A national and international tour of the iconic ballet Swan Lake is about to open at some of the world’s most famous theatres, with Swanage dancer James Lovell taking the lead role.
James, who recently returned to Swanage to stage his own dance spectacular within the Ranger School of Dance’s Showtime production, has been cast as The Prince in Sir Matthew Bourne’s 30th anniversary tour of the ballet Swan Lake.
James Lovell has again been cast as The Prince in Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake
Owes it all to Ranger School of Dance
Matthew Bourne’s groundbreaking production of Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece caused a sensation when it premiered in 1995, replacing the female corps de ballet with a menacing ensemble of male swans, turning tradition on its head.
James, who first danced the role of Prince Siegfried with the company in 2018 after being talent scouted while still at the well known Elmhurst Ballet School in Birmingham, says he is living the dream – and owes it all to being nurtured by the Ranger School of Dance.
Although the show is likely to take him to Beijing, Tokyo, Los Angeles and New York, as well as a Christmas residency at Sadlers Wells Theatre in London, James is most looking forward to appearing at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton in March 2025.
As the closest event to a home show, it’s expected that more than a hundred Swanage families will travel there to watch James in action during its seven show run from Tuesday 11th March to Saturday 15th March 2025.
James will appear in Swan Lake until 2026, including in an international tour
“A glorified game of pretend”
James Lovell said:
“It is like the best welcome, when you come out of the stage door every night and there are at least 20 people waiting to see me. It reminds me of why I do it and where I started.
“The UK tour continues until June, then we’re off on a big international tour, probably until early 2026. Locations abroad are not set yet, but the last tour included Japan, China, Seoul, Bhutan, six weeks in Los Angeles, Washington and two weeks in New York.
“I will always be grateful, I am living a lot of people’s dreams including my own, but it does feel like a glorified school trip – you turn up with your case, get your prosecco on the plane and sit back and get ferried to wherever they want you to be that week.
“My mum said she could never perform because she sees it as having to work in front of thousands of people, but I see it as a chance to do my thing in front of people who have paid to be entertained, so I can’t really do anything wrong.
“It’s not heart surgery, it’s just a glorified game of playing dress up and pretend, it’s so surreal.”
Rehearsals for the anniversary tour of Swan Lake featuring James Lovell as The Prince
Wanted to quit after starting school
James began his journey at the June Ranger School of Dance at the age of three after begging his parents to let him join, as his best friend Dionne Slack had started going to ballet classes, making him jealous.
Although he tried to quit after starting primary school and being teased by other children there, his mother said that he would have to be the one to tell legendary dance teacher June Ranger – later confessing that she was too scared of June to break the news herself.
James marched into the front of class at the start of lessons and told Mrs Ranger that he wanted to give up ballet, to which she replied; “No you’re not, now go and get your bloody stuff on.”
James starred in a production of Emociones, a flamenco standoff, at Elmhust Ballet School
“My family are so supportive”
James said:
“I’ve never looked back, so I owe it all to her really. She is the one who picked me up when I was down, and pushed me on and showed me that there was a place for me in the working world.
“For a boy in dance, your first school is always like a safe haven and June made that safe space for me, which Caroline, her daughter, has now taken on and has been that angel on my shoulder.
“Everyone in Swanage has a Ranger School of Dance story, whether it’s improving their posture, from a social aspect or giving them the discipline to work in the corporate world.
“Ballet is a great grounding for life, and I’m sure that a lot of Swanage would agree. Generations have been through that dance school, everyone has taken something from it, and everyone walks a little bit taller because they are a member of June Ranger’s school.
“My family are also so supportive of what I do and love. They are not the stereotypical bunch of ballet fans – the family that came from a solicitor’s secretary and a quarry mason – but they are so proud and it is always very special when they are in the audience, even though they all sit and cry.”
