1. Which ballet company will you find in Covent Garden?

a) Birmingham Royal Ballet

b) The Royal Ballet

c) English National Ballet

d) Paris Opera Ballet

2. Which ballerina released a series of children’s books called The Magic Ballerina?

a) Darcey Bussell

b) Alina Cojocaru

c) Margot Fonteyn

d) Alessandra Ferri

3. Carlos Acosta is a Principal Guest Artist with The Royal Ballet. Which country is his homeland?

a) Argentina

b) Cuba

c) Mexico

d) Spain

4. In what city was The Scottish Ballet founded in 1957?

a) Glasgow

b) Edinburgh

c) Aberdeen

d) Bristol

5. Which British choreographer created the diverse works Somnambulism, Elite Syncopations and Mayerling?

a) Michael Clark

b) Christopher Wheeldon

c) Sir Frederick Ashton

d) Sir Kenneth MacMillan

6. Who said, “The one important thing I have learned over the years is the difference between taking one’s work seriously and taking one’s self seriously. The first is imperative and the second is disastrous”?

a) Dame Margot Fonteyn

b) Roland Petit

c) Rudolf Nureyev

d) Sir Robert Helpmann

7. The Royal Ballet was founded in 1931 by:

a) Nicholas Sergeyev

b) Sir Frederick Ashton

c) Dame Ninette de Valois

d) Dame Margot Fonteyn

8. Which of the following is not a work by Sir Frederick Ashton?

a) Façade

b) Les Patineurs

c) Western Symphony

d) Daphnis et Chloë

9. By which name was the English National Ballet formerly known?

a) London Festival Ballet

b) Sadlers Wells Ballet

c) Vic-Wells Ballet

d) British Ballet

10. True or false: The Artistic Director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet is Wayne Eagling.

________________________________________________________

Answers:
1 – b; 2 – a; 3 – b; 4 – d; 5 – d; 6 – a; 7 – c; 8 – c; 9 – a; 10 – false

Photo (top): The Royal Ballet’s Federico Bonelli and Sarah Lamb in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Christopher Wheeldon. Photo Johan Persson, courtesy ROH.

Test your ballet terminology.

By Rain Francis.

1.   What does piqué mean?

a)     To pick
b)     To prick
c)     To stick
d)     To click

2.     If you were doing a fondu, how many legs would you be standing on?

a)     One
b)     Two
c)     None

3.     Who was the ‘royale’ (or changement battu) allegedly named for?

a)     Nijinksy
b)     Nijinksa
c)     Pavlova
d)     Louis XIV

4.     Which of the following means ‘to fall’?

a)     Tombé
b)     Chassé
c)     Jeté
d)     Pas de bourrée

5.     Which of the following is commonly considered a step to be performed by a male dancer?

a)     Fouetté en tourant
b)     Tour en l’air
c)     Glissade
d)     Grand battements

6.     If you were travelling de côté, in which direction would you be going?

a)     Forwards
b)     Backwards
c)     Sideways
d)     Diagonally

7.     Where would you find your jambes?

a)     At the end of your arms
b)     Attached to your hips
c)     On your shoulders
d)     In your ballet shoes

8.     Which body parts are primarily involved in épaulement?

a)     Head, neck, shoulders
b)     Waist, hips, hands
c)     Feet and legs
d)     Arms and legs

9.     Which of the following is not named for an animal?

a)     Pas de chat
b)     Pas de cheval
c)     Pas de bourrée

10.  True or false?

Frappé means ‘to whip’.

Answers:

1 – b; 2 – a; 3 – d; 4 – a; 5 –b; 6 – c; 7 – b; 8 – a; 9 – c; 10 – false.

Photo © Dmitri Mihhailov | Dreamstime.com 

This year is the 75th anniversary of ballet legend Rudolf Nureyev’s birth, and 20 years since his death. How much do you know about one of the most celebrated dancers of the 20th century?

