The Guangzhou Ballet Troupe is a

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its ...

company based in

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. In addition to works from the classical European ballet repertoire, the company performs works of classical and contemporary Chinese ballet. The company is one of the top four ballet companies in China. It was founded in 1974, and is currently headed by dancer

Zhang Dandan Zhang may refer to: Chinese culture, etc. * Zhang (surname) (張/张), common Chinese surname ** Zhang (surname 章), a rarer Chinese surname * Zhang County (漳县), of Dingxi, Gansu * Zhang River (漳河), a river flowing mainly in Henan * Zhang ...

. The company tours internationally.

History

Guangzhou Ballet was founded in 1974 by

, a former dancer with the

National Ballet of China The National Ballet of China (NBC), known in China as the Central Ballet Troupe was founded on 31 December 1959. It is the national ballet company of the People's Republic of China. The ballet company works from the Tianqiao Theater, this was spe ...

. The current company has many members who are graduates from the

Beijing Dance Academy The Beijing Dance Academy (BDA, ) is a municipal public professional dance college at Haidian, Beijing. The academy is the highest institution for dance education and assessment in the People's Republic of China, conducting the nationwide teache ...

. Notable dancers in the company include Zou Guang, Tong Shusheng, Zhang Dandan Guo Fei and Qiu Lu. Members of the company are trained in the

Vaganova method The Vaganova method is a ballet technique and training system devised by the Russian dancer and pedagogue Agrippina Vaganova (1879–1951). It was derived from the teachings of the ''Premier Maître de Ballet'' Marius Petipa, throughout the late ...

, following the tradition of Russian ballet introduced to China following the Communist Revolution. The Vaganova method has its origins at the Imperial Russian ballet in St. Petersburg. Guangzhou Ballet is also involved in cultural exchanges with foreign ballet choreographers, dancers, and instructors. Foreign artists and ballet coaches from France, Canada, USA, Russia, Britain, Germany and Sweden have participated in projects with the Guangzhou Ballet Troupe.

Guangzhou Ballet School

Guangzhou Ballet School is a boarding school providing classes to students age 10 to 18. The school facilities include 16 studios, academic classrooms, a cafeteria, and a pointe shoe factory.

Repertoire

Guangzhou Ballet has staged many ballet classics including productions of ''

Coppélia ''Coppélia'' (sometimes subtitled: ''La Fille aux Yeux d'Émail'' (The Girl with the Enamel Eyes)) is a comic ballet from 1870 originally choreographed by Arthur Saint-Léon to the music of Léo Delibes, with libretto by Charles-Louis-Éti ...

'', ''

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...

'', '' Le Corsaire'', ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoye ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, link=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failur ...

'', ''

La Sylphide ''La Sylphide'' ( en, The Sylph; da, Sylfiden) is a romantic ballet in two acts. There were two versions of the ballet; the original choreographed by Filippo Taglioni in 1832, and a second version choreographed by August Bournonville in 1836. Bo ...

'', the ''Butterfly Lovers'', ballet dramas ''

Anna Karenina ''Anna Karenina'' ( rus, «Анна Каренина», p=ˈanːə kɐˈrʲenʲɪnə) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Widely considered to be one of the greatest works of literature ever writte ...

'', ''

La Traviata ''La traviata'' (; ''The Fallen Woman'') is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ''La Dame aux camélias'' (1852), a play by Alexandre Dumas ''fils'' adapted from his own 18 ...

'' and ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

'', and selected scenes from ''

Amelia Goes to the Ball ''Amelia al ballo'' (''Amelia Goes to the Ball'') is a one-act ''opera buffa'' by Gian Carlo Menotti, who set his own Italian libretto. Composed during 1936 when Menotti was in his mid-twenties, it was the composer's first mature opera and first c ...

'', in addition to works by

Ramuntcho ''Ramuntcho'' (1897) is a novel by French author Pierre Loti. It is a love and adventure story about contraband runners in the Basque province of France. It is one of Loti's most popular stories—"love, loss and faith remain eternal themes"—wit ...

Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of ...

and Bartók. Contemporary foreign works performed by the Guangzhou Ballet include ''

Theme and Variations In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve melody, rhythm, harmony, counterpoint, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these. Variation techniques Mozart's Twelve ...

'' and ''

Serenade In music, a serenade (; also sometimes called a serenata, from the Italian) is a musical composition or performance delivered in honor of someone or something. Serenades are typically calm, light pieces of music. The term comes from the Italian w ...

'' by

George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze; ka, გიორგი მელიტონის ძე ბალანჩივაძე; January 22, 1904 (O. S. January 9) – April 30, 1983) was ...

. Guangzhou Ballet has also staged the Chinese-style ballets '' That Day, This Moment'', '' Lan Huahua, Goddess of the Luo River'', and in 1997 '' The Celestial Phoenix'', which won several awards from the Fifth China Drama Festival. '' Dancing over the Xiaoxiang River'' was staged in 1993 as a newly choreographed work. The Yellow River and The Dream of the Red Chamber are other Chinese ballet works performed by the company.

References

{{authority control Culture in Guangzhou Ballet companies in China Performing groups established in 1974 1974 in Guangzhou

History

Guangzhou Ballet School

Repertoire

See also

References