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More: Nevada Ballet Theatre’s ‘Hansel & Gretel’ Headlines The Smith Center May 15-24 in DTLV

More: Bewitched: Nevada Ballet Theatre’s ‘Hansel & Gretel’ Casts a Sweet Spell at The Smith Center in DTLV

The two remaining performances of Nevada Ballet Theatre’s phenomenal “Hansel & Gretel” at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts in Symphony Park in Downtown Las Vegas are this weekend – 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 23, and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 24. Ahead of curtain call, “Hansel & Gretel” Choreographer Loughlan Prior, who is based in London, England, answered questions from VegasPublicity.com:

How long have you been a choreographer? How did you get your start in the career?
I’ve been choreographing professionally for a decade now. I started while I was still dancing with The Royal New Zealand Ballet – making small works on friends and colleagues whenever I had the opportunity. I quickly realized I was just as interested in creating movement as performing it. Over time, those small experiments grew into larger works and commissions and eventually into full-length narrative works like “Hansel & Gretel”

“Hansel & Gretel” had its world premiere in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2019. How long had you been working on the production before its premiere?
The production was two years in the making. Like many full-length productions, it evolved gradually through conversations, design development, musical planning and workshop periods before we ever entered the rehearsal studio. It was a huge undertaking at that time in my career, but also incredibly rewarding because we were building an entirely original theatrical world from the ground up.

What was it like working in Las Vegas and with Nevada Ballet Theatre? What did you think of The Smith Center for the Performing Arts?
Working with Nevada Ballet Theatre was fantastic. The dancers brought enormous commitment and personality to the production, and the entire artistic team was incredibly collaborative. The Smith Center is a beautiful venue – it has a real sense of occasion and warmth, which is wonderful for presenting a narrative ballet. It has been exciting to see the production connect with audiences so well.

What inspires you in work and life?
Storytelling is probably the biggest thing. I’m inspired by literature, film, music, visual art and human behavior – anything that reveals something truthful or unexpected about people. I’m also endlessly inspired by collaboration. Working with dancers, composers and designers always opens up ideas beyond my own imagination.

What does Loughlan Prior do for fun when he’s not working?
A lot of fairly normal things, honestly – reading, gym, spending time with friends, going to galleries and seeing theater whenever I can.

What’s next for you?
I’m continuing work in London and developing several new projects, which is exciting. I’m currently working at The Royal Ballet developing the choreography for a production featuring acclaimed Principal Dancer Steven McRae and virtuoso violinist Vasko Vassilev. I’m very lucky to be working with such extraordinary artists. https://www.rbo.org.uk/production/the-mcrae-vasko-vassilev-project

What do you still enjoy most about your career as a choreographer?
The moment when something suddenly comes alive in the studio. You can spend months imagining an idea privately, but when dancers embody it for the first time, it becomes something real and often far more interesting than what you originally imagined. That collaborative transformation is still endlessly exciting to me.

Please tell me one thing that people would be surprised to learn about you.
People are sometimes surprised by how quiet I am offstage and outside the studio. Choreography can look very outward-facing, but a lot of the creative process is actually quite introspective. I also love LEGO.

More: Instagram: @prior_visual | Website: LoughlanPrior.com

More: NevadaBallet.org + TheSmithCenter.com