1. With which ballet did Nureyev make his directorial debut?

a) The Afternoon of a Faun

b) Petrouchka

c) Pineapple Poll

d) Don Quixote

2. Nureyev’s first performance in Britain was held to support which organisation?

a) The Royal Academy of Dance

b) The Royal Ballet School

c) The Royal Ballet

d) The Royal Opera

3. Giving his mother a shock, Nureyev was born prematurely in a

a) boat

b) train

c) car

d) plane

4. Nureyev danced with many of the best ballerinas of his time, but with whom did he say he danced with “one body, one soul?”

a) Eva Evdokimova

b) Margot Fonteyn

c) Gelsey Kirkland

d) Antoinette Sibley

5. Nureyev danced with Miss Piggy on the Muppet Show (check it out on YouTube – it’s a classic!). Which ballet did they perform a parody of?

a) Cinderella

b) The Nutcracker

c) Swan Lake

d) Manon

6. In which company was Nureyev director, dancer and chief of choreography during the 1980s?

a) The Royal Ballet

b) The Paris Opera Ballet

c) Dutch National Ballet

d) American Ballet Theatre

7. Which ballet by Sir Frederick Ashton was premiered by Fonteyn and Nureyev, and would become known as their signature piece?

a) Marguerite and Armand

b) Baroque Pas de Trois

c) Romeo and Juliet

d) Les Sylphides

8. To which country did Nureyev defect in 1961?

a) America

b) United Kingdom

c) Austria

d) France

9. In the 1970s, Nureyev toured the USA in a production of which musical?

a) Fiddler on the Roof

b) Cats

c) Kiss Me Kate

d) The King and I

10. Nureyev played a violinist in the 1983 film Exposed, alongside which Hollywood actor?

a) Harvey Keitel

b) Marlon Brando

c) Robert De Niro

d) Russell Crowe

Answers:
1 – d; 2 – a; 3 – b; 4 – b; 5 – c; 6 – b; 7 – a; 8 – d; 9 – d; 10 – a

Photo: Rudolf Nureyev by Jack Mitchell. Photo source http://onlyartimages.blogspot.com/2011/04/rudolf-nureyev.html

By Rain Francis.

1. Which song and film clip by Madonna was inspired by the underground ballroom culture of 1980s New York City?

a) Into the Groove
b) Vogue
c) Like a Virgin
d) Material Girl

2. Which famous dance work is referenced in Queen’s I Want to Break Free?

a) Swan Lake
b) Serenade
c) L’après-midi d’un faune
d) Sinfonietta

3. Which well-known actor performs an impressive dance sequence in the Fatboy Slim video Weapon of Choice?

a) Christopher Walken
b) Marlon Brando
c) Johnny Depp
d) Jake Gyllenhaal

4. Speaking of Fatboy Slim, who choreographed Praise You, as well as Kylie’s Can’t Get You Out of My Head and Bjork’s version of It’s Oh So Quiet?

a) Spike Jonze
b) Amy Hollingsworth
c) Shane Sparks
d) Michael Rooney

5. Which popular video was inspired by Bob Fosse’s choreography in Mexican Breakfast?

a) Beyonce’s Single Ladies
b) Rhianna’s Umbrella
c) Michael Jackson’s Beat It
d) Robert Palmer’s Addicted to Love

6. Which dance craze is seen prominently in MC Hammer’s U Can’t Touch This?

a) The moonwalk
b) The running man
c) The hustle
d) Gangnam Style

7. In 2007, a video was released featuring prison inmates in Cebu, Philippines recreating a dance from which Michael Jackson clip?

a) Thriller
b) Billie Jean
c) Black or White
d) Heal the World

8. Radiohead front man Thom Yorke shows off his kooky dance style in the film clip for Lotus Flower. Which well-known Brit is credited as choreographer?

a) Wayne McGregor
b) Matthew Bourne
c) Michael Clark
d) Christopher Hampson

9. In which Christina Aguilera video is a there a nod to 40s singing group The Andrews Sisters?

a) Dirrty
b) Genie in a Bottle
c) Fighter
d) Candyman

10. What style of dance is featured in Run DMC’s video for It’s Like That?

a) contemporary
b) tap
c) breaking
d) salsa

Answers:
1 – b, 2 – c, 3 – a, 4 – d, 5 – a, 6 – b, 7 – a, 8 – a, 9 – d, 10 – c

Photo: Madonna’s Material Girl music video. Photo source allaboutmadonna.com

You may love to lead your partner onto the dance floor for a waltz or sultry tango, but how much do you actually know about Ballroom?

