Royal Danish Ballet for Manoel stage

The prestigious Royal Danish Ballet is relishing the prospect of performing in Malta, embraced in the intimate surroundings of the oldest public theatre in Europe.

"It is a privilege to perform at the Manoel Theatre. It is very different from the stages we normally perform on, because of its intimacy," said Peter Bo Bendixen, artistic director of the Royal Danish Ballet's soloists and principals.

The Royal Danish Ballet, one of the oldest major ballet companies, will be accompanied in Malta by Princess Benedikte of Denmark for the show on Easter Sunday, which falls on April 8.

Established at the opening of Denmark's Royal Theatre in Copenhagen in 1748, the company has earned a reputation as one of the finest corps of dancers in the world, incorporating foreign as well as native-born talent.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Mr Bo Bendixen said that since the ballet was committed to present 135 performances a year in Copenhagen, it was usually very hard to take up invitations to tour elsewhere.

"We can only do eight performances a year on tour and these are mainly in New York, the Far East and European stages. However, Noel (Buttigieg-Scicluna, Malta's Ambassador to Denmark) persisted and insisted on making this possible," he said.

Dr Noel Buttigieg-Scicluna believes there's no better way to strengthen ties between the two countries than through culture.

"Past is the time of treaties; diplomats are now using cultural events to strengthen bilateral relations. We were lucky to have the Danish Arts Council support this event," he said.

Mr Bo Bendixen said that ballet students and teachers will have the chance to watch the ballet's rehearsals on the eve of the show.

The 18-strong troupe of soloists and principals will perform George Balanchine's new classical ballet Apollo; Rim Rushton's Triplex, new movements danced to classical music; Auguste Bournonville's signature works including La Sylphide, and Act III of Napoli, as well as colourful tarantellas and pieces from Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake.

Manoel Theatre chairman Wilfred Kenely said that this performance will be mentioned for many years to come and advised people to book early.

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