The 19th National Dance Awards
Announcement of Nominations
The Dance Section of the Critics’ Circle is pleased to announce the nominations for the 19th National Dance Awards, which are as follows:
DANCING TIMES AWARD FOR BEST MALE DANCER
Miguel Altunaga (Rambert)
Akram Khan (Akram Khan Company)
Brandon Lawrence (Birmingham Royal Ballet)
Vadim Muntagirov (The Royal Ballet)
Javier Torres (Northern Ballet)
Miguel Altunaga (Rambert)
Akram Khan (Akram Khan Company)
Brandon Lawrence (Birmingham Royal Ballet)
Vadim Muntagirov (The Royal Ballet)
Javier Torres (Northern Ballet)
BEST FEMALE DANCER
Alina Cojocaru (English National Ballet)
Jurgita Dronina (English National Ballet)
Dana Fouras (Russell Maliphant Company)
Rocío Molina (Cía Rocio Molina/Dance Umbrella)
Marianela Nuñez (The Royal Ballet)
Alina Cojocaru (English National Ballet)
Jurgita Dronina (English National Ballet)
Dana Fouras (Russell Maliphant Company)
Rocío Molina (Cía Rocio Molina/Dance Umbrella)
Marianela Nuñez (The Royal Ballet)
STEF STEFANOU AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING COMPANY
Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan
Dresden Semperoper Ballett
Northern Ballet
The Royal Ballet
Scottish Ballet
Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan
Dresden Semperoper Ballett
Northern Ballet
The Royal Ballet
Scottish Ballet
BEST INDEPENDENT COMPANY
[Sponsored by Dansez]
Ballet Black
BalletLORENT
Lost Dog
Russell Maliphant Company
Yorke Dance Project
[Sponsored by Dansez]
Ballet Black
BalletLORENT
Lost Dog
Russell Maliphant Company
Yorke Dance Project
BEST CLASSICAL CHOREOGRAPHY
[Sponsored by The Ballet Association]
William Forsythe for ‘Playlist (Track 1,2)’ (English National Ballet)
Cathy Marston for ‘The Suit’ (Ballet Black)
Wayne McGregor for ‘Yugen’ (The Royal Ballet)
Liam Scarlett for ‘Swan Lake’ (The Royal Ballet)
Christopher Wheeldon for ‘Corybantic Games’ (The Royal Ballet)
[Sponsored by The Ballet Association]
William Forsythe for ‘Playlist (Track 1,2)’ (English National Ballet)
Cathy Marston for ‘The Suit’ (Ballet Black)
Wayne McGregor for ‘Yugen’ (The Royal Ballet)
Liam Scarlett for ‘Swan Lake’ (The Royal Ballet)
Christopher Wheeldon for ‘Corybantic Games’ (The Royal Ballet)
BEST MODERN CHOREOGRAPHY
Ben Duke for ‘Goat’ (Rambert)
Lin Hwai-min for ‘Formosa’ (Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan)
Akram Khan for ‘Xenos’ (Akram Khan Company)
Russell Maliphant for ‘maliphantworks 2’ (Russell Maliphant Company)
Crystal Pite for ‘The Statement’ (Nederlands Dans Theater 1)
Ben Duke for ‘Goat’ (Rambert)
Lin Hwai-min for ‘Formosa’ (Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan)
Akram Khan for ‘Xenos’ (Akram Khan Company)
Russell Maliphant for ‘maliphantworks 2’ (Russell Maliphant Company)
Crystal Pite for ‘The Statement’ (Nederlands Dans Theater 1)
EMERGING ARTIST AWARD
[Sponsored by The L&M Trust]
Precious Adams (First Artist, English National Ballet)
Maya Jilan Dong (Choreographer & Dancer /Portraits of Otherness, Akram Khan Company)
Daniel McCormick (Artist, English National Ballet)
Joseph Sissens (First Artist, The Royal Ballet)
Vanessa Vince-Pang (Dancer, Phoenix Dance Theatre)
[Sponsored by The L&M Trust]
Precious Adams (First Artist, English National Ballet)
Maya Jilan Dong (Choreographer & Dancer /Portraits of Otherness, Akram Khan Company)
