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A topless man in a white feathery costume dancing under a set with a full moon on a blue lit stage.

Five ballet films by Matthew Bourne premiere on Stream

Sydney - Tuesday 2 November, 2021. Five ballet films by leading UK choreographer Sir Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures company will premiere on Stream, the Opera House’s streaming platform, throughout November. 

In a career spanning more than 30 years, celebrated British choreographer and director Matthew Bourne has been transforming the way we experience dance, reimagining classic works in bold new ways that speak to contemporary audiences. The Matthew Bourne Season features five performances, lavishly captured on film, and behind-the-scenes films featuring interviews with cast and creatives.

• Swan Lake, the global smash hit that shattered conventions with its corps de ballet of menacing male swans. The now legendary production caused an immediate sensation when it premiered at Sadler’s Wells in 1995. Thrilling, audacious, witty and emotive, this ground-breaking production turned tradition upside down and took the dance world by storm. Award-winning designers Lez Brotherston and Paule Constable, alongside Bourne, have created a powerful interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s beloved tale for the 21st century. Streaming now.

• Romeo + Juliet, set in a dystopian future designed to crush the spirits of the young. It is a passionate and contemporary re-imagining of Shakespeare’s classic story of love and conflict set to Sergei Prokofiev’s score and featuring the finest emerging male and female dancers from around the UK. Streaming now as part of the Bundle or rent individually from 9 November.

• The Red Shoes, based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale and Powell and Pressburger's 1948 film of the same name, is the tale of one girl’s dream to be the greatest dancer in the world. The double Olivier Award-winning show is set against the achingly romantic music of the golden age of Hollywood composer Bernard Herrmann. Streaming now as part of the Bundle or rent individually from 16 November.

• The Car Man, loosely based on Bizet’s popular opera Carmen, is a delightful, dangerous and ultimately uncompromising vision of small-town 1960s America. The familiar 19th-century Spanish cigarette factory of the opera becomes a greasy garage-diner where the arrival of a handsome stranger disturbs the dreams and passions of those who live and work there. Streaming now as part of the Bundle or rent individually from 23 November.

• Cinderella, a thrilling and evocative love story set in London during the Second World War. Cinderella and a dashing young RAF pilot fall in love but are parted by the horrors of the Blitz. Bourne’s vivid storytelling takes the audience into the heart of Prokofiev’s magnificent score, and the sights and sounds of war-torn London. Streaming now as part of the Bundle or rent individually from 30 November.

For media information, please contact:

Julia Barnes
Senior Communications Manager
0402 678 589
jbarnes@sydneyoperahouse.com