Ballet BC to tour the UK in May

Vancouver-based Ballet BC, one of the world’s finest contemporary ballet ensembles, will return to the UK in May to present UK premieres by two exceptional choreographers – Johan Inger and Crystal Pite.

The seven-venue tour is presented by Dance Consortium, a group of 21 large-scale venues whose mission is to engage people across the UK and Ireland with the very best international contemporary dance. Details of venues in listings are below.

Ballet BC received critical and audience acclaim on its UK debut in 2018. On this return visit, it will be presenting a powerful double bill by seminal Swedish choreographer and longtime Ballet BC collaborator Johan Inger and double UK National Dance Award-winning Canadian choreographer Crystal Pite.

Commissioned by Ballet BC in 2023, Johan Inger’s PASSING takes audiences across a vast theatrical landscape of human emotion, embodied by a cast of 20 extraordinary dancers. Bold and bright staging and costumes, elements of folk dance, hip hop, and swing are juxtaposed with the sense of loss and aching sadness which run through the piece.

Four-time Olivier Award winner Crystal Pite has reimagined her 2008 work Frontier for Ballet BC. Originally created for Nederlands Dans Theater, this new version has been created on an epic scale for 24 dancers. Frontier is a visionary, enigmatic work, a portrait of the invisible forces that move us, with mysterious, black-hooded shadow figures personifying our doubts and fear of the unknown.

Ballet BC’s artistic director, Medhi Walerski says: “I love being able to commission and share this calibre of contemporary dance. And I’m looking forward to being back in the UK. On this tour, I can promise audiences are going to see incredible, versatile, generous dancers on stage and epic works by two of the greatest choreographers of our generation.”