Gala de Danza, celebrating dance and all the arts comes to London

June 25 and 26 sees the first London edition of Gala de Danza at Westminster Central Hall. David Mead looks ahead to the event in conversation with founder and producer Christina Lyon, previously a dancer with American Ballet Theatre, Bayerisches Staatsballett and English National Ballet.

Ballet galas are hardly anything new to London audiences but the forthcoming Gala de Danza at Central Hall Westminster promises something different: a multidisciplinary event featuring classical ballet of course, but also opera, contemporary dance, music, the one and only Earth Harp, whose strings shoot out over the audience turning the building itself into the instrument.

Among the highlights are sure to be performances by Royal Ballet principals Francesca Hayward, Melissa Hamilton and Cesar Corrales; New York City Ballet principal Emma Von Enck, English National Ballet soloist Vsevolod Maievskyi, and rising stars of the Royal Ballet and Paris Opera Ballet, Viola Pantuso and Shale Wagman.

But the gala is far from only being about ballt. On the London bill are also contemporary works by Rambert, excerpts from Sadeck Berrabah’s Murmuration, and appearances by Latin Ballroom champions Anton Sboev and Patrizia Ranis.

Heading the choreographic ‘must sees’ is sure to be the world premiere of a contemporary Romeo and Juliet by young Brazilian choreographer Juliano Nunes. Heavily in demand from ballet companies across the globe, he’s probably best known in the UK for his very successful Interlinked for Birmingham Royal Ballet.

Lyon reveals that his Nunes’ first ever professional commission was for a previous gala after she spotted him and his work on YouTube. “It’s been so exciting to watch his career blossom. I really feel he’s like the next Balanchine. His work is just phenomenal,” she says.

“I watched a rehearsal with Braylon Browner, a very talented young man who’s just 19-years-old, who’s studying at the University of Southern California’s Glorya Kaufman School, and Kayla Mack, who is dancing at the Juilliard School and in ABT’s Studio Company, which is quite remarkable. They’re just outstanding.”

Nunes is also staging a contemporary Swan Lake on sixty young performers Lyon has selected from around world, that are coming just to do a workshop with him the week before. The London Gala de Danza programme will also feature young artists Youth America Grand Prix and Trinity Laban.

Musical contributors include Polish countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński, who has won over young audiences through his strong social media presence, and his dual passion for opera and breakdancing. There will also be America’s Got Talent semi-finalist, guitarist and composer, Marcin, saxophonist Valentin Kovalev, and that spectacular Earth Harp.

“We use the term ‘fame,’ explains Lyon. “I look at it as fashion, art, music and entertainment. But also, with a vein of promoting youth and providing the opportunities in the arts.”

Central Hall Westminster is not traditionally used as a performing arts venue. But why not there, she asks. While agreeing that it would have been easier to go to the Royal Albert Hall or Sadler’s Wells, certainly from a box office perspective, she points out that the ethos of Gala de Danza is to expect the unexpected. “And it’s an amazing location, across from Westminster Abbey.”

What prompted Lyon’s move from performing to producing and directing? “Well, for one, it’s a lot easier on your body. I don’t have to ice every night,” she said laughing. “On a more serious note, it was really important to me to create a platform for artists, to give back philanthropically, but also to give them the opportunity to perform. I used to be a guest artist myself, and sometimes circumstances or the conditions weren’t great. I just really wanted to improve upon that.

I also wanted to evolve the art form so that we could involve musicians and collaborate with visual artists, musicians, singers.” Becoming a producer was not part of some great plan, however, she explains. “It just kind of happened organically. I’ve never wanted to be the biggest gala in the world, but simply the best.

