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Leigh Alderson (born 1986) is a male
ballet dancer
A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...
, model and actor from
Portadown
Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
.
Alderson trained at
The Royal Ballet School performing in
Rudi van Dantzig
Rudi van Dantzig (4 August 1933 – 19 January 2012) was a Dutch choreographer, company director, and writer. He was a pivotal figure in the rise to world renown of Dutch ballet in the latter half of the twentieth century.
Early life and trainin ...
's ''
Four Last Songs
The ''Four Last Songs'' (german: Vier letzte Lieder, link=no), Op. posth., for soprano and orchestra are – with the exception of the song "Malven" (Mallows), composed later the same year – the final completed works of Richard Strauss. They ...
'' in Toronto and Stuttgart before graduating in 2006. He joined
Scottish Ballet
Scottish Ballet is the national ballet company of Scotland and one of the five leading ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and Northern Ballet. Founded in 1969, ...
dancing works by
Ashley Page
Ashley Page OBE (born August 1956) is a British former ballet dancer, choreographer and was artistic director of Scottish Ballet for ten years.
Ashley Page was born in Rochester, Kent in August 1956.
Page trained the Royal Ballet School, and joi ...
, Forsythe and
Trisha Brown
Trisha Brown (November 25, 1936 – March 18, 2017) was an American choreographer and dancer, and one of the founders of the Judson Dance Theater and the postmodern dance movement. Brown’s dance/movement method, with which she and her dancer ...
and
Pastor
A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...
and works by Richard Wherlock with New English Contemporary Ballet, later joining
Atlantic Ballet Theatre of Canada and guesting with
Cork City Ballet. With
Les Grands Ballets Canadiens
Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal (GBCM) is a ballet company based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. A creative and repertory company, it performs works that reflect the diverse trends of contemporary ballet.
History
Les Grands Ballets Canadien ...
he performed in works by
Stijn Celis, Stephan Thoss, The Snake in
's ''
Petit Prince'',
Jiří Kylián
Jiří Kylián (born 21 March 1947) is a Czech former dancer and contemporary dance choreographer.
Life
Jiří Kylián was born in 1947 in Prague, Czechoslovakia, to his father Václav who was a banker and to his mother Markéta, who was as a ...
's ''
aguyahime' and The Prince in
Mats Ek
Mats Ek (born 18 April 1945) is a Swedish dance and ballet choreographer, dancer and stage director. He was the manager of the Cullberg Ballet from 1985 to 1993.
Life and career
Ek was born in Malmö in 1945, the son of the Royal Dramatic Theatr ...
's ''
Sleeping Beauty
''Sleeping Beauty'' (french: La belle au bois dormant, or ''The Beauty in the Sleeping Forest''; german: Dornröschen, or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess cu ...
''.
Film and TV work has included the Canadian horror film ''Undress Me'' (2017), ''
StreetDance 3D
''StreetDance 3D'' (also called ''StreetDance'') is a 2010 British 3D dance comedy-drama film which was released on 21 May 2010. The film was released in RealD 3D, XpanD 3D, and Dolby 3D with Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini directing it. ''Britain's ...
'' (2010), ''
Angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inclu ...
'' (2009), the BBC documentary series ''Lost to Dance'' (1998) and ''God Given Gift'' (2005/07).
Awards include Royal Ballet School Achievement Award (2005 & 2006) Lynne Seymour Award for Most Expressive Dancer (2004), The NJL Choreographic Development Award (2005) and The Ulster Tatler Arts Personality of the Year Award (2009 & 2010).
Documentaries, film and TV
The
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
produced three documentary films about him. ''Lost To Dance'' was broadcast in October 1998, ''A God Given Gift'' in September 2005 and the third, also called ''A God Given Gift'', in December 2007. All were directed and produced by the documentary film maker Claire DeLargy. The 2007 biography of
Frederic Franklin
Frederic Franklin (13 June 1914 – 4 May 2013), sometimes also called "Freddie", was a British-American ballet dancer, choreographer and director.
