally has a chaotic stageful. Here
The Royal Ballet performs The Nutcracker at the Royal Opera House
Seeing a live performance of The Nutcracker is a favourite Christmas treat for me. But, it is one which I’ve scarcely dared hope will happen when our theatres have been mothballed for months, dancers have hung up their shoes and musicians tucked up their instruments for a long hibernation. This year though, the magic of the Nutcracker has been reworked into a COVID safe restaging which all but sold out the moment tickets went on sale, though you might be lucky and find a return for one of the 17 performances between 11th December and 3rd January 2021. Based on Peter Wright’s two-act production, the restaging has been carefully designed and while it includes much of the original production, there’s a new battle scene between the Nutcracker and the Mouse King choreographed by Will Tuckett.