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Nicol Edmonds

Mary, Queen of Scots (Scottish Ballet)

June 9, 2026

The Scottish Ballet’s exciting "Mary, Queen of Scots" tells its complicated story extremely well and balances classical and modern choreography with ease. Its minimal décor helps make swift transitions between the scenes without making the audience feel that the stage is underpopulated. The costume choices link the past and present so that we are not kept out of this Elizabethan story. The new score by Mikael Karlsson and Michael P. Atkinson avoids dissonance while also keeping it theatrical for modern audiences. This is a worthy addition to the repertory of contemporary dance. [more]

Ballet Festival: Program A

August 10, 2019

Joseph Sissens in Sir Frederick Ashton’s “Dance of the Blessed Spirits,” in The Joyce Theater’s Ballet Festival (Program A) (Photo credit: Maria Baranova)The Joyce Theater is presenting a two-week Ballet Festival, four programs under the artistic direction of Kevin O’Hare, director of The Royal Ballet. Each program is curated by a different dance expert, the first by O’Hare, himself.Program A was divided into two parts, the first the more sedately classical, the second showing newer, more contemporary fare. It was a fascinating, focused study of the state of ballet today, featuring, appropriately, two works by the British master of classical ballet, Sir Frederick Ashton. [more]