BALLET COMPANY’S TOUR

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28540, 20 March 1958, Page 14

BALLET COMPANY’S TOUR

Three Productions Arranged

The Adult Education Department of the University of Canterbury has organised, for its first touring programme of the season, an extensive itinerary in Canterbury and the West Coast for the New Zealand Ballet Company. This will be the first time that many of the towns on the tour have been visited by the company. The third national tour of the company, it will include some 80 towns and the total attendance is expected to be more than 50,000. The local part of the tour begins at Hokitika on April 9, followed by, Greymouth, April 10; Westport, April 11; Reefton, April 12; Temuka, April 14; Methven, April 15, Rangiora, April 16; Christchurch, April 17 and 18; Ashburton, April 21; Geraldine, April 22; Timaru, April 23; Lowcliffe, April 24; and Waimate, April 26. The New Zealand Ballet Company is in its fifth year. It nas grown from a small group of four to a company which has been unofficially called the National Ballet. This year many of the dancers are newcomers, and the artistic director and management have had a difficult task in selecting the most outstanding. The dancers come from all parts of New Zealand. Director of Company

The director of the company, Poul Gnatt, was born in Denmark and appeared with the Royal Danish Ballet from the age of six until he was 27. He has studied with Massine, Gsovsky, Egorova, Volkova and Volonine. As well as being director, Mr Gnatt is principal dancer, producer and trainer of the young dancers. Three ballets will be performed by the company on the tour. The first, in two acts, is “La Sylphide," a ballet with a Scottish setting, with music by Herman Lovenskjold. This will be the first performance in the Southern Hemisphere of this ballet, which was first produced in Paris in 1832 by Flippo Taglioni. Poul Gnatt will take the leading' part of James Reuben and Valerie Whyman will dance the sylph. The second ballet, “Memories of Vienna,” with music by Johann Strauss 11, is original, with choreography by Poul Gnatt. The third, “Badinage,” a modern ballet first produced in the United States in 1956, has music by Halvorsen. The choreography is by Fredbjorn Bjornsson, an old friend of Mr Gnatt. Mr Bjornsson sent the full material of “Badinage” to New Zealand in appreciation of the work Mr Gnatt has done for ballet here.