A Winter Ballet Season That Moves Between Grace and Contemporary Edge

Around the world, companies are loosening the grip of tradition and leaning into programmes that feel more emotionally immediate, visually daring and culturally connected. The Royal New Zealand Ballet’s upcoming Winter Season, in association with Viking, taps directly into that shift — offering an evening that moves between old-world beauty and contemporary intensity with confidence.

Touring Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch this July and August, the triple bill brings together three works, each carrying its own emotional temperature. One is steeped in classical grandeur, another hums with intimacy and restraint, while the third channels the force and urgency of collective resistance.

At the centre of the season is Sir Frederick Ashton’s Birthday Offering, arriving in New Zealand for the first time. Originally choreographed in 1956 for The Royal Ballet’s 25th anniversary, the work remains one of ballet’s great jewels, intricate, luminous and elegant. Even now, Ashton’s choreography feels distinctly modern in its emotional intelligence. The piece was famously created around the individuality of each ballerina, and that sense of personality still pulses through the work. Its inclusion here also carries a strong New Zealand connection, honouring Southland-born dancer Rowena Jackson, who originated one of the ballet’s iconic solo roles.

Sarah Foster-Sproull’s Ultra Folly shifts the mood entirely, drawing audiences into a world that feels intimate, restless and emotionally exposed. Inspired by the centuries-old musical theme La Folia, the choreography explores closeness, tension and vulnerability through movement that is at once restrained and deeply charged. There’s a cinematic quality to Foster-Sproull’s work, moments that feel almost suspended in time, and it’s easy to see why Ultra Folly has gained international attention since premiering with the RNZB in 2020.

Completing the programme is Andrea Schermoly’s Stand to Reason, inspired by Aotearoa’s women’s suffrage movement and the historic pamphlet Ten Reasons Why a Woman Should Vote. The work transforms that political and social history into something fiercely physical, exploring what it means to challenge systems, demand change and move collectively towards progress.

Together the three works create an evening that leans expansive rather than traditional, ballet not as something distant or untouchable, but as a living artform capable of holding beauty, tension, politics and emotion all at once.

RNZB in association with Viking, Winter Season Dates:

Wellington
16–18 July — St James Theatre

Auckland
23–25 July — Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre, Aotea Centre

Christchurch
31 July–1 August — Isaac Theatre Royal

For more information, visit rnzb.org.nz