Performances

All dancers have the opportunity to participate in the performances of the “Ballet Arts Company” onstage with guest artists of the Royal NZ Ballet”.

An annual season of full-length ballets featuring guest dancers from tertiary training studios & professional companies in NZ & Australia. Reviewed as "innovative, elegant & great fun' and 'a rare & magical treat' these shows have sold out since 2002. Guest artists appearing from the Royal NZ Ballet include Sir Jon Trimmer and Jacob Chown, Adriana Harper, Katie Hirst-Saxton, Leonora Voigtlander, Brendan Bradshaw, William Fitzgerald, Vivencio Samblaceno. Programmes have included full length "Don Quixote", Coppelia" and" The Nutcracker". “Aurora’s Wedding”, “Pas de Quatre” and excerpts from Le Corsaire, “Napoli” & Swan Lake, and a contemporary 'Up-Close & Classical Extreme'.

An original production of 'Scenes from the Ballet Russe' and "Dancing with the Tsar" screened nationally on Sky Arts Channel. Our guest dancers have gone on to dance principal roles with the RNZ Ballet, to compete at the Priz de Lausanne Switzerland, to study in England and in performing arts schools in Australia, to contracts with companies in Australia and the European Union.

Our performances have been sponsored annually since 2003 by Mr Murray Sturgeon CEO of Nelson Pine Industries, a major sponsor of the Royal NZ Ballet,

Cinderella - 2022

This was the the rags to royalty journey of Cinderella as she dances and transforms with the help of her Fairy Godmother, alongside her mouse friends and seasonal fairies. Cinderella’s fashionable and sometimes comedic stepsisters and her evil stepmother, who is repulsed by Cinderella’s natural charm and beauty will go to any lengths to win over the prince.Meanwhile the prince will dance his way on a quest to find true love.
Guest dancers were:
Ollie Carruthers, Footnote Dance Company
Persia Thor-Poet, 3rd year NZSD
Callum Phipps, Ballet Collective Aotearoa
Tayla Briggs, graduate Classical Ballet 121

Nutcracker - 2019

The Ballet Arts company presented the full-length Nutcracker at the historic Theatre Royal Nelson, a fairytale dream in music based on the theme of childhood from the greatest of ballet composers.

Storybook Narration, Enchanting Images, Cinematic Effects, and all the magic of the Russian Ballet Tradition. Couture costuming was handmade in the USA, UK and Australia for this production.

The production featured two 2019 Graduates of the NZ School of Dance Wellington, Jordan Lennon and Callum Phipps, and Oliver Carruthers now with Footnote Dance Company. Laeticia Austin starred as Clara. She is now full-time at the London School of Russian Ballet. Georgia Noriss, as the Snow Queen, is in her 3rd year as a Ballet Associate of the NZSD and SI Award winner and former student Crista Saunders is now a full-time scholarship student of Chilton Academy Wellngton.

The production again feature Adriana Harper, former of the Royal NZ Ballet, and Andre Vegas, awarded the Entertainment Award of Excellance at the New Zealand Variety 2019 Awards.

Tchaikovsky - 2018

Due to the huge and enduring popularity of the musical genius Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, we presented another show of his works in 2018. We were thrilled yet again to have stars from the Royal NZ Ballet joining us on stage for this performance including Jacob Chown who starred as Tchaikovsky.

Alice - 2017

Art Image by Shu. See more art http://shu-littlebit.com/

“Alice”
Director Louise Hawke presents The Ballet Arts Company
Sir Jon Trimmer As Lewis Carroll
Laeticia Austin as Alice
Andre the Illusionist & Adriana Harper Royal NZ Ballet
An imaginative new Ballet, of a favorite childhood dream.

Tchaikovsky 2016

The DVD of highlights from this show is available. Cost is $30.

Guests from the Royal NZ Ballet
Paul Mathews, Katie Hurst-Saxon, Leonora Voightlander,
Huang-Shih Huai

"I have researched, designed and choreographed an original ballet production based on the progression of Tchaikovsky’s ballet compositions around the very personal letters he exchanged with his Baronness sponsor. An entertaining and insightful way to showcase four of the most exciting grands pas de deux in the Russian ballet heritage and to pay tribute to the man who wrote the music that fills dancers hearts, and the woman who had the insight to pay for it!
This original ballet production reveals anguish and artistry told in the composer’s own words. The haunting themes for Swan Lake were composed for his nieces to play to. His marriage proved disastrous. A mysterious Baronness was his devoted sponsor. They chose never to meet. Their letters reveal his anguished personal story.
I had four principal dancers from the RNZB. Paul Mathews and Katie Hurst-Saxton both kiwis, Liang Shih-Huai from China, Leonora Voigtlander of the USA. And Adriana Harper, recently married to Andre Vegas the Illusionist, will both feature in our storyline.
The spectacular pas de deux were danced onstage before live screened images from previous shows, and montage of historical images of the Baronness, Tchaikovsky and his disastrous wife.
The story was told by narration in the voices of Tchaikovsky and the Baronness. Members of the Russian community in Nelson read the script. The Baronness is Russian. Ballet trained in Russia, she now sends her little girl to classes at the Academy of Ballet Arts. And, of course, Sir Jon Trimmer was Tchaikovsky!
An intensely loyal, creative pool of talented kiwis continues to support my productions both onstage and in technical expertise. My productions are a blend of feature film and documentary technique combined with live classical ballet. It is innovative, unique in the world of international ballet and certainly in NZ making ballet both accessible and very entertaining.
The two performances were in the newly re-furbished Suter Theatre, where the Up-Close & Classical Company began 14 years ago. The company continues to appreciate sponsorship from Mr Murray Sturgeon of Nelson Pine Industries. Sold out audiences loved “The Nutcracker” in 2014, and “Aurora’s Wedding” in 2015. They loved “Tchaikovsky”, as do all dancers worldwide."
- Louise Hawke