The final big names from the world of dance have been confirmed for fundraising gala Empower in Motion – A Ballet Inclusive from charity Children Today.
Further details have also been released of some of the already announced performers who will take to the stage at London’s iconic dance venue Sadler’s Wells on 7th February. The star-studded evening will bring together both disabled and non-disabled dancers performing classical and contemporary pieces which celebrate resilience, unity and inclusivity. All proceeds raised will go to Children Today’s work providing care, support and specialised equipment to children and young people with disabilities across the UK.
The new additions to the line-up are a never seen before performance of a new contemporary work The Owl Falls by acclaimed international dancer, choreographer and former Danish Dance Theatre fellow Sebastian Kloborg, which will be performed by former San Francisco Ballet principal dancer Maria Kochetkova and Daniil Simkin, principal dancer previously associated with the American Ballet Theatre and Berlin State Ballet. The evening will see another first, as gala ambassador Joseph Powell-Main will give his first ever performance of Passionately Defiant, a piece he has created especially for the gala which is inspired by his unique dance journey. Joseph is the first dancer using a wheelchair and crutches to perform with The Royal Ballet company. He’s also a former UK Para Dance Champion. Also newly confirmed are the English National Ballet’s Lead Principal Sangeun Lee and First Soloist Gareth Haw who will perform a Pas de Deux from classic Romantic ballet Giselle.
Further details on already confirmed performers and performances:
- – Daniil Simkin and Principal Dancer from the Birmingham Royal Ballet Yaoqian Shang will perform
together for the first time dancing a section of ballet adventure Le Corsaire
- – Stopgap Dance Company, internationally renowned for its innovative efforts in advancing disability
access in the realm of dance, will perform two distinctive works; Tight Textures and Unplugged. Tight Textures is an ensemble work which is part spoken word and part dance which carries the audience forward with powerful choreography and thumping music and Unplugged is performed by Senior Dance Artist and Contemporary Wheelchair Dance Teacher and Choreographer Nadenh Poan, one of the most exciting and dynamic wheelchair dancers working in the British contemporary dance scene. Both pieces were created by Stopgap’s Co-Artistic Director Lucy Bennett in collaboration with a team of Deaf, Disabled, neurodivergent, and non-disabled artists. Creative audio description is interwoven throughout the performance, delivered on stage by Stopgap’s Access Artist Lily Norton
- – The Royal Ballet School will perform Ode to a Love Lost, a piece developed for The Frederick Ashton Emerging Choreographer programme, a prestigious choreographic opportunity designed to spotlight emerging artists
- – Dancers Grace Thompson and Zak Smith from National Youth Ballet and Parable Dance will perform a pas de deux from Romeo & Juliet against the backdrop of a projection of a compelling film directed by Kate Church showcasing the work of their All In! Performance Company
Disability campaigner, podcaster, Junior Doctor and Children Today Patron Grace Spence Green will host the event. Grace sustained a spinal cord injury in 2018 aged 22 during her fourth year as a medical student and is now a full-time wheelchair user. She is passionate about medicine, advocacy for the disabled community and challenging ableism, the stigma surrounding disability and inaccessible spaces and would love to see better and much more inclusive representation for disabled people in all walks of life, particularly in medicine and the media. She is planning to run a pioneering course for fourth year medical students on medicine and disability.
Already confirmed are:
- – A further piece from gala ambassador Joseph Powell-Main who will perform a duet from The
Sleepwalker, a contemporary reimagining of La Sonnambula, alongside leading dance artist Hannah Rudd which has been devised by Alexander Campbell, Principal of the Royal Ballet with choreography by fellow Principal artist of The Royal Ballet, Kristen McNally and composed by Sophie Cotton
- – A Soloist from Propel Dance, the UK’s pioneering first all-wheelchair professional dance company, will perform The Snow Queen title role
- – Alice Bellini, an award-winning First Artist at English National Ballet, will grace the stage in a captivating performance of Reunion, which looks at separation during the Coronavirus lockdown. She will be partnered with Denecia Allen, a dancer from icandance, a visionary company committed to providing therapeutic dance opportunities for children, young people, and families with lived experience of disabilities.
Children Today is committed to making a positive impact on the lives of disabled children and young individuals across the UK. The charity is devoted to supporting disabled children and their families by providing essential support and life-changing equipment from adapted trikes and buggies to sensory equipment such equipment often enables better access to education, work and leisure activities, resulting in both improved physical health and mental-wellbeing.
