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Christopher Hampson,
It’s a small World.... | ||||||||||
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Christopher Hampson, formerly a dancer and choreographer with ENB, has been keeping a diary for us since November 97. Initially he covered the creation of his new ballet ‘Country Garden’ but since then there have been lots of other ballets, and he is now a freelance choreographer.
Its been March and New Zealand since we last heard from the man. To compensate I think this is his longest column ever though it does include the worst attempt at a joint diary (with Cathy Marston) that you've ever come across!
Here is a link to the previous column in the series.
Saltarello I enjoyed working with these dancers. Such a positive group of people. Fido has often talked of how much he enjoys going to New Zealand to teach, and he was right about how much I would like it out there. Without knowing it at the time, I was working with three directors, not just one. Matz Skoog, in his capacity as AD of RNZB, then Matz Skoog as the new AD of ENB and, as we’ve just heard, Fido (AKA Gary Harris) as the new AD of RNZB.
Perpetuum Mobile
ENB managed to get quite a few casts on and I tried to rehearse as many of them as possible. It surprised me how many different interpretations came out of the same choreography. I also managed to make small, probably unnoticeable, changes I’d meant to make a long time ago, but either didn’t get the chance, or ran out of time.
Zurich It was hard work, those three days. It felt like being on a long journey with a group of people that have no idea where we’re heading. After 10 hours a day of looking and talking over possible storylines, scripts, music, and more, we somehow got somewhere. I don’t know if it’s where we needed to be, but for my part, I enjoyed the adventure.
Drury Lane - Amaterasu
Ian Knowles phoned me and asked if I knew anybody that was available to be part of City Ballet of London’s last venture on stage. A Japanese show to be on at Drury Lane, the dancers having two five minute slots at the end of the show. I looked through my books and most people were just starting a stint at ENB for Derek’s Romeo & Juliet. “Who’s choreographing it?” I asked. He replied, “Cathy Marston.” Well, if you’ve been reading her diary you will already know that we have a long-standing acquaintance (Cathy, there’s your plug). I couldn’t resist the chance to be choreographed on, by somebody whose work I like. So I put myself forward, would she mind? I thought. It’s a long story and one we both tried to put into words for a joint diary after a meal at my place. I don’t know if it was the volume of wine consumed or just that we ended up laughing so much that it didn’t get done. But for your entertainment here is some of the more printable parts that I managed to salvage from the saved document...Jonathan Still is your typist.
I’ve been working with two choreographers, Christopher Hampson and Cathy Marston. Chris: I’ve been working with a choreographer called Cathy Marston. I haven’t worked with this woman since 1991, when I choreographed Can’t Remember The Title But It Was Something At the Royal Ballet Summer School. At that time I was a choreographer, this time I was a dancer. Cathy: I’ve been working with a choreographer called Christopher Hampson. I haven’t worked with this bloke since 1991, when I danced in Something I can’t Remember, But It Was Something At The Royal Ballet Summer School. At that time, I was a dancer. This time, I was a choreographer. Chris: I was told “Don’t worry – lots of costume, not much movement”. On the second day, when Cathy said “cabriole, double tour”, I was adjacent to the door. However, like any choreographer (and it was a good reminder) you have to go to extremes to find what you want. I hope we ended up with what she wanted. Cathy: I was told I’d have a troupe of gorgeous, lithe, supple men to play with. And how true it was. I didn’t realise how much talent frequented The Box in Seven Dials, on both sides of the bar. Thank you, Ian Knowles. Chris: Two weeks rehearsing as a dancer was a nice vacation, in that I went with a receptive brain, ready to be told what to do, how to do it, and when. And I couldn’t. It took me a week of rehearsals to get back into responsive, alert, I-can-do mode. Annoyingly, I enjoyed the process until the theatre. If anyone sees me near a stage again, shoot me! Cathy: Not annoyingly, I enjoyed the process too. Chris: Lucky you! Cathy: Specially the bits when I could direct twelve guys into different cartwheely thumping things on the floor. Chris came up with a fab manoeuvre, nicknamed “Chris’s skid”. I think he was quite relieved to create the trick, as he’d been whinging and moaning about everyone else’s for the last half an hour. Chris: I didn’t moan that much did I? Did I moan? Cathy: Yes. Well just a little bit. He-he! Chris: You cow! I didn’t think I did too badly after two years of not being on stage. Anyway, back to the story. Once we’d got the costumes on, make-up, twenty whinging dancers, everything seemed like home. I don’t want to be gushy, but the best part of the evening was the drummer, and Cathy’s choreography. How enlightening. We have to do Images of Dance to talk about too, Cathy. Cathy. Oh yes. So I won’t gush either. Shall I start or do you want to...? THREE BOTTLES OF WINE LATER.... Chris: Have I shown you my favourite toy? She’s my favourite toy (he holds up a two-dollar bendy woman..) I laughed about her for hours in New Zealand. My only keepsake from Wellington. I should take her into your rehearsals. “Feel like this?”. Cathy: Lovely. And what’s your piece about? Chris: If you don’t want to talk about it, you can put a link to your last diary.... Here endeth the printable stuff.
