Emerging Artists of Ballet BC and New Coast Players come together for Absence; Creation, February 17
Ballet by Jack Campbell and Antony Knight makes its world premiere at Arts Umbrella
Absence; Creation is at Arts Umbrella on February 17 at 4:30 and 7 pm
A NEW BALLET FEATURES fresh new talent across dance and chamber music.
Making its world premiere on February 17, Absence; Creation is by Vancouver-based composer, violinist, artist, and producer Jack Campbell with choreographer, actor, vocalist, composer, and director Antony Knight.
Exploring themes of death as absence and love as creation—and their inseparable relationship—the work features the Emerging Artists of Ballet BC: Briana Del Mundo, Emanuel Dostine, Eduardo Jimenez Cabrera, and Pei Lun Lai.
In an artists statement, Campbell says absence and creation are constantly reflected in the structures of the work, both via movement and music, “with physical elements constantly being removed and introduced, and the same in the score, with a constant state of sonic addition and subtraction being the formal foundation”.
Playing that music live is a new ensemble of star students from the UBC School of Music, called the New Coast Ensemble.
Campbell is a rising young star on the local arts scene who has created and collaborated in Paris, Berlin, London and Amsterdam. He’s commissioned and premiered over 20 works for solo violin by Canadian composers and his compositional projects aim to build bridges between music and visual arts, dance, and theatre. Projects this year include a solo concert tour in Europe, collaborative work on reconciliation through music with artist Debra Sparrow, and the premiere of a newly commissioned song cycle on LGBTQSIA+ identity. Knight is a baritone who’s studied in Opera Performance and Composition at UBC and has performed with UBC Opera. As a composer, his original piece The Protector of the Okanagan was featured in the VSO’s 2022 Jean Coulthard Readings.
Together with the dancers, they'll explore the two critical forces that connect humans across existence—and provide a chance to check out rising voices in music and dance.
Related Articles
At annual event, tenor-saxophonist Cory Weeds leads the quartet through creative arrangements of Christmas classics
Finnish maestro Kari Turunen has selected a range of pieces old and new for the upcoming concert called Sounds of Finland
U.K. musician, poet, and actor performs experimental chamber-pop from forthcoming album Sir Introvert And The Featherweights
Alexander Weimann directs the Pacific Baroque Orchestra, Vancouver Chamber Choir, and five soloists in afternoon of holiday works
Matthew Ariaratnam, Andromeda Monk, Sapphire Haze, and Anju Singh celebrate the organization’s history of sound innovation
Programming includes world premieres from Chimerik 似不像 and rice & beans theatre, BOGOTÁ by Andrea Peña & Artists, and beyond
Annual concert at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church features such seasonal staples as “Silent Night” and “Maybe This Christmas”, plus two new arrangements
Seasonal standouts include a massive choral Messiah, and different takes on A Christmas Carol—including one with 10-foot-high puppets
Seasonal favourite sets timeless classics by Robert Pearsall and Morten Lauridsen, plus new works by B.C. composers, to the gentle glow of candles
In full-length work, five dancers explore paradoxical themes through vigorous physicality
Annual performance of beloved oratorio features soprano Caitlin Wood, alto Nicholas Burns, tenor Spencer Britten, and bass Jonathon Adams
Canadian alt-pop icon admits the supergroup with Steven Page, Chris Murphy, Moe Berg, and Craig Northey would have seemed unthinkable back in the day
Respected musician plays two shows devoted to India’s oldest-surviving classical genre alongside pakhavaj artist Tejas Tope
Led by Paula DeWit, early-music ensemble Cantare Super Orchestram and a cappella group Belle Voci give the 1742 oratorio fresh style
The neuroscientist, writer, and musician’s conversation with André Picard has musical interludes by Chor Leoni
Program also features Steve Reich’s Jacob’s Ladder with the U.K.’s Synergy Vocals, a Linda Catlin Smith premiere, and John Adams’ Gnarly Buttons
Pianist’s performances of the works have received high praise, including from the composer himself
In DanceHouse presentation of Montreal-based choreographer’s latest ensemble work, simple moves create feelings of restriction
Company to host auditions in Vancouver, Toronto, New York, and Amsterdam for five ballet-based training programs
Presented by Vancouver Recital Society, the Djibouti-born musician brings tremendous vocal feeling to his instrument
New documentary from Belgian filmmaker Johan Grimonprez, a look at the 1961 assassination of Patrice Lumumba, screens directly afterward
More than 100 musicians will be making the journey to Ontario in March 2025
Winter tradition at the Heritage Hall promises enchanting music by pianist Rachel Kiyo Iwaasa and vocalist Amanda Sum
The local artist is appearing at Dance in Vancouver with his latest piece, which requires a new garment to be made for every performance
Award-winning violinist to enchant audiences with Stravinsky’s stunning Violin Concerto and two Prokofiev symphonies
Following the company’s West Coast tour of Nutcracker this holiday season, aspiring artists are invited to pursue the prestigious training program
Ne.Sans Opera & Dance’s About Time acknowledges relentlessness of news cycle, while Livona Ellis and Rebecca Margolick’s Fortress examines femininity and matriarchs
A standing O for Frontier’s awe-inspiring visual magic and multiple, moving layers of meaning; plus, an erotically charged Heart Drive and an ever-shifting Cloud Poem
Led by Ts’msyen musician Saltwater Hank (aka Jeremy Pahl), group blends rock ’n’ roll elements with ancestral traditions
Performance at noon features exciting young artists from Arts Umbrella’s renowned training program