Northern Ballet
‘Merlin’ is Northern Ballet’s sixth full length ballet to be captured for screen under the leadership of Artistic Director David Nixon OBE, who will step down from his role in April after more than 20 years. Previous screen successes include ‘1984’, ‘Casanova’, ‘Dracula’, ‘Victoria’ and ‘Dangerous Liaisons’.
‘Merlin’ is the first full length ballet created by Olivier Award winning choreographer Drew McOnie (Broadway’s ‘King Kong’ and Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’). Inspired by the legendary wizard Merlin, the ballet is a magical spectacle for all the family, telling the story of how the world’s most famous sorcerer mastered his magic to unite a warring kingdom.
The ballet was filmed at Leeds Grand Theatre in November 2021 in front of a live audience, with original music by Grant Olding (‘One Man Two Guvnors’, National Theatre), played live by Northern Ballet Sinfonia. The film capture was directed by Ross MacGibbon.