By Rain Francis.

Where did the samba originate?

a) Chile

b) Brazil

c) Paris

d) Cuba

Which dance takes its inspiration from the spectacle of bullfighting?

a) Rumba

b) Mambo

c) Paso Doble

d) All of the above

Which is considered to be the oldest of the ballroom dances?

a) Viennese Waltz

b) Bolero

c) Samba

d) Tango

In what year was the foxtrot first danced?

a) 1901

b) 1914

c) 1929

d) 1943

In which movie would you find the characters Scott Hastings, Shirley Hastings, Fran and Barry Fyfe?

a) Tango

b) Shall We Dance?

c) Last Tango in Paris

d) Strictly Ballroom

Which of the following does not have its roots in Cuba?

a) Salsa

b) Tango

c) Cha-cha

d) Rumba

True or false: Jive is derived from the jitterbug.

In Dancesport, east coast swing, bolero and mambo are all types of what?

a) American Smooth

b) American Rhythm

c) International Latin

d) All of the above

True or false: Dancesport has been confirmed for inclusion in the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics.

Dancing With the Stars has been a popular TV show in many countries worldwide. Which country first aired the show on which the format is based?

a) United Kingdom

b) United States

c) Australia

d) Russia

Answers: 1 – b; 2 – c; 3 – a; 4 – b; 5 – d; 6 – b; 7 – true; 8 – b; 9 – false; 10 – a

Photo: Chehon Wespi-Tschopp and Anya Garis perform an Argentine Tango routine choreographed by Miriam Larici & Leonardo Barrionuevo on Season 9 of So You Think You Can Dance USA. ©2012 FOX Broadcasting Co. Photo by Mike Yarish.

How well do you know the ballet classic?

By Rain Francis.

1. Who composed the original score for Swan Lake?

a) Prokofiev

b) Mozart

c) Stravinsky

d) Tchaikovsky

2. Who choreographed the original production, which premiered in 1877, one year after the composer’s death?

a) Marius Petipa

b) George Balanchine

c) Michel Fokine

d) Julius Reisinger

3. The black swan’s name is:

a) Odette

b) Odile

c) Ophelia

d) Octavia

4. Name this character from Swan Lake:

a) Siegfried

b) Carabosse

c) Von Rothbart

d) Dr. Coppelius

5. Matthew Bourne’s version of Swan Lake is well known particularly because:

a) The corps de ballet consists of black swans, not white swans

b) The swans are danced by men instead of women

c) It does not use any of the original score

d) All of the above

6. As part of their 2012 season, The Australian Ballet will present Swan Lake. Who is the choreographer of this version?

a. Stephen Baynes

b. Graeme Murphy

c. Meryl Tankard

d. Natalie Weir

7. In the 2011 film Black Swan, which dance company was used as the corps de ballet?

a) New York City Ballet

b) Miami City Ballet

c) Pennsylvania Ballet

d) Mariinsky Ballet

8. Who danced the roles of Odette/Odile in the premiere of Petipa/Ivanov’s Swan Lake?

a) Pierina Legnani

b) Olga Nikolayeva

c) Anna Pavlova

d) Tamara Karsavina

9. How many dancers traditionally perform the dance of the Cygnets?

a) two

c) three

c) four

d) six

10. True or false: Swan Lake was the first ballet to be performed by The Australian Ballet?

Answers: 1 – d, 2 – d, 3 – b, 4 – c, 5 – b, 6 – a, 7 – c, 8 – a, 9 – c, 10 – True

Top photo: Adam Bull & Amber Scott in The Australian Ballet’s Swan Lake. Photography Jim McFarlane.

