FOR Northern Ballet Theatre, a Tale Of Two Cities is a tale of two entities, ballet and theatre, intertwined in motion and meaning.

In his programme introduction, the Leeds’ company’s artistic director, David Nixon, refers to “Dickens’ famous story”.

More realistically, it may be a famous title, but it is a Dickens of a tale to tell anyone unfamiliar with its Channel-hopping between London and Paris at the time of the French Revolution.

For the first time in his tenure, Nixon has handed over the artistic vision of a full-length NBT ballet to a guest choreographer, Cathy Marston, the English director of Bern Ballet, in Switzerland.

To her and scenario writer Edward Kemp falls the task of making a complex Dickens story make sense in dance form.

The story, which provides the ‘theatre’ element in Northern Ballet Theatre, is imparted less successfully than the ‘ballet’ in the first half. However, the feeling of “what’s going on?” fades away as the combination of Dave Maric’s original score, so full of foreboding, and the expressive, diverse choreography consumes you.

Ensemble work has emotional impact in an NBT piece for the first time in too long and Marston fuses classical pointe work with contemporary flourishes, even bare feet.

Keiko Amemori’s Lucie Manett is a demure delight throughout and the execution of the dancing is as fine as Jon Bausor’s witty blade design for the stage curtain.


A Tale Of Two Cities, Northern Ballet Theatre, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds. Box office – 0113 2137700.

* Also Sheffield Lyceum Theatre, September 30 to October 4, 0114 2496000