Drawing: Sarah Lamb

Posted on May 5, 2016 by Mark Winter / Chicane

sarah lamb

In early 2015 I drew American ballerina Sarah Lamb in the title role of Christopher Wheeldon’s Royal Ballet production of ALICE IN WONDERLAND, which she kindly signed and I duly posted on this site. Sarah was born in Boston and became Principal of the City’s Ballet company in 2003. She received the Gold Medal from US President Bill Clinton in 1998, being named Presidential Scholar in the Arts. Sarah moved to London and joined the Royal Ballet because it ” offered more visibility and a wider repertoire.” After becoming First Soloist in 2004 she become Principal two years later with leading roles in all the classical, dramatic and contemporary repertoires.

I drew this montage at the same time I did the initial sketch and dropped it into the Royal Opera House, which she also signed and returned to me.

Sarah is currently performing at Covent Garden in the World Premiere of Liam Scarlett’s FRANKENSTEIN, inspired by Mary Shelley’s Gothic masterpiece.

Drawing: Yasmine Naghdi

Posted on April 26, 2016 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Yasmine Naghdi

Young ballet star Yasmine Naghdi is a born and bred Londoner, with an exotic name and an exotic look, courtesy of the genes from her Iranian father and Belgian mother.

Her association with the capital’s prestigious Royal Ballet began at a young age.
She was selected to represent the Royal Ballet in an exchange programme with the Vaganova Academy in St Petersburg, the school of the Marinsky Ballet Company.

Yasmine graduated from the Royal Ballet School in 2009, winning ‘The Young British Dancer of the Year’ and was offered a contact with the company at the age of 17, becoming First Artist a year later. In 2014 she became a soloist. She has established a truly International following, performing all over the globe including China, the Bolshoi in Moscow, Taiwan Japan, Barcelona, Monaco, Milan and Columbia.

During the 2015/16 season she made her principal debut as Juliet in ROMEO & JULIET as part of the Royal Ballet’s celebration to mark 50 years since Sir Kenneth MacMillian’s production premiered at Covent Garden in 1965 with Margot Fonteyn in the lead role.

I left this drawing at the Royal Opera House last October, where Yasmine signed and dedicated it for me.

Drawing: Alina Cojocaru

Posted on April 21, 2016 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Alina Cojocaru

At the age of fifteen, Romanian ballerina Alina Cojocaru won a scholarship at the prestigious Prix de Lausanne ballet competition to train at the Royal Ballet in London. She decided to become a Principal at the Kiev Ballet instead, but in 1999 she returned to the Covent Garden, becoming a soloist a year later then Principal in 2001. Her partnership with Dane Johan Kobborg is considered to be one of the greatest in the history of ballet. In 2012 she became the only ballerina to receive the Prix Benoisnde la Danse twice after her performance in John Neumeier’s LILI at the Hamburg Ballet.

The New York Times wrote “Alina Cojocaru’s line, her beautiful extension and airy jumps, her wraithlike weightless quality are all gorgeous. This is technique rendered invisible by artistry.”

In 2013 she left the Royal Ballet and became a Principle at the English National Ballet.

Alina signed this sketch I sent to her at the ENB and returned it along with a card thanking me for my letter and the drawing.

Drawing: Laurretta Summerscales

Posted on April 20, 2016 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Laurretta Summerscales

Multi award-winning English National Ballet star Laurretta Summerscales began dancing at the age of two and fifteen years later joined the company, moving up the ranks to First Soloist in 2013. This year she was promoted to Principal. It was announced on stage after performing the role of Medora in LE CORSAIRE at the London Coliseum by the ENB’s Artistic Director and Prima Ballerina Tamara Rojo.

“Laurretta is such a special dancer, her classical technique, her musicality and her emotional theatrical instinct, makes her a stage animal! And I have no doubt that she will be a Principal dancer with an International reputation,” she said.

I left this sketch to Laurretta at the ENB’s home near the Royal Albert Hall and she kindly signed and returned to me.

Drawing: Christopher Wheeldon

Posted on April 9, 2016 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Christopher Wheeldon

Internationally renowned contemporary ballet choreographer Christopher Wheeldon joined the Royal Ballet as a seventeen year old in 1991 and in that same year won the Gold Medal at the Prix de Lausanne competition. He then moved to the Big Apple to join the New York Ballet where he became a soloist in 1998. Three years later he became the Company’s residential choreographer.

He became the first Englishman to be invited to create a new work for the prestigious Bolshoi Ballet and earlier this year was honoured with an OBE by the Queen.

Currently the Royal Ballet’s Artistic Associate, Chris is a familiar face at Covent Garden, especially recently, with a mixed programme celebrating his career. The three works included AFTER THE RAIN, WITHIN THE GOLDEN HOUR and the World Premiere of STRAPLESS. Next week his three-act adaption of THE WINTER’S TALE, Shakespeare’s tale of love, loss and reconciliation begins a two month season.

I left this sketch at the ROH in February and it returned from New York a week later signed and dedicated.

