All World Dance: News for Lovers of Dance

Nathan Barnatt Rocks! in Yelle's Comme Un Enfant (Freaks Remix) & Madeon's Pop Culture

Nathan Barnatt in Yelle's Comme Un Enfant (Freaks Remix)
[Source: Nathan Barnatt]

Why have I not heard of Nathan Barnatt till now? This guy is great!

Look, this isn't going to become the All The World's Nutty Dancers blog but I am so busy sorting out my other business that I haven't been able to do my readers justice. That won't always be the case but, till then, posting stuff that's just too cool not to post will be the game.

Nathan Barnatt & Jenny Fine in Madeon's Pop Culture
[Source: Nathan Barnatt]

I do like him best when he's wilding out. The repetitive side-to-side stuff will wear thin after awhile. Still, Barnatt's a lot of fun.

Mashable has a bit more background.

Official Sites: YouTube ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

Filipino Traffic Cop Dances While He Works

Filipino Traffic Cop Doing His Job Like A Boss

Nice collection of footage of the dancing traffic cop in action. I've seen videos of this guy before and there seem to be lots on YouTube. What a great way to get famous.

I used to have fantasies of moving to Tokyo and dancing every day or week in a spot with a lot of tourists. If you were interesting enough (or weird, in my case) you could get world famous doing that. But I guess fame just wasn't enough motivation for me to make that happen!

Does this qualify as "street dance"?

Robots Wish You Happy Year of the Water Dragon!

Chinese New Year 2012 Dancing Robots [Source: Gizchina]

Hoped to be back in action by now but, no fault to the Water Dragon, had some water leakage at my office that's thrown everything off schedule.

A Taoist teacher I know pulled the I Ching hexagram "Biting Through" for January 19 through 23 and, indeed, I am having to summon quite a bit of tenacity heading into this New Year.

So be it. I'm still planning on having a great 2012 and I hope you will do the same!

Happy Holidays! See You in 2012!

Deer Meets Cat [Source: Viral/Facebook]

I'm sure I'll have more dance news to post before the year's over but I just want to wish All World Dance readers Happy Holidays!

Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker! Tours UK & Ireland

Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker! on DVD [Source: Amazon]

"Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker!" is currently holding court at Sadler's Wells in London through January 22nd with a whole series of dates to follow in the UK and Ireland deep into 2012.

The "irreverent" production premiered in 1992, on the hundredth anniversary of the first performance of "The Nutcracker", and is now in the midst of its own 20th Anniversary tour!

Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker! Promo Montage [Source: New Adventures]

Bourne's Nutcracker opens with a Christmas party staged in a "bittersweet" location in order to make later sweets that much more desirable. As Matthew Bourne describes it:

"We came up [with] the notion of an awful Dickensian orphanage, enjoying the annual Christmas Eve visit of the Institute’s Governors. Dr Dross and his wife, who run the orphanage, contrive to create a pleasant Christmas atmosphere for the benefit of the visitors, only to snatch the Governors gifts back from the children as soon as they leave and before Christmas day has even begun."

"Clara is, of course, one of the Orphans and the Nutcracker boy is a fellow orphan on whom she has a young girls crush. Fritz and Sugar are the Dross’ awful spoilt children who terrorise the other children. So the basis for the whole story developed out of this grim and fearful place. I should say, though, that as well as having this bittersweet quality it is also very funny, and when the Orphans eventually revolt and escape from the clutches of Dr Dross you want to cheer them on."

Official Site: Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker!

Available at Amazon: Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker! on DVD

Related All World Dance Coverage:
The Nutcracker - All Posts at All World Dance
The Hard Nut: A Mark Morris Nutcracker

The National Ballet of Canada Presents The Nutcracker

The Nutcracker Trailer [Source: The National Ballet of Canada]

The National Ballet of Canada is performing "The Nutcracker" in Toronto through January 3rd.

The current production first premiered in 1995:

"with choreography by James Kudelka and sets and costumes by Santo Loquasto. The story is told through the eyes of sister and brother Marie and Misha who are played by students from Canada’s National Ballet School."

