Although professional ballet has had a relatively short history in the Iberian Peninsula, there have been a number of performers who have sought to elevate this art form, including Graça Barroso. Considered one of the finest Portuguese dancers of her generation, the former principal dancer for Ballet Gulbenkian and founder of Companhia Portuguesa de Bailado Contemporâneo died in Lisbon on June 11, aged 62 after a long illness. The niece of actress and activist Maria Barroso, Graça was born in Lisbon and trained with Anna Ivanova and David Boswell at the Escola do Teatro de São Carlos. By 1968 she was working with choreographer Walter Gore at the Ballet Gulbenkian. She left Portugal for … [Read more...] about Graça Barroso: Portugal’s “complete” dancer
ballet
Bringing ballet in from the cold
The news that Nacho Duato will be leaving the Compañía Nacional de Danza (CND) in July after 20 years at the helm ushers in a new era for dance in Spain. His early exit is triggered by the Culture Ministry’s recent and momentous decision that from now on the state company must offer classical and neoclassical dance, instead of just the contemporary choreographies that Duato specializes in. This is in fact what the CND should have been doing all along, Duato’s critics feel, noting that in recent years its artistic director has been running the public company like a private feifdom. By offering to extend his soon-to-expire contract to 2011, the authorities hoped that Duato would agree … [Read more...] about Bringing ballet in from the cold