TORONTO—Dancer Hannah Fischer is challenging audiences to consider, “Would you forgive somebody who’s been cruel to you and after 16 years asks for forgiveness? Would you give it to them?”
The second soloist with the National Ballet of Canada is getting her big break, performing the opening night of “The Winter’s Tale,” a three-act ballet drama by British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon. The ballet is making its North American debut on November 14 at Toronto’s Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.
A co-production with England’s Royal Ballet, the “The Winter’s Tale” is based on Shakespeare’s stormy play of the same name. It first premiered in April 2014 at the Royal Opera House and earned both critical and audience acclaim for its dramatic intensity and reflection on human nature.
Wheeldon flew to Toronto to assist the dancers in mastering his choreography, something Fischer is particularly grateful for. “He’s so clear on what he wants in his vision … he knows exactly what [the ballet] is about and what movement is going to showcase that emotion best,” she says.
