Programmes
With-IN by Luis Cabrera
Luis Cabrera examines the raw emotions of fear, loss and longing in his new creation.
Born in Marikina, Philippines, Luis Cabrera began his training at Philippine High School for the Arts. He danced with Ballet Manila and Ballet Philippines before attending The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts on scholarship, where he graduated with a diploma in Dance in 2015. Cabrera joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet the same year.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Cabrera has danced in John Meehan's Swan Lake, Cynthia Harvey’s The Sleeping Beauty, Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, Pär Isberg’s Pinocchio, Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet, Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias, George Balanchine’s Serenade, Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort and Sechs Tänze, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Jorma Elo's Shape of Glow, Fei Bo’s Shenren Chang and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread. Prior to joining the Company, he has also danced in Nonoy Froilan’s restaged Giselle, Carlo Pacis’ restaged A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Marius Petipa’s The Sleeping Beauty and Alice Reye’s Rama Hari.
Infinity Awaits by He Chaoya# & Li Jiabo
Set in old Shanghai, a woman waits for her long-lost lover. Why does she do this if she knows he will probably never show up?
Following the success of last year’s Night Thoughts, He Chaoya and Li Jiabo come together again to create this new piece with Chinese dance elements especially for the Hong Kong Ballet dancers.
A graduate of the Guangzhou Dance School’s Chinese Dance Department, He Chaoya received a full scholarship to study at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. He was a recipient of gold medals at the National Minorities Performance Gala, Guangdong Song of Youth Dance Competition and the Guangzhou Architecture Cup National Social Dance Competition (Youth category).
He joined the Hong Kong Dance Company in 2007 and was featured in various pas de deux including Antelopes of the Snow in Dance Roots, Shadow in Red–Red or Black in Two Swallows–Ode to Wu Guanzhong, Hometown in Pop Classics: Joseph Koo’s Dance Melodies 2013, Love Song with Drums in Dream of the Past: Ancient Chinese Court Dances and Fluttering Hearts in Kaleidoscope of Dance from Yunnan. He also played the role of Old Zhou in Plateau Bluebells and Young Master in Red Poppies (2014 re-run).
His recent co-choreographed work Night Thoughts was presented at Hong Kong Ballet’s Choreographers’ Showcase 2016.
#With kind permission of Hong Kong Dance Company
Born in Shanghai, China, Li Jiabo trained at Shanghai Far East Ballet School and The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. He joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet in 2005, was named Soloist in 2012 and became Principal Dancer in 2014.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Li has danced principal and featured roles including Prince Siegfried in John Meehan’s Swan Lake, Prince Désiré and Blue Bird in Cynthia Harvey’s The Sleeping Beauty, Basilio in Nina Ananiashvili’s Don Quixote, Prince in both Stephen Jefferies’ and Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Geppetto in Pär Isberg’s Pinocchio, Prince in David Allan’s Cinderella, Romeo in Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet, Camille in Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow, Armand in Val Caniparoli’s Lady of the Camellias, Pao Yu in Wang Xin Peng’s The Dream of the Red Chamber, Prince Calaf in Natalie Weir’s Turandot and José in Memory in Yuh Egami and Hu Song Wei Ricky's Carmen. He has also been featured in George Balanchine’s Serenade, Jiří Kylián’s Petite Mort, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Christian Spuck’s Le Grand Pas de Deux, William Forsythe’s Steptext, Jorma Elo’s Shape of Glow, Fei Bo’s A Room of Her Own and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread.
Since joining the Company, Li has presented choreographic works at Hong Kong Ballet’s Choreographers’ Showcase, including Night Thoughts (2016) with He Chaoya, Keep Watch (2015), Going Home (2014), Unable to Rewind (2012) and Ambush (2008). He also choreographed Something We Always Carry (2013).
Li’s international guest appearances include Ballett Dortmund, Germany in 2015, where he reprised his role as Pao Yu in Wang Xin Peng’s The Dream of the Red Chamber, Prix Benois de la Danse Gala at the Bolshoi Theatre, Russia in 2014, The International Dance Gala in Weisbaden, Germany in 2011 and the 4th International Ballet Festival Gala in Cali, Colombia in 2010.
Demons by Hu Song Wei Ricky
Extracted from and inspired by everyday life, award-winning dancer/choreographer Hu Song Wei Ricky depicts living with humans and demons in his new piece.
