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History

March 2011

On March 14 a double-CD of the music from the ballet The Most Incredible Thing is released under the name Tennant/Lowe. It contains the full performance score of the ballet with orchestrations by Sven Helbig.

2011 March

On March 17 the ballet The Most Incredible Thing has its first public performance at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London. Its genesis can be traced back to a week in where, by chance, two initially unrelated events took place. Ivan Putrov, a principal dancer at the Royal Ballet whom the Pet Shop Boys had got to know through Sam Taylor-Wood, called Neil to ask whether they would write a piece for him to dance to. Two days later, before Neil had even had a chance to ask Chris, Chris called to say that he’d just read a story in a new translation of Hans Christian Andersen’s tales that he thought would make a great ballet: “The Most Incredible Thing”. This eventually led to the Sadler’s Wells production, choreographed by Javier de Frutos and starring Ivan Putrov, Clemmie Sveaas and Aaron Sillis. All ten performances sell out.

May 2011

On May 27 the Pet Shop Boys appear at the Sunderland Stadium of Light, joining Take That at their invitation as “special guests” on their first reunion concerts as a five-piece on what will be the biggest British tour ever – 29 British stadium shows – followed by a short European leg. “45 minutes of intensity,” says Chris.

December 2011

On December 31 the Pet Shop Boys appear at a New Year’s Eve concert on an island in Sydney Harbour.

On this day

2000

Chris and Neil work on ‘Positive Role Model’ with Chris Zippel in Berlin.

2010

A charity auction takes place today at Christie’s in London to raise money for THT (the Terrence Higgins Trust), an organization that provides services for people with HIV and their loved ones. Among the items auctioned off is ‘a West End Dinner with Pet Shop Boys… [for] you and a friend… to be arranged on a mutually agreed date before 31 March 2011.’ The winning bid is reportedly £7000.

2011

The Most Incredible Thing is released in the United States on the Astralwerks label. Meanwhile, the ballet has its official opening (following several nights of preview performances) this evening at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theatre.

2013

Tonight sees the very first, somewhat preliminary show (‘a work in progress,’ as they describe it on their website) of the Boys’ new Electric Tour in Veracruz, Mexico.

2016

A lengthy interview with Chris by writer Andrew Harrison appears today on The Quietus website.

2022

‘Purple Zone,’ a new collaboration between Soft Cell (the composers) and the Pet Shop Boys (the producers/arrangers), is released digitally. Soft Cell’s Marc Almond shares lead vocals with Neil.