Daniel McCormick (Artist, English National Ballet)
Joseph Sissens (First Artist, The Royal Ballet)
Vanessa Vince-Pang (Dancer, Phoenix Dance Theatre)
OUTSTANDING FEMALE MODERN PERFORMANCE
[Sponsored by DWFM Beckman]
Eleanor Duval as Lady Macbeth in ‘Macbeth’ (Mark Bruce Company)
Rocío Molina in ‘Caída del Cielo/Fallen from Heaven’ (Cía Rocio Molina/Dance Umbrella)
Vidya Patel in ‘Usne kha tha/The Troth’ (Akādemi)
Ashley Shaw in the title role as ‘Cinderella’ (New Adventures)
Solène Weinachter as Juliet in ’Juliet and Romeo’ (Lost Dog)
[Sponsored by DWFM Beckman]
Eleanor Duval as Lady Macbeth in ‘Macbeth’ (Mark Bruce Company)
Rocío Molina in ‘Caída del Cielo/Fallen from Heaven’ (Cía Rocio Molina/Dance Umbrella)
Vidya Patel in ‘Usne kha tha/The Troth’ (Akādemi)
Ashley Shaw in the title role as ‘Cinderella’ (New Adventures)
Solène Weinachter as Juliet in ’Juliet and Romeo’ (Lost Dog)
OUTSTANDING MALE MODERN PERFORMANCE
Miguel Altunaga in ‘Goat’ (Rambert)
Jonathan Goddard in the title role as ‘Macbeth’ (Mark Bruce Company)
Akram Khan in ‘Xenos’ (Akram Khan Company)
Russell Maliphant in ‘maliphantworks 2’ (Russell Maliphant Company)
Dickson Mbi in ‘maliphantworks 2’ (Russell Maliphant Company)
Miguel Altunaga in ‘Goat’ (Rambert)
Jonathan Goddard in the title role as ‘Macbeth’ (Mark Bruce Company)
Akram Khan in ‘Xenos’ (Akram Khan Company)
Russell Maliphant in ‘maliphantworks 2’ (Russell Maliphant Company)
Dickson Mbi in ‘maliphantworks 2’ (Russell Maliphant Company)
OUTSTANDING FEMALE CLASSICAL PERFORMANCE
[Sponsored by Lee McLernon]
Precious Adams as Calliope in ‘Elite Syncopations’ (Kenneth MacMillan: A National Celebration/English National Ballet)
Alina Cojocaru as Aurora in ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ (English National Ballet)
Constance Devernay as The Fairy in ‘Le Baiser de la fée’ (Scottish Ballet)
La Chana in ‘Gala Flamenca/La Chana’ (Flamenco Festival)
Marianela Nuñez as Odette/Odile in ‘Swan Lake’ (The Royal Ballet)
[Sponsored by Lee McLernon]
Precious Adams as Calliope in ‘Elite Syncopations’ (Kenneth MacMillan: A National Celebration/English National Ballet)
Alina Cojocaru as Aurora in ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ (English National Ballet)
Constance Devernay as The Fairy in ‘Le Baiser de la fée’ (Scottish Ballet)
La Chana in ‘Gala Flamenca/La Chana’ (Flamenco Festival)
Marianela Nuñez as Odette/Odile in ‘Swan Lake’ (The Royal Ballet)
OUTSTANDING MALE CLASSICAL PERFORMANCE
[Sponsored by London Ballet Circle]
José Alves in ‘The Suit’ (Ballet Black)
Sergio Bernal in ‘The Swan’ in Russian Ballet Icons Gala (Ensemble Productions)
Brandon Lawrence as Pan in ‘Arcadia’ (Birmingham Royal Ballet)
Andrew Peasgood as The Young Man in ‘Le Baiser de la fée’ (Scottish Ballet)
Aaron Robinson in ‘Playlist (Track 1, 2)’ (English National Ballet)
[Sponsored by London Ballet Circle]
José Alves in ‘The Suit’ (Ballet Black)
Sergio Bernal in ‘The Swan’ in Russian Ballet Icons Gala (Ensemble Productions)
Brandon Lawrence as Pan in ‘Arcadia’ (Birmingham Royal Ballet)
Andrew Peasgood as The Young Man in ‘Le Baiser de la fée’ (Scottish Ballet)
Aaron Robinson in ‘Playlist (Track 1, 2)’ (English National Ballet)
OUTSTANDING CREATIVE CONTRIBUTION
Lucy Carter (Lighting Designer)
Viviana Durante (Producer, Steps Back in Time)
Philip Feeney (Composer/Music Arranger/Pianist)
