CANADIAN CONTEMPORARY BALLET

Carmina Burana

"[This] work never fails to get the heart pumping with its high-octane blend of athletic and sensual choreography exploding with joy." - Winnipeg Free Press

One of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s most requested productions, Carmina Burana is a feast for the senses - visually stunning, musically absorbing, and emotionally pounding. Choreographed by internationally acclaimed artist Mauricio Wainrot, this electrifying work fuses bold, athletic movement with Carl Orff’s cantata to create a visceral experience that transcends traditional storytelling.

Set to Orff’s thunderous and evocative score, Wainrot’s choreography unfolds through a series of vignettes that mirror the music’s five movements. Each scene pulses with energy and emotion, shifting seamlessly between moments of erratic intensity, tender romanticism, and unabashed sensuality. With sculptural lighting and costuming, and an ensemble of dancers moving as one powerful organism, Carmina Burana becomes more than performance - it becomes like ritual.

What emerges is a celebration of the human spirit in all its complexity: raw passion, vulnerability, desire, and joy. It’s a work that demands everything of its dancers and leaves audiences exhilarated, moved, and inspired - proving why it remains a standout in the RWB’s repertoire.

Choreography: Mauricio Wainrot
Music: Carl Orff, Carmina Burana
Set & Costume Design: Carlos Gallardo
Lighting Design: David Morrison
Associate Lighting Design: Robert Mravnik

T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods

“T’əl is a powerful fusion of Indigenous storytelling, contemporary ballet, and classical music - rooted in tradition and elevated for the stage.” - The Globe and Mail

T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods marks a bold new chapter in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s repertoire. Choreographed by RWB School alumnus, choreographer Cameron Fraser-Monroe, this West Coast première unfolds an Indigenous legend through the lens of a fully Indigenous creative team.

Narrated in both English and Ayajuthem by Elder Elsie Paul, the story follows a fearless young woman who sets out to rescue her sister from T’əl, a dark figure who steals children under the cover of night.

The evocative original score is composed by Cris Derksen, a JUNO-nominated, Two-Spirit cellist and composer. With stunning costume design by Asa Benally (Navajo designer and Yale alumnus), T’əl is a powerful fusion of movement, music, and storytelling that honours the richness of oral tradition.

Choreography: Cameron sinkʷə Fraser-Monroe
Oral History Storyteller: Elder Elsie Paul
Composer: Cris Derksen, Featuring Northern Voice Recording as well as Sheldon & Frazer Sundown
Costume Design: Asa Benally
Lighting Design: Scott Henderson

Cameron Fraser-Monroe is a member of the Tla'amin First Nation, located on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast. He grew up in Vernon, British Columbia, where he began his dance training in Ukrainian dance at the age of three. At 15, he moved to Winnipeg to attend the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, marking the beginning of his professional ballet journey.