Reid Anderson
and the “New Stuttgart Ballet”

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Since September 1996, the Stuttgart Ballet has been led by a Canadian general director, Reid Anderson. Directly after finishing his ballet training at the age of 20, Anderson was accepted as a dancer in the Stuttgart Ballet by its founder John Cranko. He became a soloist in 1972 and would later take on further responsibilities, such as ballet master. After leaving the Stuttgart Ballet in 1986, Anderson pursued a successful career as ballet director of the Ballet British Columbia in Vancouver, and the National Ballet of Canada in Toronto.
 
Upon returning to Stuttgart in 1996, he quickly adorned the company with the unmistakable vision it has today. This he did by enlarging the company with 21 new young dancers and by lowering the average age in the company to below 25. This move put the Stuttgart Ballet on a new plane. Anderson’s first two seasons were judged by critics and public alike to be an overwhelming success. In Anderson’s first season, there were no fewer than eight world premieres, and together with nine German premieres, the company’s repertoire became significantly richer. Even more world and German premieres were added in each of the following seasons, supplemented by numerous revivals and popular repertoire performances.
 
Reid Anderson’s directorial policy has been characterized by a diverse repertoire. One of his most important projects is preserving the rich tradition Cranko established, with the large array of works by great choreographers having Stuttgart connections, such as Hans van Manen, Glen Tetley, John Neumeier, Ji_í Kylián, William Forsythe and Uwe Scholz. Beyond this, the Canadian has expanded the Stuttgart repertoire with landmark ballets from American or British master choreographers such as Georges Balanchine, Jerome Robbins and Sir Frederick Ashton.
 
At present, the Stuttgart Ballet premieres more original works per season than any other company in Germany.. In November 2001, to celebrate its 40th anniversary, the Stuttgart Ballet presented 14 different ballets on 10 consecutive nights. All the works were by master choreographers who have had close connections with the Stuttgart Ballet’s history.

The Stuttgart Ballet, under Anderson, also continues John Cranko’s tradition in terms of its numerous performances abroad.  In 2003, the company undertook a six-week tour of the United States, following two previous visits in 1997 and 2000. The company spent three weeks touring China in 2000; then in 2001 it performed in Hong Kong, and in February 2002 went to Seoul and several cities in Japan.