Year founded 1969 Chief Executive Lena de Meerleer | Website Official Website | |
Name Royal Ballet of Flanders Local name Koninklijk Ballet Vlaanderen Principal venue Theater ’t Eilandje, Antwerp | ||
The Royal Ballet of Flanders is a dance company based in Antwerp, Belgium, specializing in classical ballet, neoclassical ballet and contemporary ballet. In its current incarnation, the company was established in 1969. It tours internationally.
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History
The current Royal Ballet of Flanders was established by Belgium's federal Ministry of Dutch Culture in 1969. Previously, Belgium had two professional classical ballet companies, the Royal Ballet of Flanders and Ballet Royale de Wallonie. The Ballet Royale de Wallonie, founded in 1966, was brought under the direction of Frédéric Flamand in 1991, who renamed the company Charleroi/Danse and shifted the focus of the troupe entirely onto modern dance.
Jeanne Brabants was the founder and original Artistic Director of the Royal Ballet of Flanders. She was succeeded as Artistic Director by Rus Valery Panov, then Robert Denvers.
In September 2012, Assis Carreiro was appointed Artistic Director of the Royal Ballet of Flanders and since her arrival has commissioned and produced works by Wayne McGregor, Jacopo Godani, Edward Clug, Glen Tetley, Ashley Page, among others. Previous Artistic Director Kathryn Bennetts took her post in 2005 and raised the company's international profile by adding contemporary works including those of William Forsythe to its repertoire and touring more extensively. An award-winning company, it has been described as "today one of the best companies in Europe".
In the 2014 New Year Honours list, Assis Carreiro was appointed a MBE by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
Repertoire
In its current repertoire, the company includes the following full-length ballets:
Royal Ballet of Flanders also has the following short pieces in its current repertoire: