By Kwon Ji-youn
“K-Ballet World,” Korea’s most appraised international ballet festival, mounted its 14-day run on Aug. 15, but the real festivities begin today with opening acts by Korea’s most-prestigious ballet troupes.
If the first week featured events for youth and young dancer aspirants, the second week will offer more members of the community a chance to enjoy performances, classes and lectures by celebrated ballet figures.
The opening and gala acts this weekend will feature the country’s big-three ballet companies, as well as reputed troupes from Russia, Germany and the U.S.
Korea National Ballet principal dancers Kim Ji-young and Kim Hyun-woong will feature as Odile and Prince Siegfried in the Black Swan pas de deux from “Swan Lake,” while the Universal Ballet Company dancers will stage the Rose Adagio from “Sleeping Beauty.” The Seoul Ballet Theater has prepared a full-act modern ballet, the “Tango for Ballet,” which premiered at the first Korea Ballet Festival. The four performances will deal with death, love and passion, loneliness and birth.
The Bolshoi Ballet, a renowned Russian classical ballet company, will feature principal dancer Anastasia Stashkevich and leading soloist Vyacheslav Lopatin in the “Don Quixote” grand pas de deux. The Stuttgart Ballet, a leading Germany troupe, will headline principal dancers Elisa Badenes and Constantine Allen in Katarzyna Kozielska’s “Bite,” an intense pas de deux that examines the constantly changing dynamics between two people.
The Peridance Contemporary Dance Company’s Lijoi Leigh and Dionne Craig will star in a duet from the ballet “Twilight,” originally choreographed by the company’s founder, Igal Perry, for the Joffrey II dancers in 2005.
On Tuesday, rookie choreographers including Shin Hyun-ji, Lee Won-chul and Won Joo-yeon will stage their creative productions, and on Aug. 27-28, the Peridance Contemporary Dance Company will join the Jo Joo Hyun Ballet for a special collaboration.
A community ballet session will take place on Aug. 26, while outdoor ballet concerts on the Marronnier Park outdoor stage on Aug. 22-23.
K-Ballet World has its roots in the 2006 Asia-Pacific Ballet Festival, hosted by the Korea Ballet Association. Under the theme “ballet for everyone,” this year’s festival invited world-class ballet companies and Korean ballet stars to perform at various venues in Seoul, with the aim of making ballet more accessible to the public.