John Macfarlane (Designer)
Gavin Sutherland (Conductor/Music Arranger/Musical Director)
Lucy Carter (Lighting Designer)
Viviana Durante (Producer, Steps Back in Time)
Philip Feeney (Composer/Music Arranger/Pianist)
John Macfarlane (Designer)
Gavin Sutherland (Conductor/Music Arranger/Musical Director)
The winners will be announced at a lunchtime ceremony to be held in Central London on Monday, 18th February 2019.
The event will also play host to the De Valois Award for Outstanding Achievement for which there are no prior nominations.
The National Dance Awards have been organised by the Dance Section of the Critics’ Circle in each year of this Millennium to celebrate the vigour and variety of Britain’s thriving dance culture. They are presented by the Dance Section of the Critics’ Circle, which brings together over 60 dance writers and critics. They are the only awards given by the body of professional dance critics in the UK.
In announcing the awards, the chairman of the Dance Section, Graham Watts OBE, said:
“This year, these short-listed nominees come from a long list of 396 dancers, choreographers, other creatives and companies nominated by professional dance critics, for work presented in the UK between 1st September 2017 and 31st August 2018.
This year there is a new category – Outstanding Creative Contribution – which is to honour those who make creative contributions to dance, other than choreography, through, for example, music, design, dramaturgy or production.
In total, 23 companies have nominees or are responsible for work nominated in the 2018 Awards, including five based overseas. The remarkable diversity of dance in the United Kingdom is evidenced by the fact that considerably more than half the UK-based nominees hail from overseas, their places of birth being in at least 20 different countries.
English National Ballet tops the list with nine nominations; closely followed by The Royal Ballet equalling last year’s total of eight. Russell Maliphant Company has five nominations, followed by Akram Khan Company with four; and Rambert, Ballet Black and Scottish Ballet with three each; Birmingham Royal Ballet, Northern Ballet, Cía Rocío Molina/Dance Umbrella, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, Mark Bruce Company and Lost Dog, each with 2 nominations.
Russell Maliphant’s programme MaliphantWorks 2 garners the most production nominations with three, closely followed by Akram Khan’s Xenos, Cathy Marston’s The Suit, Liam Scarlett’s Swan Lake, Ben Duke’s The Goat, Mark Bruce’s Macbeth and Scottish Ballet’s revival of Le Baiser de la fée by Kenneth MacMillan, with two nominations each.
The Awards Committee wishes to express grateful thanks to our sponsors, without whom the event would not be possible; to the body of dance critics across the UK for giving their time to ensure the best possible list of nominees; and, above all, the companies, choreographers and performers for giving us such a rich variety of choice”.
Sponsorship opportunities exist to support the Best Female Dancer, Best Modern Choreography, Outstanding Male Modern Performance and Outstanding Creative Contribution Awards and/or to become a Patron of the Awards. To discuss these opportunities contact the Chairman, Graham Watts on graham@g-watts.com or +44 (0) 7710 057252,