Webinar Recap: Setting the Stage for Artistic Innovation: English National Ballet’s production of Akram Khan’s Giselle

December 15 (Replay at end of page)

For our final ABA Live! Webinar of 2020, we were thrilled to welcome Tamara Rojo, Lead Principal and Artistic Director of the English National Ballet, and Farooq Chaudhry, Executive Producer of Akram Khan Company, for an inspiring conversation about their recent collaboration on a production of Giselle. In a time when innovation in the arts is more crucial than ever, our guests provided valuable insights into their creative process, the lessons they have taken with them throughout the pandemic, and advice for artistic leaders considering their own collaborative efforts. 

Overview of the Production’s Success

Giselle had its world premiere in 2016 at the Palace Theatre in Manchester to rave reviews, with the New York Times calling it a “beautiful and intelligent remaking of the beloved 1841 classic.” From there, the production went on the road for a tour across the United Kingdom. In 2018, Giselle notably became the first English National Ballet production to receive a cinema release, with screenings in the UK, Spain, Portugal, Japan, France, Romania, Germany, Sweden, and more.

The production went on to tour across the ocean, the company making its first visit to the United States in 30 years for its North American premiere at the Harris Theater in Chicago — a premiere that attracted audience members from 30 states and 6 countries. While plans to bring the ballet to additional international locations, such as Montreal and Paris, were paused due to the pandemic, there are plans to do so once it is possible again. Overall, through tours, cinematic releases, and streaming, the production has been viewed by over 330,000 people.

Origins of the Partnership

Both Tamara and Farooq recalled their first meeting at a performance in 2008, where Farooq was a speaker. Tamara was struck by his completely different approach to arts management and the role of arts institutions in society; Farooq, in turn, recognized in Tamara a “ferocious determination and vision [she] already had about ballet,” qualities that stood out to him as a producer.

Their paths continued to cross throughout their respective careers in the ballet world, and when Tamara became Artistic Director of the English National Ballet in 2012, she brought Farooq onboard as Creative Producer. For her, he was a natural choice for her vision to reimagine the way the Ballet would be managed, both artistically and entrepreneurially. This opportunity to take an historic ballet company and turn it into one that “spoke to the world today” was extremely attractive to Farooq, and he quickly joined.

Fostering a Culture of Creativity

At the English National Ballet, both leaders had clear and complementary visions of the type of environment they wished to create. For Tamara, the priority was what she called a cultural “cross-fertilization.” She pushed back on what she sees as the limitations of conversations around cultural appropriation, describing culture as something fluid. It was this desire to incorporate new perspectives at the Ballet that made her want to bring Farooq onboard in this creative role — she explained, “the more you can bring in outside influences… the wealthier you become in knowledge and diversity and in relevance.” 

This concept of cross-fertilization was inspiring to Farooq, who emphasized his desire always to take on roles that would allow him to learn something new. This would especially be true at the Ballet, which would be a different form of dance from the more contemporary work he had been focused on in his previous experience. His approach to the role of Creative Producer, however, allowed him to remain fluid in this change, which was to create an ecosystem that supported everyone involved in the production to do their best work. It was, of course, a transition not without its challenges. As Farooq described: “when you take on history, you take on legacy, you take on memory, and you try to … recalibrate that, you have to be careful.” Though intimidating, it was also an exciting opportunity for him to take on.

A New & Innovative Giselle

When asked if they felt that they were creating something revolutionary when they set out to make Giselle, Farooq cautioned against going into a project with this in mind, as it creates an immense amount of pressure on top of all the existing challenges of producing a ballet. Rather than focusing on the reception or awards that may come from the show, he described the revolutionary aspect of this production as the team’s need to change the rules around how a classical ballet works. For example, Akram requested a month of research to develop the “language” of the show with the dancers, and then an additional three months when all resources would be focused on Giselle — a rare structure for ballets who typically put on several productions simultaneously. This unique process ended up informing the English National Ballet’s new building, which they created with space for this type of in-depth research and development for each show.

Of course, while the production team did not enter into the process with the critical response primarily in mind, there were many people to get onboard for such a groundbreaking performance. Fortunately, those involved in the process - from the board, to the creative team, to the dancers - were engaged in and excited by the new production. Criticism came more from the traditional ballet world, and from those not closely involved with the English National Ballet. However, Tamara could see where this hesitation came from; she explained, “ballet is a very fragile artform in how we pass the tradition [and] knowledge, because it’s word of mouth really.” Despite these critiques, Tamara still viewed the production as a win, because her main goal was to spark a wider conversation about what it means to be a ballet.

Audience as Collaborator

One of the most notable elements of the creative process in producing Giselle was the team’s involvement with the audience. Two weeks before the premiere in Manchester, Farooq and Tamara invited a selection of potential audience members - many of whom were young dance students - to view the rehearsals and share which aspects they liked, disliked, or did not understand. 

Tamara clarified that this is not meant as an exercise to tailor the art to the audience, but rather an important way to gain perspective on a production that, as a producer, one may be too close to see areas for improvement. Farooq agreed, explaining, “we often see the audience as a consumer, but they’re not. They are part of that ecosystem of creation, they are the ones … who help us finish the work.” Letting the audience in during the later stages of the creative process is therefore a key moment to be able to pull back from the work. It is a choice that Tamara believes will be a part of many productions moving forward due to the insights they learned from it.

Advice for Creators in the Pandemic

For Tamara, the most important thing to do right now is to understand what audiences need and provide that for them. In her case, she found a way to do this through dance classes that she broadcast from her own kitchen, which gained 4 million students within weeks. She also emphasized creating something that is “relevant for now,” which was the guiding principle behind her decision to create a ballet film during this time, rather than a filmed ballet, and one that had a truly collaborative team of creators with no one “king” in charge. As Farooq put it, “the leadership of today is no longer about command and control, it’s about learning and co-creating.”

Farooq went on to describe this moment as one where artists should take advantage of the opportunity to recalibrate our values and reinvent ourselves. While we are on pause in many ways, it can also be a chance to really unleash a lot of creativity and to ask ourselves: “what kind of new energy can we bring into the world?”

Finally, both Tamara and Farooq emphasized the importance of not giving into the temptation to recreate a success. The first thing they are doing to build on the excitement of Giselle? Not doing Giselle again! As artists, they have both recognized times in their careers where they felt a sensation of “imitation myself” — a moment when it was clear they needed to move on from a role or a project. Creating new things out of the values of the productions that worked is a much more productive mindset to move forward.

One last word of wisdom that Farooq shared in our chat: “I would encourage making ‘not to do lists!”

Watch The Recording Here