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Carmen ready or not


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Carmen ready or not
By Xiao Changyan (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-09-21 08:10

Carmen, the steamy stage show by the Alberta Ballet, will return the
Beijing stage this week, bringing with it the flamenco dance
choreography, red skirts and thick eyeliner that won it a reputation as a
sexy stage show. It will be the third time that Alberta Ballet, Canada's
third-largest ballet company, will wow Chinese audiences with their
unique ballet style, which combines classic ballet, modern ballet and
Spanish dance.

The troupe made its first trip to Beijing in 1998 and returned in 2004
for the resounding success that was Beijing's first International Dance
Festival.

Since its founding in 1966, the ballet company has won acclaim for its
eclectic, bold and youthful programming.

Building on a rich repertoire that includes the ballets of such masters
as George Balanchine, Rudi van Dantzig and Canada's Brian Macdonald,
Alberta Ballet's internationally renowned artistic director Jean
Grand-Maitre has skillfully placed his own dramatic and visual stamp on
the company's productions. In 2003, he choreographed and premiered Carmen
- a full-length classical ballet adapted from Prosper Merimee's novella
and Bizet's ever-popular opera in 2003. Since then, the piece has become
one of the Alberta Ballet's most beloved productions and has toured
extensively.

"The passion of Carmen in her vivid red dress, the pounding music and the
sheer energy of the dancers were too in-your-face to leave anyone
indifferent," said Grand-Maitre. "Our troupe swept aside whatever
East-West cultural divides exist to tell a story so dramatic that it
didn't matter a wit what culture you grew up in; it was simply good
entertainment."

The performance on September 25 and 26 in Tiaoqiao Theater will be the
last shows of the ballet's China tour, after a hugely successful run in
Hangzhou and Shanghai.

80-680 yuan. 7:30pm, Sep 25, 26, Tiaoqiao Theater, 30 Beiwei Lu, Xuanwu
District. 8315-6170. 天桥剧场, 宣武区北纬路30号

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