Caroline Ranger McCrory at The Mowlem, where James produced a Peaky Blinders dance for Showtime
“It was always clear he had star quality”
Caroline Ranger McCrory, who took over the Ranger School of Dance from her mother June, said that they had always seen something special in James.
Caroline said:
“You could tell he was a very artistic boy from day one; his sister and his brother have both danced with us. He was always a wonderful performer, always very creative and also had a bit of a naughty streak.
“My mother put on a ballet show in 2003 – Cinderella, A Hollywood Dream, and a young James made an entrance in it with a young girl, wearing a tailsuit and with a pretend cigarette and had so much charisma even then that it was clear he had star quality in abundance.
“He could always draw an audience in to watching him, and you can’t learn that, you are just born with it. He was a super lad, full of character and brought up by an amazing mum and dad who were very supportive of him.
“James is not just an amazing dancer, he can act and is very creative – he doesn’t just think of the dance steps, the character and the costume, he will think a lot deeper and go above and beyond to make something more realistic. He is what I call the full package.”
The cast of Peaky Blinders in a stunning show devised by James Lovell
“He thinks beyond the box”
Caroline added:
“When I asked James to do a piece for Showtime based on Peaky Blinders, within a week he had developed a storyboard, made a scrapbook of costume ideas and knew what he wanted everyone to look like.
“His involvement wasn’t just to create the dance, he selected the cast, edited the music, did the projection, gave all the cast character tips and even brought his own props.
“The cast really enjoyed the contrast of Peaky Blinders to the rest of the show and everything else they had done before. Rehearsals were always a joy, he gave everyone homework to understand their characters better and was very exact in his direction.
“He thinks beyond the box, which makes him uniquely different as an artist, and I am sure he has a very exciting future ahead of him.”
The Swan Lake 30th Anniversary ensemble at Trafalgar Square
Not always a prolonged career
James Lovell said:
“If the opportunity was to arise again, I would love the chance to restage that piece or create a new one – I’m sure that’s a conversation I will have with Caroline in the future!
“I definitely have that spark in me and have the bug to do more. Dance isn’t always a prolonged career, so I would love to have something to go into at the end, and it’s definitely given me a taste for it.
“You always have aims and aspirations, and while I love touring I would also love to try some film and TV work; it’s the storytelling that goes hand in hand with what we are doing and I love the acting side of things.
“Choreography is something I’m very interested in or a company manager role, like a resident director, would interest me, so I think I would like to keep all avenues open.”
James was a principal dancer on tour with Edward Scissorhands
Cinema release approved by Tim Burton
James has also appeared in cinemas across Dorset since September 2024 after the release of the dance version of Edward Scissorhands, a Matthew Bourne production which he toured with.
Following approval from creator Tim Burton and original composer Danny Elfman, a crew recorded the company during performances in Cardiff and the film was released in cinemas with an option to release to television at a later date.
James, a principal in the show who played 50 year old George Monroe, was in the ensemble at the time of filming, but says that there are plenty of close ups of him during the show!
James Lovell as The Prince in Swan Lake
“It created a sensation”
Swan Lake opens at The Theatre Royal in Plymouth on Monday 11th November 2024. Ahead of the premiere, Matthew Bourne said:
“It’s hard to believe that our Swan Lake is now 30 years old and even harder to acknowledge that we are now casting most Swans and Princesses who were not even born at the time of the show’s premiere!
“When our Swan Lake premiered in 1995 it created a sensation that none of us could have predicted. We could never have dreamt of the impact it would have on all of us, our audiences and the wider dance world.
“As our swans take flight once more in this major revival, I’m full of anticipation for the challenges it will bring for our next generation of dancers and the wonder that it will bring to audiences who will experience it for the very first time.”
A scene from the Peaky Blinders choreography which James created for Showtime
Further information
- Read more about Matthew Bourne’s production of Swan Lake
- Visit Swanage’s Ranger School of Dance
- Southampton’s Mayflower Theatre hosts the tour in March 2025
