“Dutch National Ballet Junior Company stole the show, and just like in the previous such programme in 2019, the choreographer Milena Sidorova, herself a company young creative associate, made the strongest statement.

Sidorova said her piece was about the dancers themselves, the current stage in their young lives (ages 17–21) and the decade ahead in which they would discover who they really are. Her work Bloom, set to music by Caroline Shaw and Bobby Ferrin, was exactly that: a lively, carefree work for four men and five women, who lark around with each other but always with a smile or a meaningful look involving us in the action.

They are all superb dancers, with a solid, at times almost show-off-ish classical technique; each is given an opportunity to shine. Wearing the universal youth uniform of jeans and loose tops (costumes by Sidorova), they brought a rousing youthful feel to the evening.”

Culture Whisper about Bloom (2022)