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        Commissioned by Birmingham Royal Ballet for Ballet Now

        Available for performances after June 2021.
        Unavailable for performance.

        • 2(pic).2(ca).2(bcl).2(cbn)/4.2.2+btbn.0/timp.2perc/pf(cel).hp/str
        • 39 min

        Programme Note



        Composer note:
        Embrace is a 39-minute narrative ballet choreographed by British choreographer George Williamson, the inaugural commission of Birmingham Royal Ballet's new Ballet Now program. This highly personal work explores ideas of sexuality and individual identity, and examines what happens when these concepts come into conflict with societal expectations. In the words of the choreographer, Embrace is about letting go of what society expects us to be, and embracing who we are.

        — Sarah Kirkland Snider

        Scores

        Reviews

        Best Ballet Premieres of 2018

        …as a showcase for [Williamson and Snider’s] emerging talents, Embrace makes an exciting impression…Snider’s score is perfectly suited to Williamson’s theme, rooted in classicism but attuned to the modern ear, with its lushly filmic, melodic quality…I hope she will be commissioned for more dance works henceforth.

        Amanda Jennings, Dance Europe
        15th July 2018

        Sarah Kirkland Snider’s new and undoubtedly American score with its echoes of Bernstein, Copland, and Barber supports the action well. At a time when it seems de rigueur that new music has to be difficult, Snider manages to be challenging without being hard on the ear.

        David Mead, SeeingDance
        20th June 2018
        BRB’s Ballet Now, an ambitious project to develop new choreography. It is an earnest and heartfelt gay coming-out tale, with dramatic music
        Debra Craine, The Times
        19th June 2018
        The sense of collaboration is strong. Snider’s new score supports the action with atmospheric, lyrical music.
        Zoë Anderson, The Independent
        18th June 2018
        Embrace is a powerful work driven by a strong score and an ever simmering tension that revolves around the figure of the ‘outsider’.
        Rachel Elderkin, The Stage, UK
        18th June 2018
        Sarah Kirkland Snider’s commissioned score, its genre-blending sound, jazzy and classical, takes my brain (plenty of time for it to drift) to the classical American ballpark of Leonard Bernstein, Gatsby the outsider, Edward Hopper’s and Tennessee Williams’s lonesome characters.
        Vera Liber, British Theatre Guide
        18th June 2018
        Williamson chose Sarah Kirkland Snider, another newcomer to dance, whose compositions range from indie-rock, electronic pop to classical chamber music.
        Graham Watts, DanceTabs
        18th June 2018

        Embrace is a new work by up-and-coming dance-maker, George Williamson, to a tremendous commission from the notable American composer Sarah Kirkland Snider. Snider creates a thrilling sound world, using the many sonorities of a full orchestra and building her music into truly impressive climaxes. It is rich and satisfying, an impressive first dance score from her, making one wish to hear more of her work very soon.…superb.

        G. J. Dowler, The Classical Source
        16th June 2018