Northern Ballet's Romeo and Juliet: The production which has survived fire and flood

A slew of awards, an Olivier nomination and a Christmas Day screening on the BBC followed, and over the next 20 years it notched up more than 500 performances across the world. But in 2001 arsonists destroyed Northern Ballet’s headquarters and much of its archive, including costumes from Romeo and Juliet, just three weeks before opening night.

Then the catastrophic floods that struck Leeds on Boxing Day 2015 wrecked £2m worth of sets and costumes at the company’s stores. A recent public appeal has supported the recreation, repair and updating of Lez Brotherston OBE’s intricate period costumes and spectacular wooden set, ready for the long-awaited revival of the piece in March this year.

But this would not have been possible without public support and The Northern Ballet Archive, donated to the University of Leeds in 2021, that tells the 50-year story of the company from its foundation to the present. Now, a new exhibition at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery at the University, brings together drawings, props, costumes and photographs from the company’s archive to tell the eventful story of the making of a classic.

Charlotte Murray, co-curator of ‘Preserving the Passion: Northern Ballet’s Romeo & Juliet’ which runs until March 23 said: “We have had a long partnership with Northern Ballet – they donated their archive to us – and this new exhibition comes from that. We wanted to show how some things have stayed the same and others have changed in three decades."

This exhibition documents the production, the evolution and sometimes the complete recreation of a cornerstone of the repertoire – and celebrates the return of this beloved work to the stage in the company’s home city of Leeds, says Charlotte.

Northern Ballet’s current Artistic Associate Daniel de Andrade and Artistic, Learning and Academy Associate Artist Pippa Moore MBE performed in the title roles as younger dancers. They form an unbroken link to the original production, and they are teaching Moricone’s intricate choreography to the new cast, and passing on Gable’s emphasis on stagecraft and attention to detail. The responsibility of recreating Gable’s iconic Romeo and Juliet is not lost on the pair.

“It was devastating for Northern Ballet to have suffered the flood and the fire that destroyed quite a lot of our production especially Romeo & Juliet and what it represents for our company and what it did for Northern Ballet it means a lot to the dancers and staff also the technical staff and stage management, dealing with all the props and scenery pieces that were destroyed,” says Daniel.

Pippa adds: “There was a worry that it wouldn’t come back as it had been destroyed.” But come back it has and what is also clear is the personal investment both Daniel and Pippa have in the production and Gable and Moricone’s influence in their lives.

“Playing Romeo was one of the most transformative moments in my career – it gave me much more opportunity to express myself as an artist both emotionally and physically,” says Daniel. “We focus on the dramatics and beauty and physicality of the movement in the choreography – it cascades you into the role, into feeling the role with the whole of your body. All the movements is initiated from the centre of your body.”

“You are working from the inside out. It’s organic and when its flowing its magical,” adds Pippa, who has also written and narrates the audio script for the visually impaired. “When I came to do Juliet it was 2003 and we’d already lost Christopher (he died of cancer aged 58), I ended up playing Juliet when I was quite young as one of the other dancers was injured so I opened the premiere in Bradford.”

For Gable the narrative and emotion of the production was as important as the classical ballet. “Christopher taught me a lot,” says Daniel. “The biggest gift he could have given me was to act 100 per cent on stage while I was dancing.”

“He used to look through his fingers likes the lens of a camera as though it was a cinematic experience he really wanted us to bear our souls,” adds Pippa.

Gable had been a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet. "He was very passionate about Romeo & Juliet,” says Daniel. In 1965, Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet was given its premiere at Covent Garden with Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn in the lead roles, although the ballet had been created for Christopher Gable and Lynn Seymour.

Gable retired two years later due to arthritis in his feet and took up acting – again achieving the highest possible levels in films and television. From doing years of dramatic work he became artistic director of Northern Ballet in 1987. “It was the perfect vehicle for him,” says Daniel. “The strength of having a producer of that calibre and choreographer of Massimo’s ability and talent, just jelled in such a powerful way.” Add Les Brotherston design and Prokofiev’s score and you were onto a winner,

Daniel has gone on to revive the production across the world, but its not been performed by Northern Ballet since 2009 – until now. “There is a reason it’s been chosen to come out of the box at the moment," he says. And that is down to the current artistic director Federico Bonelli. Daniel had revived it for the Slovakian National Ballet with Federico in the lead role.

“I could see how much that production had impacted on him. It was the first interest Federico had in the narrative and the kind of productions we do. Now its coming back and there is a duty to bring it back to its pristine design and look and choreography. The technical staff are working around the clock to make sure all the original design is there and it is fixed to what it used to be." Daniel and Pippa are now passing on their invaluable experience to the current dancers in this revival of Gable’s Romeo & Juliet. “Usually a choreographer changes their production along the way but we have to respect the fact that Christopher is no longer with us and we have a responsibility to do his production as he felt it - the choreography and the production go hand in hand. And for Les Brotherston set we go back to absolutely what it was,” says Daniel. “It’s so nice to see the commitment and the passion not just of the dancers but when a sword or flag needs replacing they go back to the props bible to the original and recreate it. The same goes for the costumes they have all the designs to go back to – everybody is really excited to see the production as it was.”

“We are trying to emphasise it isn’t just another ballet where we learn the steps, there’s actually real heart and soul behind this,” says Pippa.

“I really have the production embedded in me, it is in my DNA, “adds Daniel. “Because it’s so special for us, and to me, I feel privileged to have had this opportunity.”

Preserving the Passion: Northern Ballet’s Romeo & Juliet continues at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery at the University of Leeds until March 23. Northern Ballet’s revival of Romeo & Juliet is at Leeds Grand Theatre from March 8-16.