Character photo: Christopher Saunders as Von Rothbart. Copyright John Ross. Photo source: www.ballet.co.uk/gallery/jr-royal-ballet-swan-lake-roh-1008/jr_swan_saunders_onsteps_067_500

How much do you know about George Balanchine, one of the 20th century’s most famous choreographers?

By Rain Francis.

1. George Balanchine was born in which country?

a) USA

b) Germany

c) Russia

d) Poland

2. With which composer would you MOST associate Balanchine?

a) Tchaikovsky

b) Stravinsky

c) Ravel

d) Gerhswin

3. Which of the following is NOT represented in Balanchine’s Jewels?

a) Sapphires

b) Rubies

c) Emeralds

d) Diamonds

4. Which group of dancers was Concerto Barocco choreographed on?

a) New York City Ballet

b) Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo

c) Julliard School of Dance

d) School of American Ballet

5. How many times did Balanchine marry?

a) none

b) twice

c) four times

d) five times

6. Which dancer created the lead role in The Prodigal Son?

a) Serge Lifar

b) Vaslav Nijinksy

c) Leonide Massine

d) Mikhail Baryshnikov

7. Which ballerina created the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy in Balanchine’s The Nutcracker ?

a) Maria Tallchief

b) Suzanne Farrell

c) Gelsey Kirkland

d) Patricia McBride

8. Which was the first ballet Balanchine choreographed in America?

a) Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux

b) Serenade

c) Agon

d) Apollo

9. Which of the following Greek muses is NOT present in the ballet Apollo?

a) Terpsichore, muse of dance

b) Caliope, muse of epic poetry

c) Clio, muse of history

d) Polyhymnia, muse of mime or hymns

10. Theme and Variations is choreographed to a score by which composer?

a) Stravinsky

b) Prokofiev

c) Satie

d) Tchaikovsky

ANSWERS: 1 – c; 2 – b; 3 – a; 4 – d; 5 – d; 6 – a; 7 – a; 8 – b; 9 – c; 10 – d

Photo: English National Ballet. Thomas Edur and Agnes Oaks performing Balanchine’s Apollo. Photo by Patrick Baldwin.

By Rain Francis

1. Who choreographed the Australian production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies?

a) Graeme Murphy
b) Tim Harbour
c) Jerry Mitchell
d) David McAllister

2. In 2011, who won the Australian Dance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Choreography?

a) Stephen Page
b) Luke George
c) Stephen Agisilaou
d) Rafael Bonachela

3. Garry Stewart is the Artistic Director and Choreographer of which Australian dance company?

a) The Australian Ballet
b) Dancenorth
c) Expressions
d) Australian Dance Theatre

4. Which choreographer does NOT have a work in The Australian Ballet’s 2012 production of Infinity?

a) Leigh Warren
b) Gideon Obarzanek
c) Graeme Murphy
d) Stephen Page

5. A fusion of which two dance styles best describes the work of Bangarra Dance Theatre?

a) ballet and hip hop
b) ballet and contemporary
c) contemporary and Indigenous Australian
d) Indigenous Australian and hip hop

6. Which of the following is NOT a work by Gideon Obarzanek for Chunky Move?

a) Glow
b) Mortal Engine
c) Human Interest Story
d) Connected

7. Australian Dance Theatre and Leigh Warren and Dancers are both based in which Australian city?

a) Melbourne
b) Adelaide
c) Sydney
d) Perth

8. Which work did Tim Harbour choreograph for the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School in 2011?

a) Carmen and Jose
b) The Story of Clara
c) Halcyon
d) Songs of Light

9. Which work by Phillip Adams for BalletLab featured in the 2011 Melbourne Festival?

a) Aviary
b) Miracle
c) Amplification
d) Origami

10. Who is the current Artistic Director of Queensland Ballet?

a) Raewyn Hill
b) Natalie Weir
c) Li Cunxin
d) Francois Klaus

ANSWERS:
1 – a, 2 – d, 3 – d, 4 – a, 5 – c, 6 – c, 7 – b, 8 – a, 9 – a, 10 – d.

Photo: Australian choreographers Graeme Murphy, Gideon Obarzanek and Stephen Page with Lana Jones of The Australian Ballet. Photo by Georges Antoni for The Australia Ballet’s Infinity programme.