Gala de Danza began life in Los Cabos, Mexico, in 2013. Lyon was on holiday there, and not being happy to sit on the beach all day, was curious to discover what the town offered culturally. Discovering a local dance school, she volunteered to teach. “They had wood floors that were not even and no mirrors in the studio. But I came across these unbelievable children, so hungry, so passionate that it just inspired me. There was one beautiful young girl in particular, Mariana Carrillo. She had never had seen live performing arts and I started the gala for her.” Carrillo would go on to study at the University of Southern California’s Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, and appear at subsequent Gala de Danzas. Another dancer from Los Cabos, New York City Ballet’s Andres Zuniga, will appear in London.

Since then, the gala has grown exponentially. “It’s been astonishing in so many ways. We really achieved a really beautiful level of success in Mexico, but I felt like I wanted to do more. I saw how it transformed the lives of some of the young people who have participated and I wanted to bring it to other countries, give other people the opportunity,” says Lyon.

London, she believes, is ‘it’ when it comes to culture. “I think it’s a really important place to establish yourself as a prestige gala and I hope that the UK audiences embrace us just as much as Mexico did.”

But it’s not only about attracting dance aficionados, she insists. Citing the parlous state of dance in education in Britain, she adds that she also wants to promote the arts for young people. To that end, and with the support of the Duke of Edinburgh, tickets for the first show have been donated to London Youth, a charity that seeks to champion and strengthen London’s youth organisations.

“You know, children today are losing their curiosity, their imagination. When they read books, they swipe left. Things that they’re seeing visually are being dictated to them by an algorithm. I think it’s so imperative to get them into the theatre to see live performing arts because it piques their curiosity. When I expose young people to the arts, all art forms, it gives them the opportunity to dream, to be inspired to explore.”

Lyon admits to loving mentoring the artists too. “I think there’s a big part of this that’s not just about the gala for me. It’s about the artists that I work with. I love collaborating with them, giving them opportunities.”

What makes it really exciting is when artists get opportunities to work with people that they idolise or maybe wouldn’t otherwise work with. “One of the first pieces that Juliano did, he worked with concert pianist, Jorge Viladoms. After that, they did several projects together, which was brilliant. I brought hip hop artists to work with a Mariinsky ballerina. That went viral and had a lot of success. But I’m a purist at heart too. There’s a part of me that wants to keep tradition but we have to give artists opportunities to evolve the art form at the same time.”

Lyon has previously spoken about a sort of lack of connection between artists and audiences in dance, certainly to the same extent that exists in sport.

“One of the things that’s really important about live performing arts, is the transference of energy between audience and performing artist. That is something that gets lost if you’re not there in a venue to see them live. We can watch it on our phones, but that feeling that evokes an emotion, you really only get when you’re seeing it in person.”

Going back to the early days of Gala de Danza, Lyon says, “One of the things when I did the gala in Mexico was that we had open rehearsals every day. We had an open auditorium. We were doing the show in a hotel, over the pools and guests were watching daily. I remember asking how I was going to cover up the show? To make sure no one sees it beforehand. Then someone suggested, ‘Don’t. Do the complete opposite. This is fascinating. We love watching these rehearsals up close and personal’.”

In London, she hopes the audience will get an immersive experience. “We are doing some creative things to make the audience feel a part of it, a bit more than you would just going to watch a three-act ballet.”

Looking ahead, Lyon says she just really wants to continue to promote art. “I really want to keep the performing arts alive. I feel that art should be accessible to all. It’s important that we continue to promote art, music, dance for the next generation. And I would love to take Gala de Danza global. Our next venue will be in Egypt, in Cairo, Egypt, and then the Middle East.”

Giving people opportunities is really at the heart of it, she insists. Audiences to see artists, and the artists themselves in terms of opportunities and platforms. “I’ve seen people’s dreams realised and that’s just utterly fulfilling in every aspect.”

In response to those who ask why she is doing this, Lyon says, “I have to. We have to keep pushing. I’ve got to keep knocking doors down because it’s so important for all these very talented artists. We need to do whatever we can do to support them. And I’m so blessed to be around such incredible, inspirational creatives.” In London, she just wants the audience to come away being inspired too.

Gala de Danza is at Central Hall Westminster on June 25 & 26, 2025.