Ballet Black celebrated their ten-year anniversary last year, and their new season shows them to be full of confidence and promise for the years to come. Originally founded in 2001 to address the absence of roles for black and Asian dancers, Ballet Black, led by Artistic Director Cassa Pancho, has always been creative in its choice of choreographers, frequently commissioning works from choreographers who wouldn't ordinarily be associated with ballet, including Bawren Tavaziva of Tavaziva Dance (2007), Shobana Jeyasingh (2008) and Henri Oguike (2010). Much of the excitement for the New Season was due to the premieres of new works by Jonathan Watkins (Royal Ballet), Jonathan Goddard (Rambert Dance Company), Martin Lawrance (Richard Alston Dance Company) and Christopher Hampson (soon-to-be Artistic Director of Scottish Ballet), proving how versatile and talented this small company is. And while most ballet companies use minimal lighting design, Ballet Black's lighting designer David Plater has designed very creative and evocative lighting designs for each work, enhancing the enjoyment of each - we hope Plater receives the recognition he deserves for his great designs!

The opening work was a disconnected duet by Jonathan Watkins, one of the promising choreographers to emerge from within the ranks of the Royal Ballet. It opened with a solo by Sarah Kundi with languorous phrasing and gestures, at times suggestive of a wind-up doll. The dissonant movement was continued by Jazmon Voss and influenced the relationship between the two: the most interesting moments in Together Alone were the interactions between the two, and the use of little gestures to accentuate the tension between them. The music and choreography were beautifully synchronised: as Alex Baranowski's music stepped up, so did Voss's role; later, the spikiness of the choreography was picked up in the cello's pizzicato. Together Alone seemed to remind us of how far ballet can be stretched, with its jerkily modern yet balletic style.

Jonathan Goddard's solo had originally been created to be performed by either a male or female dancer, exploring movement within deep-water trenches, and for the premiere, it was performed by Ballet Black's second-year apprentice, Kanika Carr. Running Silent gripped you from the start as you watched Carr travel from one side of the stage to the other, the haze creating an otherworldly or underwater feel. Carr resembled a nymph in her movement and with her flimsy dress, although as the piece progressed, an underlying madness could be sensed.

Martin Lawrance's Captured was the final piece of the first section, and by far the most impressive of the three, opening with a passionate dimly-lit duet, accompanied by a beautiful string quartet by Shostakovich. As two more dancers joined them onstage, the piece defined itself by the shifting dynamics between the interchanging couples.

Martin Lawrance's choreography is about people, and about allowing their vivid personalities to shine through, in the way that they move, and in Captured, in the way that they look at each other, and in their gestures, for example a fast-paced duet between Cira Robinson and Joseph Poulton, with Robinson flinging her hand in the air at the end. Towards the end, there was a solo by new apprentice Joseph Poulton, as though he was introducing himself to the audience: we look forward to seeing much more from him!

The final piece of the evening was the much-anticipated Storyville by Christopher Hampson, described as "Manon in the Mississippi", narrating the rise and decline of Nola, a lost young girl who arrives in New Orleans in 1915 but whose success as a showgirl and relationship with The Lover is overshadowed by her nemesis, Lulu and Mack. Cira Robinson is a captivating heroine from the opening scene, with her Little Red Riding Hood appearance, wearing a red dress and with a red bow in her hair, and accompanied by a little doll version of herself.

We were introduced to Storyville and the characters by Kanika Carr carrying storyboards with art deco writing, which later returned to shift the story along by a year. Each segment of Storyville is almost too brief, while the accompanying music by Kurt Weill is evocative of the period, and builds momentum and atmosphere, while also narrating specific scenes. And there are some wonderful scenes in Storyville, for example Nola and Mack's increasingly sinister duets, and the touching emotional duets between Nola and her Lover. Joseph Poulton's drunken scene was memorable, if not quite as debauched as the Drunken Lescaut scenes in Manon! If anything, Christopher Hampson's Storyville exceeded expectations, and the music, story and dancing will stay with you long afterwards.