Preparations are in full swing for Natalia Osipova’s new show with Sadler’s Wells – due to premiere at the London theatre on 29 June until 3 July. This brand new production will show Natalia’s experiments with contemporary dance as she searches for new ways to express herself artistically.

The show is made up of three new pieces choreographed by Sadler’s Wells’ Associate Artists Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Russell Maliphant, alongside Opera House regular Arthur Pita. If their three new pieces aren’t mind blowingly exciting enough – then how about the fact that Natalia will be joined on stage by Sergei Polunin for these world premieres. This will be the first time they have ever danced together in the UK.

So what now? Tickets are already on sale. So if know what’s good for you click here and grab your tickets…

Photo credit: Dana Fouras

Just as the calendars went from 2015 – 2016, m¡longa proved it’s timeless quality as everyone set off to Chile for four performances as part of the Santiago a Mil Festival. The performances went fantastically, and as always it was a smash-hit success with the audience enthralled by the dazzling alternative take on tango.

Pictured above is all of m¡longa’s cast and crew on stage at the Teatro Municipal De Santiago in all their glory.

Dawn Prentice, head of touring was at the House of Lords to celebrate the launch of International Dance Festival Birmingham 2016.

Sadler’s Wells’ Sampled production will head to Birmingham Hippodrome in the New Year. The forecast is rowdy as Sampled is due to bring some of Sadler’s Wells’ own va va voom to the venue with performances in both the main house and the front of house spaces including pre-show activities in the foyer.

The line-up is stellar with performances including Company Wayne McGregor, Birmingham Royal Ballet, BBC Young Dancer finalist Vidya Patel, m¡longa’s world tango champions German Cornejo and Gisela Gallessi, and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s Faun. Therefore Sampled showcases some of the world’s best performers in an array of styles.

Pictured above is Dawn Prentice with Rosie Kay (from Rosie Kay Dance Company), and DanceXchange Associate Artist Roxana Silbert, Birmingham Repertory Theatre.

The m¡longa team left their warm homes in Buenos Aires and flew to Moscow last week – where it was a significant few degrees colder. However, once they arrived in Russia and began their feisty tango moves the city began to melt as it become hot and fiery and filled with South American passion.

Over the course of two performances to a jam packed audiences m¡longa’s universal appeal was evident and that wherever it is being performed in the world, audiences will always give it a standing ovation.

Pictured above is proud choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui catching a selfie with the m¡longa hanging poster outside the Bolshoi Theatre.

Click here to see m¡longa’s touring information.

Sidi Larbi’s m¡longa was in Stuttgart last week where it was performed at Theaterhaus Stuttgart as part of Tanzfestival Colour.

The show went down incredibly well and the audience quite literally wouldn’t stop clapping.

If you’ve seen the show you may well recognise some of the faces pictured above from the stage. But also in this photo the dancers are joined by some of m¡longa’s hard-working technicians and one of our producers and a familiar face on the blog, Sandra.

This week m¡longa is on the stage of The Norwegian Opera House for six performances. The shows have been met by a fantastic response – culminating in all of the audience up on their feet for a standing ovation.

And what a beautiful theatre for a beautiful show: The cast and crew were able to wade through the Fjord and all the way up the slopping roof before delivering the best alternative take on tango that exists.

Next up for m¡longa: Stuttgart.

Sadler’s Wells’ National Youth Dance Company, under the direction of Guest Artistic Director Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui will begin their national UK tour this weekend. Their first stop is mac in Birmingham. The show, Frame[d] is comprised of moments from Cherkaoui’s established catalogue of work including Babel(words) co-choreographed with Damien Jalet, Puz/zle, and Tezuka. However, Frame[d] also incorporates the young dancers’ new ideas and fresh material as well as featuring Antony Gormley’s fabulous steel box sculptures.

Also at mac this Saturday will be an extra Experience Workshop. So if you’re lucky enough to be in Birmingham this weekend definitely don’t miss out on this great opportunity to find out more about the company.

This week m¡longa had its one hundredth performance. This took place at no better location than the Sadler’s Wells stage itself.

Since its premiere m¡longa has visited fifteen different countries at thirty-two different venues, across four different continents. Including New York City Centre, Sydney Opera House, and Theatre du Jorat, in the Swiss Alps where it premiered.

But don’t worry m¡longa is still going strong and it’s tour continues – next stop Stuttgart/Oslo. Keep checking the blog to find out what goes down there.

Photo credit: Andrew Lang

Our very own Sandra Castell-Garcia was behind the mike live on the airwaves on Friday talking all things m¡longa in the run up to the performances at Sadler’s Wells this week. Speaking in her native Spanish, she discussed the show with the presenter.

Want to listen to the show? Click here.

And if you can’t speak Spanish fear not – all you need to know is that as a show, m¡longa is muy muy bien!

James O’Hara and Daisy Phillips performed Faun three times this month as part of La Reunion’s Festival Danse Péi. At this small festival all three of the performances were free of charge and took place outside in public spaces. The outdoor stages certainly added to the forest-like feel of the story and were beautiful spaces for James and Daisy to move both elegantly and animalistically. This alongside the festival atmosphere and Adam Carree’s even more atmospheric lighting meant jam packed audiences surrounded the stages with people craning their necks to try and see the show.

This production of Faun is a reinvention of Nijinski’s ballet. It was made as part of the centenary celebrations of Ballets Russes by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui after Sadler’s Wells asked him to work on or draw inspiration from any piece of the renowned company’s repertoire.