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On Wednesday, 24 April – the last night of Don Quixote in Sydney – the popular principal artist Yosvani Ramos will take his last bow with the company after wielding his guitar (and barber’s blade!) as the cheeky Basilio.

If you already have your tickets, be sure to give Yos an extra cheer to wish him luck in his new European career! And if you haven’t got tickets … why, what are you waiting for? It will be quite the night!

As with any profession, just because you’ve “made it” doesn’t mean you should sit triumphantly, then complacently atop your podium forever. We’re all constantly learning in this great ride of life. I’ve been dancing professionally with The Australian Ballet for just over ten years now, and though I’ve lots of experience under my belt, there is always room to grow and new horizons to venture towards. In Australia, due to the tyranny of distance, the ballet world can tend to feel somewhat insular, a world away from the world, so gaining both career and life experience beyond the “bubble” is essential for growth. This is why I’ve been especially grateful for the experience afforded me by the Khitercs Scholarship, with which I have already travelled to London (The Royal Ballet), Amsterdam (Dutch National Ballet), Antwerp (Royal Ballet of Flanders) and to my other home country, Indonesia, to get in touch with the traditional Javanese dance and drama that are my family’s legacy. The final chapter of my voyage was San Francisco Ballet. (more…)

When the French King Louis XIV appeared as Apollo, god of the sun, in Le Ballet de la Nuit (1653), he not only earned himself the lasting title of the “Sun King”, but also symbolised a new era of ballet and dance in the French royal court of the 17^th century. This era saw some of the most significant and interesting developments in the history of ballet, which often involved the Italian-born composer and dancer, Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687), with whom the king performed in Le Ballet de la Nuit as a teenager. (more…)