Missed World Ballet Day? Here's Your Chance to Catch Up!

October 10, 2017


Last Thursday was World Ballet Day LIVE, the official 22-hour live-stream relay showcasing companies across the globe. If you were busy (we know that you don’t always have the luxury to spend an entire day watching ballet), don’t fret. Many of the companies involved recorded their classes, rehearsals and interviews from the day of, and we rounded them up for you to watch at your leisure. Careful, though; there are more than twenty hours of footage included here… make sure you take a break to, you know, sleep.

First up is San Francisco Ballet with a full five hours, including rehearsal for Balanchine’s timeless classic, Serenade.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Vy-FE7tNQ48

The Royal Ballet’s WBD stream is split into three parts. Here’s the first chunk, featuring company rehearsals of a few Sir Kenneth MacMillan ballets as well as Christopher Wheeldon’s Alice in Wonderland (a measly two hours and 45 minutes). You can find part 2 here and the full company class here. The video also features a quick aerial tour of London from the balcony of the Royal Opera House.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=hmhlamsHW04

English National Ballet shared a substantially shorter (10 minute) rehearsal of MacMillan’s masterpiece Song of the Earth, complete with interviews with the dancers on the meaning behind the piece.

Back in the States, Ballet West shared excerpts from their rehearsal of Nicolo Fonte’s Fox on the Doorstep.

Another five hour stream comes courtesy of The Australian Ballet in rehearsal of a number of story ballets including Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Cinderella and The Sleeping Beauty as well as contemporary works by the company’s resident choreographers. And, the stream starts on a Melbourne beach. What could be better than that?

https://youtube.com/watch?v=mUXxc3mxbiY

Though National Ballet of Canada was on tour in Paris during WBD, they pre-recorded a session including company class and rehearsal of Justin Peck’s Paz de la Jolla, John Neumeier’s Nijinsky and Christopher Wheeldon’s A WInter’s Tale.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=c_tAz5SrZ8Q

Going behind-the-scenes at the Bolshoi is a real treat. Though the full live stream isn’t up yet, you can check out this rehearsal of Balanchine’s Diamonds featuring Alena Koveleva from WBD. Though the rehearsal is conducted in Russian, parts of it include English subtitles.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=_JqlNY7JiCE

The Dutch National Ballet recorded a rehearsal of Mata Hari in front of a live studio audience including interviews with the company’s artistic director and two principal dancers.

Houston Ballet has not had an easy few weeks due to the devastation left by Hurricane Harvey. Yet the company has gracefully landed on its feet, as is quite clear in these excerpts from company class and rehearsals.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=eGmNISWeIOc

Lastly, Scottish Ballet shows a short clip from rehearsal for Christopher Hampson’s production The Rite of Spring.