For the first time since 2002, Scottish Ballet is delighted to be setting out on a tour reaching far and wide across Scotland. Performing in smaller, more intimate venues around the country enables Scottish Ballet to fully realise its potential as a National Company, and gives audience members the unique opportunity to experience an up-close-and personal performance. The tour opens at Perth Concert Hall (19 September), travelling to Ullapool, Galashiels, Stranraer, Stirling, Berwick-Upon-Tweed and Elgin, finishing at Oban’s Corran Hall on 26 October. Scottish Ballet is pleased to announce that it will be touring to small-scale venues every other year from now on.

The programme showcases works by Scottish Ballet Artistic Director, Ashley Page, who was recently awarded OBE for services to dance as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours list. Sensual pieces Walking In The Heat, Refurbished Behaviour, Acrid Avid Jam are complemented by quirky, colourful diverts from Scottish Ballet’s acclaimed production of
The Nutcracker, and the Scottish premiere of the theatrical Room Of Cooks. Also featured on the bill is spirited pas de deux Sirocco, the choreographic debut of award-winning Scottish Ballet dancer Diana Loosmore.

ROOM OF COOKS (1997)
Having received critical acclaim south of the border where the piece was nominated for a prestigious Olivier Award, Ashley Page premieres this highly charged work in Scotland. A physical manifestation of the Steven Chambers painting of the same name, Room Of Cooks is a dark, brooding piece exploring the relationships between a woman, her husband and her lover. The intensely sexual tone of the piece is underscored by a sense of foreboding, and the tension of the piece is augmented by Orlando Gough’s atmospheric score.

‘Room Of Cooks is a masterfully compressed dance drama’ THE GUARDIAN


WALKING IN THE HEAT (1992)
Sultry duet Walking in The Heat originally formed the centrepiece of a longer work by Ashley Page Touch Your Coolness To My Fevered Brow. Created for the Dutch National Ballet in 1992, this sensual pas de deux marked the beginning of Page’s now long established creative partnership with internationally renowned designer Antony McDonald.

‘A Latin mix of lust and langour’ THE TIMES


REFURBISHED BEHAVIOUR (1985, revised 2005)
Part of the Herald Angel Award winning Edinburgh Festival programme alongside Acrid Avid Jam, which also appears in this bill, Refurbished Behaviour is a trio for two dancers and a chair, in which the line between playful and darker obsession blurs. Beginning in total silence, the audience is immediately drawn into this intriguing relationship as the dancers echo each other’s movement by turn, with tender moments developing into something altogether more intense. The pounding soundtrack is provided by seminal art punks Wire, propelling the piece to a thrilling climax.

‘Deliciously sexy, edgy moves… you could feel the temperature rise several sweaty degrees, off-stage and on’ THE HERALD

ACRID AVID JAM (2003)
Acrid Avid Jam was originally made for The National Youth Dance Company in 2001. Choreographed on Gemma Nixon, now dancing with Scottish Dance Theatre, and Scottish Ballet’s Jarkko Lehmus, who was promoted to soloist this year, this sensual performance explores how two dancers work together in an equal partnership.

‘Acrid Avid Jam is typical Page – bold musical choices, sensuous and powerful coupling and compulsive viewing’ THE SCOTSMAN


THE NUTCRACKER – DIVERTISSEMENTS (2003)

The Nutcracker was the first full-length piece created by Ashley Page. When it opened in 2003, the lavish production was hailed as being ‘witty, spectacular and tear-jerkingly moving’ (Daily Mail), and proved to be a stepping-stone in Scottish Ballet’s transformation. This selection of diverts aims to give audiences across the country a flavour of Page’s sumptuous re-imagining of the classical fairytale.

