The first full-length dance work, called Naked, created by George Piper Dances has wowed audiences and split the critics. Michael Nunn talks to Nick Morrison about the company's change of direction as it visits York.

MICHAEL Nunn isn't used to bad reviews. Ever since founding George Piper Dances with fellow Royal Ballet fugitive William Trevitt, he has been garlanded with praise and awards in almost equal measure. They even negotiated the tricky step of moving onto television - where they were known as the Ballet Boyz - without accusations of dumbing down.

But all that changed with their first full-length work. Previously their productions saw them combine three short, stand-alone pieces, but for their latest venture they are staging a single ballet. And it hasn't gone down well with some of the critics.

"What we're doing now is completely different. It is not the Ballet Boyz' style, in that it is a full-length evening rather than three short pieces," Nunn says.

"We have never had a bad review, but people think, 'Why are you doing this, when you should be doing something else? You should be doing triple bills'. We just wanted to try something different and we're happy with the result and with our fan base."

Although some of the critics didn't like it, the latest production, Naked, has so far proved hugely popular with audiences, and, after all, Nunn says, the show was made for the audience and not the critics.

"It has attracted a different audience this time. I've spoken to a lot of people who haven't seen a lot of dance and they really, really enjoyed it.

"It breaks down some of the barriers for people who say they don't understand dance, and a lot of the theatre directors who see the show say we have got an unusually diverse audience. I hope we appeal to a broad spectrum of people."

Naked confounds traditional expectations of ballet with the men appearing in trousers or shorts, and the women in long dresses and normal shoes. The use of video and work with contemporary designers also helps to bring in new audiences.

Inspired by the Robert Altman film Short Cuts, it is the story of a couple who have fallen out of love, interpreted by three different couples to explore the different sides of the relationship and the different facets to the story.

"It shows that everything can change, that one thing can happen and there can be three different scenarios coming out of that," Nunn says.

"In Short Cuts, lots of different events happen to different people, and you don't know exactly what is going on because you're not seeing everything in people's lives."

Emboldened by Naked's success, the Ballet Boyz are looking at another full-length production for next year, this time working with different collaborators.

"The company has to evolve in all different ways. Maybe we will split the company in two to go to smaller theatres with the triple bills and the larger venues for the longer pieces," Michael adds. London-born Nunn joined the Royal Ballet in 1987, the same time as Trevitt, and was promoted to first soloist in 1997. The pair formed George Piper Dances in 2000, and went on to create the documentaries Ballet Boyz and Ballet Boyz II - The Next Step, as well as presenting the 4Dance season on Channel 4 in 2002 and 2004.

The company has been nominated for the 2001 and 2003 South Bank Show Dance Awards, and in 2002 was awarded the Theatrical Management Association for Outstanding Achievement in Dance for Critics' Choice. Last summer, Channel 4 aired their Rough Guide to Choreography. They've also been commissioned by Channel 4 to make a film featuring three dance works and a documentary. This latest project sees them working with Sylvie Guillem and will be broadcast next spring. It is part of their determination to keep doing something different.

"We have done the fly-on-the-wall documentary but what we were always quite keen on was putting dance on television. The problem is dance on television is always quite obscure, and I want to put dance on television that looks like dance," Nunn says.

"We have taken three pieces that have been quite successful on stage and collaborated with the composer to film them in various locations. The critics love this particular work, but whether the dance film aficionados think it is not obscure enough, I'm not sure."

* George Piper Dances is at the Grand Opera House, York, on Tuesday and Wednesday. Box office: 0870 606 3595.

Published: 07/07/2005