Born in Jiangxi, China, Hu Song Wei Ricky trained at Shanghai Dance School, LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts in Singapore and The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. Hu joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet in 2008 and was named Coryphée in 2015.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Hu has danced featured roles including Carabosse in Cynthia Harvey’s The Sleeping Beauty and Timur in Natalie Weir’s Turandot. He has also performed in both Stephen Jefferies’ and Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Nina Ananiashvili’s Don Quixote, Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, Pär Isberg’s Pinocchio, Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet, Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Fei Bo’s Shenren Chang and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread.
His choreographic works include Carmen (2017) with Yuh Egami for the Company; Look Up 2.0 (2016) and Look Up (2015), by the invitation of National University of Singapore Arts Festival; Horn (2014) and White Lies (2012) with Yuh Egami, Voicing (2011) and Twins (2010) for Hong Kong Ballet’s Choreographers’ Showcase; The Frog Prince–A Ballet Chinois (2013) as Associate Choreographer with Yuh Egami to Yuri Ng; Rush (2013), Play with Abandon (2012) for Hong Kong Arts Festival; Blank Space (2013) by the invitation of Re: Dance Theatre (RDT) in Singapore; and Lost in Memory (2013) for D. Lab Dance Shanghai.
His work Bolero (2015) with Yuh Egami, performed by the Company, won Outstanding Ensemble Performance at the Hong Kong Dance Awards 2016. He also received the Award for Young Artist in Dance at the Hong Kong Arts Development Awards in 2012.
Same Old Joe by Lucas Jerkander
"Leukemia is a group of cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and results in high numbers of abnormal white blood cells."
Without finding a donor for a bone marrow transplant, it's a life and death struggle with the disease. Lucas Jerkander creates Same Old Joe which is inspired by real events and uses the voice of ballet dancer Joesph Bunn.
Born in Gothenburg, Sweden, Lucas Jerkander trained at The Royal Swedish Ballet School and was a member of Slovenian National Ballet in 2007. He joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet in 2014, was named Coryphée in 2015 and became Soloist in 2016.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Jerkander has danced principal and featured roles including Von Rothbart in John Meehan's Swan Lake, Gepetto in Pär Isberg’s Pinocchio, Armand Duval in Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias, Tybalt and Paris in Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet, Egyptian Doll in Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Von Rothbart in Natalia Conus’ Swan Lake Act III, Lion in Alexei Ratmansky’s Le Carnaval des Animaux, and Pas de Trois in Fei Bo’s A Room of Her Own, Man and Factory Boss in Yuh Egami and Hu Song Wei Ricky’s Bolero and Carmen respectively. He has also danced in Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Krzysztof Pastor’s In Light and Shadow, Jorma Elo's Shape of Glow, Fei Bo’s Shenren Chang and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread. Before joining the Company, he has danced lead roles in Irek Mukhamedov’s The Sleeping Beauty and Don Quixote, David Dawson’s Giselle, Yuri Vamos’ The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet, August Bournonville’s La Sylphide, George Balanchine’s Serenade and Apollo, and Jiří Kylián’s Svadebka.
Jerkander was invited to perform the role of Nutcracker in Isberg’s The Nutcracker at the Busan-Korea Gala in 2013.
L'espoir by Leung Chunlong
“The night is long but it will meet the day.”
Hope is beautiful yet distant. It also drives us to do our utmost even through great hardship. Leung Chunlong’s new work illustrates what hope personally means to him.
Born in Hong Kong, Leung Chunlong graduated from Beijing Dance Academy in 2009 and from The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 2011, with a concentration in Ballet. He joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet the same year and was named Coryphée in 2014.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Leung has danced principal and featured roles including Pinocchio in Pär Isberg’s Pinocchio, Fritz and Rat King in Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Jewels in Cynthia Harvey’s The Sleeping Beauty, and Gaston in Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias. He has also performed in John Meehan's Swan Lake, Nina Ananiashvili’s Don Quixote, Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, Natalie Weir’s Turandot, George Balanchine’s Serenade, Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Jorma Elo's Shape of Glow, Fei Bo’s Shenren Chang and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread.
Leung premièred his work, tʃHEy, at Hong Kong Ballet’s Choreographers’ Showcase in 2016. Leung received an Outstanding Performance Award at the Taoli Cup Dance Competition in 2003.
The Bow by Li Lin
A bow is powerful yet flexible. It can be a line, or it can be bent, made into circle and much more. In The Bow, Li Lin shares his unique perspective with a bow.