The Nutcracker - Backstage [Source: The National Ballet of Canada]

More from the official site:

"Kudelka's gentle re-shaping of the narrative releases the story (based on E.T.A. Hoffmann's Christmas tale) into new thematic territory. Follow the quarrelling siblings Misha and Marie as they move not just through marvellous and extraordinary experiences but through surprising phases of understanding as they prepare to leave childhood behind and enter the very different world of adolescence."

"The costumes and sets by Santo Loquasto themselves cast a spell, evoking an enchanted, rustic world of long-gone Imperial Russia, a place where folk rituals and the cycles of nature make way for the magical, ice-coated world of the Snow Queen and the spectacular beauty of the golden palace of the Sugar Plum Fairy."

Related All World Dance Coverage:
The Nutcracker - All Posts at All World Dance

English National Ballet Presents Wayne Eagling's The Nutcracker at The London Coliseum

Highlights from Wayne Eagling's The Nutcracker
[Source: English National Ballet]

English National Ballet is in the midst of a run of Wayne Eagling's "The Nutcracker" at the London Coliseum through December 30.

The production features choreography by Wayne Eagling to Tchaikovsky's classic score. It's based on a "concept by Toer van Schayk and Wayne Eagling" with scenic design by Peter Farmer and lighting by David Richardson.

From Wayne Eagling's The Nutcracker [Photo: Annabel Moeller]

English National Ballet has already made quite a few appearances at All World Dance:

English National Ballet's Summer Party to Include Designer Tutu Auction
(Plus Shoes & Tiaras!)

English National Ballet Restages Strictly Gershwin

English National Ballet Dancers Help Sufferers of Parkinson's Disease

Official Site: English National Ballet - The Nutcracker

Related All World Dance Coverage:
The Nutcracker - All Posts at All World Dance

Dutch National Ballet Presents The Nutcracker & the Mouse King in Cinemas

The Nutcracker & the Mouse King in Cinemas [Source: Het Nationale Ballet]

Het Nationale Ballet aka the Dutch National Ballet is presenting The Nutcracker & the Mouse King in theaters worldwide on December 30.

The film will be shown in Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Spain, United Kingdom and Switzerland.

You can find out more on The Nutcracker & the Mouse King in theaters at Het Nationale Ballet's site. If you don't speak Dutch but do speak English, here's a translated version.

Via TenduTV.

Related All World Dance Coverage:
The Nutcracker - All Posts at All World Dance
TenduTV Presents Nutcracker Trailers 2011
TenduTV Brings Dutch National Ballet's Don Quichot (Don Quixote) to iTunes

TenduTV Presents Nutcracker Trailers 2011

Nutcracker Trailers 2011 [Source:TenduTV]

Tendu TV has created a YouTube playlist of trailers for The Nutcracker. It's composed of mostly U.S. companies, though I'm guessing they'll be adding additional trailers as they come in, but also includes the film by the Dutch National Ballet.

You can watch the whole series above or pick and choose at YouTube.

Official Site: YouTube: TenduTV

Related All World Dance Coverage:
The Nutcracker - All Posts at All World Dance
TenduTV Brings Dutch National Ballet's Don Quichot (Don Quixote) to iTunes

Stephen Colbert in The Nutcracker w/Special Guests David Hallberg & Hee Seo

David Hallberg, Hee Seo & Stephen Colbert in a Variation from The Nutcracker [Source: Colbert Nation]

Stephen Colbert does surprisingly well for himself on The Colbert Report in this variation from The Nutcracker starring David Hallberg and Hee Seo of the American Ballet Theatre.

David Hallberg Spars with Stephen Colbert [Source: Colbert Nation]

David Hallberg, who was inspired by Fred Astaire, was a special guest on The Colbert Report due to recently beginning work with The Bolshoi Ballet.

I'm no David Hallberg but Fred Astaire was also an important inspiration for my decision to study dance!

Official Site: Colbert Nation

Related All World Dance Coverage:
The Nutcracker - All Posts at All World Dance
ABT's David Hallberg: First American to Join Bolshoi Ballet