Royal Ballet soloist dances under water to highlight plastic pollution

Royal Ballet soloist Fernando Montano dances under water surrounded by plastic to highlight the pollution of the world’s oceans.

The Colombian dancer was filmed under water by Robin Conway as he moves among recycled plastic art sculptures created by students at three London schools.

Dance For The Sea, which was choreographed by Montano, aims to draw attention to the effect of plastic on waterways.

The transparency of the water and the contrasting colours of the plastic represents the conflict between nature and pollution.

Previews of Conway’s photographs and clips from the film will be showcased on Ocean Outdoor’s grid network of 32 screens and other screens in nine cities including Glasgow, Birmingham, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Liverpool and Leeds to mark World Oceans Day on June 8 and will be displayed until June 10.

Montano, who joined the Royal Ballet in 2006 as an artist and was promoted to first artist in 2010, said: “Our generation may still be able to enjoy the beauty and mystery of the sea, but it is possible that the next one will never really know that we once had the most incredible seas and oceans full of the most incredible animals.

“Being able to communicate an important message at scale across Ocean screens brings new depth and scale to this performance, something which is very important to both myself and Robin.”

Limited edition copies of the photographs will be sold to raise funds for the Marine Conservation Society during a show and auction at the Royal Academy of Music in London on July 18.