Since its premier in February 1991, this production of Romeo and Juliet, directed by Christopher Gable CBE and choreographed by Massimo Moricone, to the score by Prokofiev, has had more than its fair share of ups and downs, to say the least.
On the up side it has become Northern Ballet’s greatest success, being performed over the years, both at home and abroad, more than 500 times, along with a Christmas Day screening on BBC2 in 1992. The work was Northern Ballet’s inaugural full-length production and the first new version of the piece in over a decade.
William Walker and Jayne Regan as Romeo and Juliet from 1991. Photo Anthony Crickmay/Northern Ballet
The company’s archive, donated to the University of Leeds in 2001, traces its development since inception in Manchester in 1969, when it was known as Northern Dance Theatre. There have since been six Artistic Directors, four locations in Manchester, Halifax and Leeds and three company names.
Insofar as the downsides are concerned, there have been two major setbacks; first, in 2001, just three weeks before opening night, an arsonist struck at the storage facility where the archives, including many of the costumes, were held; and then on Boxing Day 2015 when the River Aire burst its banks for the first time since 1866 and flooded a warehouse. Archive material, props and sets relating to fifteen productions, including Romeo and Juliet, were damaged.
Morning Serenade Boys costumes from the original production in 1991. Photograph Stan Graham.
The inhabitants of God’s Own County are not ones to let setbacks like this bother us, so the set, props and costumes were recreated to Lez Brotherstone’s original designs, the cost of which was supported by a public appeal and, guided by the late Christopher Gable’s painstaking notation, the staging has remained true to his original vision.
Autographed ballet shoes and the stage plan of Leeds Grand Theatre. Photograph Stan Graham
It must be said that this exhibition is only a small part of the archive and, to mark its run at Leeds Grand Theatre from Friday, 8th March to Saturday, 16th March, 2024, concentrates solely on this one work in Northern Ballet’s repertoire.
A royal visitor being introduced to the cast and creatives in 1991. Photograph by Linda Rich. Photograph of the photograph by Stan Graham! According to the Telegraph, there may be a royal couple at the opening on Friday as well.
For further details of Preserving The Passion: Northern Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet, which runs at The Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery in the University of Leeds until 23rd March, 2024, click on https://library.leeds.ac.uk/events/event/692/preserving-the-passion-northern-ballets-romeo-and-juliet Admission is free,
For other exhibitions and events at the University of Leeds go to https://library.leeds.ac.uk/info/1900/galleries
For more details of the performances of Romeo and Juliet at Leeds Grand Theatre, please go to https://leedsheritagetheatres.com/whats-on/nb-romeo-and-juliet-2024/
For all things Northern Ballet it is https://northernballet.com
Feature image Stan Graham
Tyke It To The Limit 