‘A Nutcracker like no other, full of mettle and class’ THE HERALD

SIROCCO (2006)
Herald Angel Award-winning dancer Diana Loosmore joined Scottish Ballet in 2003, and this year’s Autumn tour sees her choreographic debut. Named after a hot wind, which blows from the Sahara Desert to Southern Europe, Sirocco is a captivating look at the undercurrent of emotions that arise when two people meet. The dancers exchange stolen glances as they explore each other’s space, each trying to assert their dominance. This piece was originally created as part of a choreographic workshop, and was never intended to be performed in public, but Ashley Page was so impressed by the quality of Loosmore’s work that he decided to add Sirocco to the autumn programme.

Large enough to accommodate performances of Ashley Page’s The Pump Room and Hans Van Mannen’s Two Pieces For HET, the programme for the performance at Stirling’s Macrobert Theatre differs from the rest of the tour where these pieces will replace The Nutcracker Diverts and Sirocco.

THE PUMP ROOM (2005)
The Pump Room is an electrifying short piece choreographed especially on Scottish Ballet dancers by the Company’s Artistic Director, Ashley Page. Described as “A headlong rush of velvety, virtuoso modern dance” by The Sunday Herald, The Pump Room pulsates to the beat of Aphex Twin and Nine Inch Nails.

O PIECES FOR HET (1997)
Van Manen, whose inspiration ranges from as wide a scope as the works of George Balanchine to Fred Astaire, created Two pieces for Het, when he returned to work with Dutch National Ballet in the late 1990s. Originally part of a larger work, it was performed in this version by Scottish Ballet as part of the Autumn 2004 season. Reviews commented on the emotion and passion of the piece including The Sunday Herald who wrote it showed “a couple who seem to drink in each other’s very being with every touch”. Danced as two continuous sections, it shows the couple at first playfully competitive, becoming gradually more tender as the piece winds down to a delicate conclusion..

“Showcases the pleasure of dance as pure craft and invention’. THE GUARDIAN 

 
Scottish Ballet Autumn Season 2006

Perth Concert Hall - Tue 19 September 7.30pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Tickets: £15 (£12 conc.)
Box Office: 0845 612 6324
Web: www.horsecross.co.uk

The MacPhail Centre, Ullapool - Thurs 21 September 7.30pm and Fri 22 September 1.15pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Ticket Prices: £9 (£7 conc.)
Box Office: 01854 613336
Web: www.macphailcentre.co.uk

Volunteer Hall, Galashiels - Wed 27 September 7.30pm and Thurs 28 September 1.15pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Ticket Prices: £9 (£7 conc.)
Box Office: 01896 752247

The Ryan Centre, Stranraer - Tue 17 October 7.30pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Ticket Prices: £9 (£7 conc.)
Box Office: 01776 703535
Web: www.dumgal.gov.uk

Macrobert, Stirling - Thu 19 October 7.30pm
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1990)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Two Pieces for Het - Choreography Hans Van Manen / Music Arvo Pärt and Erkki-Sven Tüür (1997)
The Pump Room - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin and Nine Inch Nails (2005)
Ticket Prices: £12 (£9 conc.)
Box Office: 01786 466666
Web: www.macrobert.org

The Maltings, Berwick-Upon-Tweed - Sat 21 October 7.30pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Ticket Prices: £9 (£7 conc.)
Box Office: 01289 330999
Web: www.maltingsberwick.co.uk

Elgin Town Hall - Tue 24 October 7.30pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Tickets Prices: £8 (£6 conc.)
Box Office: 01343 543451

Corran Hall, Oban - Thu 26 October 7.30pm
Room of Cooks - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1997)
Walking in the Heat - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Orlando Gough (1992)
Refurbished Behaviour - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Wire (1985: reworked 2005)
Acrid Avid Jam - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Aphex Twin (2001)
The Nutcracker - Diverts - Choreography Ashley Page / Music Tchaikovsky (2003)
Sirocco - Choreography Diana Loosmore / Music Ian Simmonds (2006)
Ticket Prices: £9 (£7 conc.)
Box Office: 01631 567333