First held in 2014, World Ballet Day sees cameras go behind the scenes at some of the world’s leading ballet companies for a global livestream on Facebook and YouTube.
A record 31 companies are participating in this year’s World Ballet Day, which is hosted by The Australian Ballet, The Royal Ballet and The Bolshoi Ballet. The live stream begins at 1pm AEDT (3pm NZDT).
The first company to host the live stream is the Royal New Zealand Ballet, followed by Queensland Ballet, the National Ballet of Japan and West Australian Ballet.
Other companies participating in the global event – which in previous years has provided insights into the different training methods and dance styles of ballet companies around the world, as well as interviews with leading dancers and glimpses of shows in rehearsal – include Cape Town City Ballet, Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico, and Houston Ballet.
But World Ballet Day is not just a global celebration of dance – it represents a democratisation of ballet as an art form by making it accessible to anyone with access to the internet.
West Australian Ballet will be hosting the live stream between 11:30am to 12:00pm AWST (2:30 – 3pm AEDT), taking viewers inside the company’s heritage-listed studios where rehearsals for the Australian Premiere of ALICE (in wonderland) – co-produced with Septime Webre’s Hong Kong Ballet – are underway.
The company annually presents six seasons in Perth with regular touring around their home-state, as well as nationally and internationally. Since 2013 they’ve been led by Artistic Director Aurélien Scannella.
Scannella, who has long been an advocate for accessibility to the art-form, applauds World Ballet Day for providing people around the world a look into world-class dance companies.
‘Ballet is for everyone, and World Ballet Day is a great chance for all to find inspiration in our art-form for no cost,’ said Scannella.
‘World Ballet Day is a great chance for all to find inspiration in our art-form for no cost.’
In 2018, World Ballet Day was streamed on Facebook and TenCent Video (to China) with 5.25 million views of livestreamed content around the world, a significant increase on the 195,430 live views recorded in the event’s first year.
Exploring the theme ‘Every Body Can Dance’, this year’s event sees The Australian Ballet step outside the company’s Southbank headquarters with a live broadcast from Melbourne’s Federation Square, featuring free performances and workshops throughout the day.
Dance fans in Melbourne can participate in a range of dance activities including Adult Ballet Classes at 8am and 8:30am, ballet classes for aged 3 to 5 years old at 9am and 9:30am, and a 45 minute workshop for seniors at 1pm.
The Australian Ballet’s Director of Marketing, Penny Rowland said, ‘World Ballet Day has grown from 349,000 viewers in 2016 to over five million viewers worldwide in 2018 and we’re hoping this year will reach even more people. Each year, World Ballet Day has grown to feature more dance companies, big and small.
‘Last year was the first year that World Ballet Day partnered with TenCent in China. This was a significant milestone in reaching more audiences beyond Facebook and YouTube.
‘World Ballet Day shows an up close and personal perspective on a day in the life of some of the world’s best dancers and ballet companies. It shows a world of inspiration with all the hard work, creativity and athleticism behind what people see on stage,’ Rowland told Artshub.
Viewers everywhere can participate in World Ballet Day on Wednesday 23 October 2019 on Facebook and YouTube, and share their experiences using the social media hashtag #WorldBalletDay.
Visit worldballetday.com for the full list of participating companies and live streaming details.