This ballet was done between ENB and Drury Lane and although it was created very quickly it was rehearsed for some weeks later by Maggie Barbeiri and Kevin Richmond (long time friend and Scrooge). I enjoyed working with these students, a mature bunch that really seemed to just want to learn and please. I left the piece to go to do the Zurich thing and on my return went straight to Swindon to watch the premiere. It was like a family gathering, there was Wayne Sleep, Cathy, Jonathan, and Kevin. I thought the students did extremely well and over the course of the tour I saw all three ballets go from strength to strength.
Cardiff
After the above premiere I stayed the night in Swindon and the following morning took a train to Cardiff to have the first look at the new venue for A Christmas Carol. A surprisingly quick train journey got me in Cardiff for mid-morning. I joined Muppet (Exec. Director of Tiny Tim Productions) and we ambled to St. David’s Hall. This is to be our home for Christmas and the team we met there couldn’t have been more welcoming. Raymond Gubbay had sent one of his chaps down to be at the meeting and we were all in agreement that Cardiff was going to be a nice place to be for the festive season. The theatre itself is remarkably similar to the Royal Festival Hall and because of that we are able to re-produce exactly what we did last year. Some of the set needs to be remade to fit the stage, and this year, as the work is done already I’ll be able to make the adjustments that I didn’t have time to put in place last year.
Esquisses
I created in June/July and it was a sad time when it was all over. My ballet master was Jean Pascal Carbados (teacher at the school and somebody I first met in Berlin when I used to go to visit Deutch Oper folk.... it’s a long story) and Caroline Palmer notated the work (I’m sure you know who she is by now). It was an excellent team. If you’ve read Bruce’s review you will know that my Mum was down in London for this and so what a family affair the opening night turned into. I went to collect Dame Alicia while various young men were entertaining my Mother. The car that collected Dame A and myself was due to get us there for 7 o’ clock. We were very early, so as we were having such a good chat about choreographers and new ballets I asked the driver to turn into the park where we carried on nattering for 10 minutes. We talked about Balanchine, Stravinsky, Matisse and Diaghilev...What she had to say was very interesting and something I shall always remember, but I couldn’t help looking at her and thinking “My God, you’ve touched Stravinsky”. We arrived in time to do the Foyer. I was really pleased with the high standard that the students performed my ballet. The music was various piano works from Alkan (he’s someone we should all get to know) and I tried to use as many dancers as possible. The costumes for the ladies were tutu’s. All of this in preparation for...
Double Concerto Although it is some time away we have really had to get moving on it. Fido (designer for this piece) leaves for New Zealand to take up his new job at the end of August, I leave for Prague in a week and am not back ‘till September and the company is on holiday for another four weeks. The designs are done, the prototype costumes made and the casting is as much as I can do without the bodies in front of me. I’m sure you’ll get to more about this work in the next few diaries.
Prague I’m going primarily to teach the company and discuss a few future ventures out there ...Please excuse me if I reveal no more than this. What I can say though, is that for the first week Jonathan Still, the best ballet pianist around is joining me. I love teaching class when he’s playing and so do the dancers. We shall be communicating in Russian, German and French and if all else fails Jonathan will know some Czech tunes to get them going.
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