Ballet Icons Gala 2025
© Like Nobody’s Watching
I went into my second Ballet Icons Gala with trepidation.
Not because my first experience last year was bad per say, but because the quality of the production struggled to justify the price tag (a good proportion of the tickets are over £60). The programme was overwhelming, with one too many contemporary works that didn’t land, there were random awards no-one seemed to understand, and the production felt under-rehearsed (admittedly a risk for a one-off show featuring an international cast: for those uninitiated, Ballet Icons Gala’s USP is bringing international ballet stars under one roof for one night only). I genuinely wasn’t sure if I would return.
Alas, my arm was twisted by a persuasive friend (jokes, it didn’t take much, I was a ballet addict in need of a fix), and I returned for round two.
And I am pleased to report that this year was a lot better.
Yes the awkward awards returned, but the programme (still three hours) felt slightly more succinct and less overwhelming. There were, however, still 15 works to digest over the evening, so let’s waste no more time and get into some speed reviews…
The night opened with the first of many Grand Pas de Deux (big duets that normally close classical ballets). We were in safe hands with William Bracewell and darling of the dance world Marianela Nuñez who assuredly performed the wedding duet from The Sleeping Beauty.
We were treated to the entire back catalogue of gala-favourite ‘Grand Pas’ over the evening. The Black Swan pas de deux from Swan Lake was given some lovely breath by Madison Young (partnered by Victor Caixeta) although were let down by the orchestra on occasion. Equally steady were the Grand Pas Classique (performed by Nicoletta Manni and Timofej Andrijashenko), and the Don Quixote pas (Maia Makhateli and Timothy van Poucke). The Delibes Suite was a rare treat from Iana Salenko and David Motta Soares (both equally light footed) as was Laurencia, although I’m not sure the partnership between Mayara Magri (who gave a sunny interpretation) and powerhouse Giorgi Potskishvili was a good match.
Potskishvili was a revelation alongside Natalia Osipova in last year’s gala when he performed Don Quixote, and he delivered not once, but twice this year. He and Anna Tsygankova both gave attack to the UK premiere of Mthuthuzeli November’s Thando.
We were also presented with three other classical works. Margarita Fernandes and António Casalinho returned to perform Diana and Acteon, a work I would now love to see in full due to the crossbow-flourishes in the choreography. We also had extracts from Balanchine’s Rubies, which needed a little more attack from Maria Kochetkova and Osiel Gouneo, and Giselle, performed by newly promoted American Ballet Theatre Principal Chloe Misseldine and The Royal Ballet’s Reece Clarke.
On the whole, the contemporary works this year were a lot stronger, although one too many lamented lost love and longing. The UK premiere of Sebastian Kloborg’s Once I had a Love (performed by Koborg with Maria Kochetkova) was a revelation in its combination of frantic limbs and Blondie’s ‘Heart of Glass’. Less successful were Mara Galeazzi’s Toujours (danced with Jason Kittelberger) and A Standing by choreographic duo Pett/Clausen Knight (performed alongside Marie-Agnès Gillot. James Pett was a standout here) which both needed stronger narratives. Meanwhile, Matthew Ball’s To & Fro (performed with Mayara Magri) was captivating if a little hurried. Juanjo Argués’ Fordlândia (performed by Lucía Lacarra and Matthew Golding) had a stronger narrative and I enjoyed the use of billowing fabric to mimic the video of the sea on screen, but the atmospheric music did little to deepen the impact of the choreography accompanying it.
However, the standout of the night was easily La Corsaire. Always a crowd pleaser, with many meaty jumps for the male lead, the ballet is top of my bucket list (English National Ballet are the only UK company to perform it however, so it could be on the list for a while... Anyway, I digress). Inès Macintosh was an assured Medora, but the star was Shale Wagman. He truly justified his new appointment to the Paris Opera Ballet with incredible intention to his movement and pocket-rocket energy that soared every leap high into the sky.
Curtain call for Ballet Icons Gala © Like Nobody’s Watching
While the gala was stronger this year, I don’t know if it convinced me to return a third time. The night promises to bring many of the world’s biggest ballet stars to London for one night only. And it does. But, to an extent, once you’ve been once, you’ve seen most of it. Many of the stars were the same as last year, as were many of the classical dances (notably La Corsaire and Don Quixote, which closed both evenings). As well as more variety, the programme also needs development. The spread of contemporary and classical ballet could be more even, and the mix of classical styles more varied. Seven Grand Pas de Deux is excessive and gets repetitive when so many follow the same formula and steps. Some mid-century classical works, whose pas de deux are still iconic but follow different formulae (think the balcony duet from MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet) could have helped here. There could also have been more tonal variety in the contemporary selection.
However, make no mistake, Ballet Icons Gala is a solid night out for those wanting a pick-and-mix evening of ballet performed by some of the greatest living dancers. Just don’t ask me what the awards mean.
★★★★
Ballet Icons Gala 2025
London Coliseum / 9 March 2025
Ticket purchased with my own money
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