Drawing: Alessandra Ferri and Herman Cornejo

Posted on December 22, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Alexandra and Herman

Italian Prima Donna Alessandra Ferri returned to the Royal Opera House in October this year at the age of 52. She was joined by Argentine and Principal of the American Ballet Theatre Herman Cornejo to perform acclaimed American choreographer Martha Clarke’s CHERI at the Linbury Studio.

Based on the novels of Colette it tells the tale of a doomed love affair between a woman and a man half her age. This is a sketch of them both in rehearsal which they both signed for me. Alessandra also signed another one, which I posted earlier. Dancers are such great drawing subjects!

Drawing: Carlos Acosta

Posted on December 16, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Carlos Acosta

Ballet superstar Carlos Acosta is considered to be the greatest male ballet dancer of his generation. Now, aged 42, he is winding down his virtuoso career and performing a series of farewell performances.

One such event was last week’s CARLOS ACOSTA: A CLASSICAL SELECTION at the London Coliseum. It’s a collection of his favourite pieces from his classical repertoire, accompanied by friends from the Royal Ballet, which he joined in 1998.

In his review for the Guardian, Luke Jennings wrote, “He came from Cuba, from a tough background. He was non-white.There was no haughty androgyny, no pseudo-aristocratic posturing. He just walked on stage, taking calm possession of the space, and you sank back in your seat, knowing that everything was going to be fine.”

Last month a retrospective book, ‘Carlos Acosta at the Royal Ballet’ of his 17 years as its Principal Guest Artist was released. An excellent subject to draw, I have rendered a few sketches of Carlos over the years, but never managed to get them signed. This one includes him holding the Olivier Award, which he won for Outstanding Achievement in Dance in 2007. I was lucky enough to meet him last Saturday as he was arriving at the Coliseum and he generously signed it for me. A treasured addition to my collection.

Drawing: Iana Salenko, Prima Ballerina

Posted on November 4, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Iana Salenko

I really enjoy drawing dancers.The lines become more energetic and it certainly gives the 4B pencil are good workout. Ballet adds grace to the rendering. My latest sketch is Ukrainian prima ballerina Iana Salenko, Principal with the Staatsballet Berlin and Guest Artist with the Royal Ballet since performing the role of Kitiri in Carlo Acosta’s Don Quixote in 2013. She returns to Covent Garden this month as Juliet in Kenneth MacMillian’s groundbreaking production of Romeo and Juliet. First staged at the Royal Opera House in 1965, it has been at the heart of Royal Ballet’s repertory ever since. On opening night fifty years ago, Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn performed the title roles, receiving a rapturous reception with 43 curtain calls during 40 minutes of applause.

Iana will also join Principal Steven McRae this month in Tchaikovsky Pas de deus and The Nutcracker over the Christmas season. I was very pleased to receive my sketch, signed by Iana after I left it at the Opera House.

Drawing: Alessandra Ferri, Prima Ballerina Assoluta

Posted on October 22, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

alessandra ferri

Italian dancer Alessandra Ferri is a prima ballerina assoluta.To share my expanding knowledge on dance, that is a title awarded to the most notable female dancers. It is a rare honour, reserved only for the most exceptional artists of their generation. The ‘hauntingly beautiful’ Alessandra began her climb to the pinnacle of ballet when she joined The Royal Ballet at the age of 15. Four years later she became one of its youngest Principal dancers. A small staue of her as Juliet stands in the Royal ballet school in her honour. After a six-year sabbatical, she returned, at the age of 52, to her Covent Garden roots to perform a ‘mesmerising comeback’ in Wayne Mc Gregor’s Woolf Works. Only a handful of ballerinas have danced in their 50’s. The Royal Ballet said Alessandra is the oldest to take a leading role, “en pointe and of this physicality” since the legendary Margot Fonteyn, who danced until she was sixty. Early this month the double Olivier Award winner joined one of the stars of American ballet, Argentine Herman Cornego in Martha Clarke’s adaption of Colette’s obsessive love story Cheri in the Royal Opera’s Linbury Studio. The Observer’s dance critic Luke Jennings was full of admiration, concluding his review with ‘Cheri is about the cruelty of time; Ferri’s career tells another, happier story,”

This is one of two sketches I drew-the other was Alessandra and Herman rehearsing Cheri.They signed for me after the final performance.

Drawing: Matthew Bourne

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Widely regarded as the UK’s most popular and successful choreographer and director, TIME magazine extends the boundaries on that accolade, “Matthew Bourne is the world’s most popular living dance maker.”

For the past 30 years, Matthew has been choreographing and directing dance for musicals, opera,theatre and film. The five-time Olivier Award winner is the only British director to have won the Tony for both Best Choreographer and Best Director of a Musical with Swan Lake in 1999.

I did this sketch of Matthew directing rehearsals for The Car Man sometime ago and since I have had great success getting sketches signed from Sadler’s Wells through the mail, I decided to continue with that process. oddly enough I had just slipped it into the postbox when the man himself walked past me.