The National Ballet of Japan (NBJ) will open its 2018-2019 season with "Alice's Adventure in Wonderland" next month.
The new production, created by enterprising British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, will be performed at the New National Theatre, Tokyo, in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, from Nov. 2 to 11.
Premiered by Britain's Royal Ballet in 2011, it has been praised as a masterpiece of the new era.
Yui Yonezawa and Takafumi Watanabe, who will dance the leads on the first night, spoke to The Yomiuri Shimbun about their motivation and expectation for the work.
The two dancers were chosen by Wheeldon for the first night -- the choreographer selected all the dancers for the main roles. Ayako Ono and Yudai Fukuoka will dance the leads on alternate dates.
"I'm really happy," Yonezawa said.
For Watanabe, it is the first time he has been given the opportunity to dance the male lead in the first cast in a full-length ballet production.
"It's a big opportunity for me," he said. "I was very surprised, but I immediately came back to reality and thought, 'I have to watch the video and study the work.'"
Yonezawa joined the NBJ in 2010 after a stint at the Ballet San Jose in the United States. The accomplished dancer was promoted to principal, the top rank of dancers at the NBJ, in 2013, and has danced the lead role in numerous performances.
Watanabe transferred from Le Ballet du Capitole in Toulouse, France, to the NBJ in 2016. In the following year, he was promoted to first soloist, the second rank at the company, and has shown considerable improvement in his performances.
A magical world
The ballet is an adaptation of the famous novel by Lewis Carroll.
"The scenes change rapidly. It's a fun production with so many must-see scenes," Yonezawa said.
Yonezawa is playing the role of Alice, with Watanabe taking on the two roles of Jack and The Knave of Hearts.
Alice is a girl in love with Jack the gardener. She wanders into a wonderland and meets several characters, such as the Queen of Hearts, who looks exactly like her mother, and Jack, who has turned into The Knave of Hearts. The delightful story unfolds together with beautiful music and pop-art stage sets, with Wheeldon's choreography featuring various sequences of steps and dynamic lifts.
"Alice is mischievous but very charming. I'm on stage throughout the show, and the choreography is difficult. But I'm savoring happiness everyday," Yonezawa said, adding, "The choreography instructor told me, 'Be natural.' I keep these words in my mind and hope I will be able to perform in a way where I can say it's made me improve as a dancer."
"Jack is cool and his steps are very light. The character has a very solid setting, and because of that I must present my own image of Jack," Watanabe said.
It will be the first time for both dancers to dance together in a full-length ballet. At an open rehearsal on Sept. 24, they gracefully danced a pas du deux in perfect harmony.
"We have a similar sense of speed, so I find it easy to dance with him," Yonezawa said of Watanabe. "Takafumi is kind and helps us female dancers look beautiful."
Watanabe also praised Yonezawa. "Yui is a dancer with amazing physicality. She's great and has more stamina than me," he said.
The production also features other characters full of colorful personalities, such as the White Rabbit and the Mad Hatter.
"The whole company is giving their all to the production. I hope we can all have fun and expand our potential together," Yonezawa said.
Visit www.nntt.jac.go.jp/english/ for more information.
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