Published by Dance Informa dance magazine – everything dance in Australia – dance news, dance auditions & dance events.

By Rain Francis. 

Test your ballet knowledge!
Let us know how many answers you get right on Facebook.
Just ‘Like’ us and then post your score on our Wall at:
facebook.com/danceinforma

Which of the following characters is least likely to be classed as a ballet villain?

            a) Rothbart

            b) Petrouchka

            c) Carabosse

            d) Myrtha

In which ballet would you find Swanhilda?

            a) Pineapple Poll

            b) The Nutcracker

            c) Cinderella

            d) Coppelia

In Act III of Petipa’s Swan Lake, several national dances are performed.
Which country is NOT represented, traditionally?

            a) Spain

            b) Poland

            c) Germany

            d) Hungary

What name is given to the evil spirits in Giselle?

            a) Wilis

            b) Nymphs

            c) Faeries

            d) Sylphs

In which ballet would you find Oberon, Puck and Titania?

            a) Onegin

            b) A Midsummer Night’s Dream

            c) Manon

            d) The Moor’s Pavane

In Romeo and Juliet, who kills Tybalt?

            a) Romeo

            b) Juliet

            c) Mercutio

            d) Benvolio

Who is Hilarion’s rival for Giselle’s affection?

a) Franz

b) Bathilde

c) Albrecht

d) Wilfrid

Who created the role of the film producer in Nureyev’s Cinderella?

a) Mikhail Baryshnikov

b) Rudolph Nureyev

c) Anton Dolin

d) Peter Martins

The character of Petrouchka is a WHAT?

a) puppet

b) ragdoll

c) clown

d) scarecrow

In which ballet would you find the ‘Kingdom of the Shades’?

a) Scheherezade

b) Le Corsaire

c) Don Quixote

d) La Bayadere

Answers: 1 – b, 2 – d, 3 – c, 4 – a, 5 – b, 6 – a, 7 – c , 8 – b, 9 – a, 10 – d

Photo: The Australian Ballet’s Lucinda Dunn and Robert Curran in Onegin. Photo by Georges Antoni

Test your dance knowledge…

By Rain Francis.

With which name would you MOST associate Ginger Rogers?

a) Gene Kelly

c) Mikhail Baryshnikov

c) Fred Astaire

d) Donald O’Connor

For which ballerina was the Dying Swan choreographed by Mikhail Fokine?

a) Anna Pavlova

b) Natalia Markova

c) Alicia Makarova

d) Anna Karenina

Who did Lucette Aldous dance alongside in the 1973 filmed version of Don Quixote?

a) Mikhail Baryshnikov

b) Rudolph Nureyev

c) Anthony Dowell

d) Carlos Acosta

Which of the following names would you LEAST associate with contemporary dance?

a) Martha Graham

b) Jose Limon

c) Cyd Charrise

d) Merce Cunningham

Which king is best associated with the origins of classical ballet?

a) Louis XIV (King of France from 1643-1715)

b) Henry VIII (England, 1509-1547)

c) Ferdinand III (Italy, 1637-1657)

d) Phillip III (France, 1270-1285)

Which of the following was Gene Kelly the star of?

a) Singin’ in the Rain

b) An American in Paris

c) Ziegfeld Follies

d) All of the above

Which American ballerina wrote Dancing on my Grave?

a) Maria Tallchief

b) Gelsey Kirkland

c) Darci Kistler

d) Cynthia Harvey

Who’s daughter is Liza Minnelli?

a) Elizabeth Taylor

b) Debbie Reynolds

c) Margot Fonteyn

d) Judy Garland

Who choreographed Cabaret, Chicago and Damn Yankees?

a) Bob Fosse

b) Jerome Robbins

c) George Balanchine

d) Alvin Ailey

What nationality is renowned dancer Sylvie Guillem?

a) Italian

b) English

c) French

d) Canadian

Answers:

1 – c, 2 – a, 3 – b, 4 – c, 5 – a, 6 – d, 7 – b, 8 – d, 9 – a, 10 – c