Born in Zhejiang, China, Li Lin trained at Beijing Dance Academy. He joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet in 2010 and was named Soloist in 2014.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Li has danced featured and main roles including Prince in Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Von Rothbart in John Meehan’s Swan Lake, Franz in Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, Prince Calaf and Timur in Natalie Weir’s Turandot, Geppetto and Fox in Pär Isberg’s Pinocchio, Jewels in Cynthia Harvey’s The Sleeping Beauty, Tybalt in Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet, Espada in Nina Ananiashvili’s Don Quixote, Peasant Pas de Deux in John Meehan and Lin Mei-fang’s Giselle, Camille in Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow, Gaston in Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias, Lead Jester in David Allan’s Cinderella, The Man In Black in Yuri Ng’s Firecracker, José In Memory in Yuh Egami and Hu Song Wei Ricky's Carmen. He was also featured in Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort and Sechs Tänze, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Jorma Elo's Shape of Glow, Fei Bo’s Shenren Chang and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread.
Since joining the Company, Li has presented choreographic works at Hong Kong Ballet’s Choreographers’ Showcase, including Break Away (2014), Follow Your Heart (2016). He danced Pas de Deux from Krzysztof Pastor’s In Light and Shadow with Liu Miaomiao at the International Ballet Festival of Havana in 2014 and won second prize at the Taoli Cup Dance Competition in 2009.
BubbleGoose by Jonathan Spigner
Jonathan Spigner gets back to the roots of raw creativity and focuses on the dancing material.
Born in South Carolina, US, Jonathan Spigner trained at the South Carolina Governor’s School of Arts and Humanities and at Académie Princesse Grace in Monte Carlo. He joined Hong Kong Ballet as a member of the Corps de Ballet in 2010 and was named Coryphée in 2014. He assumed the additional role of Pilates Instructor for the Company in 2017.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Spigner has danced featured roles including Fritz and Spanish Doll in Terence Kohler’s The Nutcracker, Puss in Boots in Cynthia Harvey’s The Sleeping Beauty, Gamache in Nina Ananiashvili’s Don Quixote, St Gaudins in Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias, Executed Prince in Natalie Weir’s Turandot, Young Uncle Tak in Yuri Ng’s Firecracker and Factory Boss in Yuh Egami and Hu Song Wei Ricky's Carmen. He has also performed in John Meehan's Swan Lake, Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, George Balanchine’s Serenade, Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort, Nacho Duato’s Castrati, Jorma Elo's Shape of Glow, Fei Bo’s Shenren Chang and Edwaard Liang’s Sacred Thread.
Since joining the Company, Spigner has premièred choreographic works at Hong Kong Ballet's Choreographers’ Showcase, including Passion Flower (2016), Days Gone By (2015), Wepart (2014), Overview Effect (2012) and (The Wonderful Known Tick) (2011). He also choreographed SoLo (2013). Spigner received awards from Youth America Grand Prix regional competitions in 2004, 2008 and 2009.
A Rebel At Heart by Yang Ruiqi
“I myself decide who I will be. This is me!”
In A Rebel At Heart, Yang Ruiqi shows how a rebel transforms rebellion into art.
Born in Harbin, China, Yang Ruiqi started her training at Shanghai Dance School and graduated from the John Cranko School in Stuttgart in 2012. She joined Stuttgart Ballet as an Apprentice the same year and was promoted to a member of the Corps de Ballet in 2013. She came to Hong Kong Ballet as a Coryphée in 2016.
With Hong Kong Ballet, Yang has performed featured role of Olympe in Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias and also performed in Terence Kohler's The Nutcracker, Ronald Hynd's Coppélia, Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort and Sechs Tänze, as well as Jorma Elo's Shape of Glow. With Stuttgart Ballet, Yang has performed main roles including Olga in John Cranko’s Onegin, Sapphire and Eloquence Fairy in Marcia Haydee’s The Sleeping Beauty and the Devil in Demis Volpi’s The Soldier’s Tale. She has also danced featured roles in George Balanchine’s Allegro Brilliante, John Cranko’s Romeo and Juliet, William Forsythe’s Second Detail, Marco Goecke’s On Velvet, and Reid Anderson and Valentina Savina’s Giselle amongst others.
Yang was a finalist at Prix de Lausanne competition in Switzerland in 2009 and 2010, and at the Taoli Cup Dance Competition in 2008.