Dancer
Born in Liverpool, England, Frederic Franklin claimed that on seeing the 1924 film ...
notes Franklin's involvement with Alderson and his involvement in Alderson's 2005 and 2007 BBC documentaries.
[L. Norton & F. Franklin, (2007), ''Frederic Franklin: A Biography of a Ballet Star'', McFarland, pp 208–210 ]
Alderson began filming the independent film ''Angel'' in June 2009, co-starring the ballet dancer Kyle Davey. The film uses the score of the Scottish singer,
Jerry Burns
Jerome Monahan Burns (January 24, 1927 – May 12, 2021) was an American college and professional football coach. He played in college for the Michigan Wolverines before becoming a coach. He was the head coach for the Iowa Hawkeyes from 1961 to ...
and is directed by
David Council. The film had its premiere screening in The Market Place Theatre at The Stars of the Arts Gala 2010 on 19 June. An official trailer was released in July for a limited time to mark its impending release onto iTunes worldwide. It was subsequently shown at the Festival International du Court Métrage in
Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand (, ; ; oc, label=Auvergnat, Clarmont-Ferrand or Clharmou ; la, Augustonemetum) is a city and commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, with a population of 146,734 (2018). Its metropolitan area (''aire d'attract ...
and at the 10th Annual Two Short Nights Film Festival.
In July 2009, it was announced that Alderson would be attached as a featured dancer in
Vertigo Films
Vertigo Films is a British television and film production company based in London, England. Vertigo Films has been responsible for the production and distribution of '' Bronson'', ''StreetDance 3D'', and '' Monsters''. It now focuses solely o ...
' ''StreetDance 3D'' that commenced shooting in mid-August 2009 to be released in May 2010. The film subsequently became #1 at the UK box office.
Alderson was a featured artist on BBC's arts and culture series ''Art Space'', in the sixth and final episode of series one which was televised on Wednesday 2 June 2010 on BBC1.
Flight of Freedom
Flight of Freedom was the product of a collaborative photo-shoot between Alderson and Karin Pritzel, an award-winning photographer from Dublin. The photo first came to media attention in New York when the fashion designer
Malan Breton
Malan Breton (born 16 June 1973) is a Taiwanese-born, fashion designer. He is known for his work as a film, and music video director, as a columnist, costume designer, popular musician, television, film producer, Goodwill Ambassador to Taiwan ...
chose it to be his official muse for his 2010 spring collection. Shortly after it became an award-winning photograph. It was then commissioned as a large scale art piece which was auctioned at The NCAD gallery in Dublin, which was organised by Fairley Pilaro in aid Of
Operation Smile
Operation Smile is a nonprofit medical service organization founded in 1982 by Dr. William P. Magee Jr. and his wife Kathleen (Kathy) S. Magee. It is headquartered in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
In addition to providing cleft lip and palate repair ...
, a charity that raises money for children to have
cleft palate
A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nose. The ...
operations in poor and underdeveloped countries. The picture was again auctioned for the Stars of the Arts Gala in aid of the Haiti Appeal.
Stars Of The Arts Gala
Leigh Alderson official website In 2011, it was selected to be included in a book combining art and famous inspiring quotes. The book, ''Quoted Moments'', was launched in July 2011 in association with the Irish Cancer Society
The Irish Cancer Society (formerly known as the Conquer Cancer Campaign) is the national charity in the Republic of Ireland dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem, and improving the lives of those who have cancer.
History Fo ...
.
Books and published material
In 2007, Leslie Norton published a biography of Frederic Franklin
Frederic Franklin (13 June 1914 – 4 May 2013), sometimes also called "Freddie", was a British-American ballet dancer, choreographer and director.
Dancer
Born in Liverpool, England, Frederic Franklin claimed that on seeing the 1924 film ...
which documented Franklin's involvement with Alderson and his 2005 and 2007 BBC documentaries.
Awards and recognition
TV, film and documentary
Ballet companies
Music
References
External links
Leigh AldersonLeigh Alderson at New English Contemporary Ballet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alderson, Leigh
1986 births
Living people
People educated at the Royal Ballet School
People from Portadown
21st-century male actors from Northern Ireland
21st-century ballet dancers