I had the amazing good fortune to meet Christopher Wheeldon, a charming, good-looking, young and wonderfully talented choreographer at a rehearsal of his ballet Mesmerics with George Piper Dances. What a truly fabulous experience to have been able to watch this gifted choreographer work with those, oh, so exciting dancers creating such a beautiful work of art.
"He is ballet's golden boy: a fresh-faced, blond-headed hope for a sometimes dusty artform. And in this earth-mover of a triple-bill for San Francisco Ballet, British-born Christopher Wheeldon (best known as resident choreographer at New York City Ballet) proves all the whispers surrounding his young talent to be true." (The Sunday Herald). How true! He has been called "the new Picasso, the new Mozart, the new JK Rowling, Britain's Balanchine" (The Telegraph)
Christopher Wheeldon was born in Somerset, England. He began his ballet training at 8 years old. At age 11, Chris enrolled in The Royal Ballet School where he trained until he was 18. He joined the Royal Ballet in 1991, that same year, he won the Gold Medal at the Prix de Lausanne competition. In 1993 Chris joined the New York City Ballet. In 1998 he was promoted to the rank of Soloist. Chris retired from dancing during the 2000 season to concentrate on his choreographic work. The New York City Ballet has invited many choreographers to create for them, but in May 2001 Chris achieved an amazing milestone when he was named the first choreographer to hold the title "Resident Choreographer" with the NYCB.
Christopher Wheeldon's dances are known for sensuous movement and intense musicality. His dances are strongly grounded in classical ballet but can also be very modern and abstract. In his short career Chris has already created over 20 ballets, and the San Francisco Ballet did an all Wheeldon program at the 2003 Edinburgh Festival, even though they have their own resident choreographer.
Chris has described the key to creating a ballet such as Polyphonia, perhaps his best known dance, as using the movement of the dancers to unlock, or discover the music. Chris does not go into a choreography with a preconceived notion of what the dance will be like, he uses the music and the dancers together to create the dance. His inspiration for dance movement comes from everywhere, his cat, the way he sees someone on the street move, other dancers, and of course he has been influenced by his own dancing experiences with Ashton, MacMillan, Balanchine and Jerome Robbins.
He is in great demand and will continue to be working with the likes of George Piper Dances, the Royal Ballet, The National Theatre, The Scottish Ballet, the Pennsylvania Ballet, the San Francisco Ballet and, of course, the New York City Ballet.
In 2004, NYCB's European Festival will feature the first world premiere of the spring season choreographed by Christopher. It will be set to a commissioned score by the Scottish composer James MacMillan, who will conduct the NYCB Orchestra for the ballet's world premiere. This will be the tenth ballet that Chris has choreographed for NYCB, and it will also mark the first time ever that he has worked with a composer on a commissioned score.
I wish him all the best. He is a blazing light of talent and originality that creates fresh and inventive ways to make ballet accessible to everyone, but is also appreciated by true ballet and music lovers.
corrival
october 2003 |
