Jillian Vanstone
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
A Study in Contrasts: The Winter's Tale
By Jaimie NackanToronto’s first snowfall of the season arrived just in time to welcome the November 10 opening night performance of “The Winter’s Tale” by The National Ballet of Canada.
Posted November 17, 2017
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
Definitive Motif in The Winter’s Tale
By Arianna BenincasaChoreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, “The Winter’s Tale” takes a contemporary approach to Shakespeare’s comedic, romantic and tragic “problem play” about jealousy, familial bonds and love.
Posted November 17, 2017
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
The Demise of Desire
By Annick MacAskillThe National Ballet of Canada’s premiere of choreographer John Neumeier’s A Streetcar Named Desire is an aesthetic triumph and a thought-provoking comment on the destructive nature of repressed sexuality and violence.
Posted June 17, 2017
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
A Haunting Ballet That Does Not Leave the Mind
By Victoria EllinghamAs the audience filtered in to take their seats at the Four Seasons Centre on the evening of June 3rd, they were met with the sight of a lone chair, haphazardly left on its side in the middle of stage.
Posted June 10, 2017
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
All in Sequence
By David RudinWayne McGregor’s Genus and Jerome Robbins’ The Concert are both elaborate choreographies that hinge on the smallest of movements – the twitch of a finger, the crook of an elbow or the flick of a wrist.
Posted April 6, 2017
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
Truly Mixed: Genus, Tarantella, Self and Soul and The Concert
By Valeria NunziatoFour disparate works, precisely crafted by four distinguished artists, make one inspiring collection of dance for The National Ballet of Canada’s mixed program.
Posted April 6, 2017
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
Performing the Magic
By Valeria NunziatoFor anyone in search of some extra holiday spirit this season, The National Ballet of Canada’s rendition of The Nutcracker certainly does not fall short.
Posted December 17, 2016
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
A Christmas Reverie
By Sabrina PapasPerformed annually by The National Ballet of Canada, The Nutcracker invites adults and children of all ages into a mystical holiday landscape.
Posted December 17, 2016
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
Forget the Sylph: Where’s Effie?
By Marissa TrarbackIn the midst of The National Ballet of Canada’s beautifully rendered performance of La Sylphide at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, one might just wonder: where is Effie?
Posted March 9, 2016
Emerging Arts Critics Programme
Competing Priorities
By Aziza MohammedWhile giving the story a subtly contemporary treatment relatable to the modern audience, The National Ballet of Canada’s production of La Sylphide explored the relationship between sacrifice and happiness in a faithful rendition of one of the world’s oldest ballets.
Posted March 9, 2016
