English National Ballet heads for Tate Britain

Tate Britain welcomes a host of new inhabitants today as the English National Ballet settle in for a week of pliés and pirouettes among its paintings.

The troupe has embarked upon a full programme of rehearsals, classes, performances and lectures to animate the art gallery’s new large exhibition about Picasso, which celebrates the artist’s connections with Britain, including the British public’s appreciation of his work.

Picasso designed sets and costumes for the Ballets Russes from 1917, and even travelled to London with the company in order to create the designs for ballet Le Tricorne. With the English National Ballet about to start a new season, Beyond Ballets Russes at the London Coliseum in March, this fantastic collaboration seemed a natural step for the two artistic powerhouses.

Setting up home in the Duveen Galleries, which has seen the installation of a barre along the length of one of the rooms, the company will rehearse and then perform three newly commissioned ballets at Late at Tate on Friday 2 March.

The English National Ballet are in the Duveen Galleries at Tate Britain from Monday 27 February to Sunday 4 March. For more information, click here.