Another important work in the anniversary edition of Dancers of Tomorrow is Tabula Rasa by Dutch choreographer Nils Christe. Christe was a guest of the National Ballet Academy in December, along with his wife and assistant Annegien Sneep. Their visit started with an intensive introduction to no fewer than 33 students – “a real masterclass”, says Christe – after which he and Sneep set to work on Tabula Rasa with thirteen couples. Artistic director Jean-Yves Esquerre is extremely pleased with the new acquisition. “It’s such a fantastic, exciting ballet. I absolutely love it!”

Tabula Rasa comprises two sections from Cantus, a work that Nils Christe choreographed to music by Arvo Pärt for Introdans in 2015. Cantus received a standing ovation at its premiere in Arnhem. “For the NBA students, Annegien and I have selected two pieces that last about fifteen minutes together. They may not be long, but the choreography is extremely difficult and is a real challenge for young dancers. It’s very poetic and lyrical, with an incredible amount of pas de deux work”. The latter, in particular is very challenging for the students, according to Christe. “This is really top-notch partnering. When I was training as a dancer, very little attention was paid to partnering, and I only learned it when I was dancing with Nederlands Dans Theater. But it’s so important to be trained in it from an early age. So I think it’s really great that Jean-Yves Esquerre is paying a lot of attention to it”.

The new arrangement of Christe’s work has two parts. “The first part is tighter and more rhythmical, and the dancers have to be precisely on the beat. Whereas the second part – with all those wonderful long chords by Arvo Pärt – is sometimes impossible to count. So the second part allows you to really let go, as the choreography is sketched out in broad strokes. But young dancers don’t always find that easy. They have much more freedom with regard to lyricism, but of course they have to be able to take that freedom and interpret it. It was really nice to see how differently the NBA students deal with that. Some clearly thrive much better on structure and certainty, whereas others enjoy the freedom”.

Cantus was originally created for seven couples, but Christe and Sneep have taught the piece to thirteen couples from the National Ballet Academy. “It was a mammoth task, but a wonderful experience. The atmosphere was incredibly good and the students were exceptionally motivated”. Christe does not yet want to reveal how many couples will be appearing in Dancers of Tomorrow. “We’ll decide that later on”, he says in a conspiratorial tone.

Christe thinks it is extremely valuable for young dance students to get the opportunity to work with a choreographer. “It’s really important to me. Of course Annegien and I won’t be dropping in every day over the coming months. That would only make the students nervous. But we are devoting a lot of time to it. They already see us as Mum and Dad”. Sneep corrects him, to which he replies, “Or rather Grandma and Grandad”. He laughs, “It gets more difficult all the time for our old bodies, but we think that passing on first-hand knowledge is an essential part of our profession”.

Christe and Sneep are assisted by teacher Marion Vijn, a former dancer with Scapino Ballet when Christe was director there, who will take many of the rehearsals in the coming months.

Tabula Rasa will be presented in Dutch National Opera & Ballet, on 4 and  6 July 2017 , as part of the anniversary edition of Dancers of Tomorrow.