Following the rumours RB have just announced changes to the season...

Royal Ballet Press Release: Changes to Advertised 2002/3 Season

Following the appointment of Monica Mason as Acting
Director of The Royal Ballet, the Company wishes to announce changes to the repertory for the 2002/3 Season.

Le Parc will now be replaced by a Triple Bill highlighting the immense contribution that Rudolf Nureyev made to The Royal Ballet and the world of dance. To further the theme of the International Celebration of Kenneth MacMillan The Prince of the Pagodas will now be replaced by a triple bill of Danses Concertantes, The Judas Tree and Gloria. Finally there will be a run of 10 performances of Romeo and Juliet in June 2003, two additional performances of Manon on 16 and 19 May and four more performances of The Sleeping Beauty 12, 15, 21 April (matinee and evening).

Triple Bill
Apollo, Divertissements, Raymonda Act III
5, 9, 11, 14, 17, 23, 26 April

Rudolf Nureyev died in Paris on 6 January 1993. To mark the 10th anniversary of the death of this truly remarkable dancer, choreographer and ballet director, The Royal Ballet will stage a Triple Bill of works particularly associated with him. The programme opens with George Balanchine’s Apollo, the central part of the programme will be a series of divertissements woven into a montage of film, photography and dialogue arranged by Sylvie Guillem, and will close with Nureyev’s own production of Raymonda Act III.

Balanchine’s Apollo was first danced by Nureyev at the Royal Opera House on 23 June 1971 with Svetlana Beriosova, Vergie Derman and Georgina Parkinson as his muses.

Francis Francis of The George Balanchine Trust says: “We are thrilled to be opening this great tribute programme to Rudolf Nureyev on this the anniversary of his death, and look forward to many further collaborations with The Royal Ballet in the years to come.”

The divertissements will include a solo from Marius Petipa’s Le Corsaire,
MacMillan’s pas de trois from Images of Love, originally created for Nureyev, Christopher Gable and Lynn Seymour in 1964, Pierre Darde’s solo Lame, an extract from August Bournonville’s La Sylphide and a pas de deux from William Forsythe’s
In the middle, somewhat elevated.

Nureyev first staged his complete version of Raymonda for the Royal Ballet Touring Company to perform at the Spoleto Festival in 1964. Raymonda Act III was first performed by The Royal Ballet, with Fonteyn and Nureyev in the leading roles, on 27 March 1969 at the Royal Opera House.

John Tooley, Chairman of the Rudolf Nureyev Foundation says: "I am extremely happy that The Royal Ballet is now able to honour Rudolf Nureyev's memory by mounting a programme in April 2003. This is of immense importance in that The Royal Ballet was the first western company Rudolf was associated with for any length of time after his defection. For The Royal Ballet and for him it was a historic and fruitful period."

Triple Bill
Danses Concertantes, The Judas Tree, Gloria
as part of the international celebration of Kenneth MacMillan
29, 30 April, 2, 3, 8, 9, 14 May

Kenneth MacMillan’s contribution to The Royal Ballet is immeasurable. This Triple Bill features three one act works that show the depth and wealth of his talent.

Danses Concertantes was Kenneth MacMillan’s first commissioned work and also marked the beginning of his lifelong collaboration with Nicholas Georgiadis. Set to Stravinsky’s score, the ballet requires total precision that matches and complements
the complexity of the music, with its sudden shifts in metre and tone. In 1991
MacMillan asked Ian Spurling to create new designs for the ballet. For this programme, the revival of Danses Concertantes will recreate the original Georgiadis designs.

MacMillan’s profoundly moving Gloria, set to Francis Poulenc’s Gloria in D major used Vera Brittain’s Testament of Youth as its inspiration. Created for
The Royal Ballet and first performed on 13 March 1980 this powerful and elegiac
work mourns the waste of young lives in the trenches during the First World War.
Andy Klunder’s designs are a distinctly abstract depiction of the period providing a stark and strangely ethereal view of the desolation of the First World War.

The Laurence Olivier Award winning The Judas Tree, premiered on 19 March 1992, was MacMillan’s last work for The Royal Ballet. Brian Elias’ commissioned score
was created independently of any scenario or characterisation from MacMillan, a process that was to drive the ballet rather than illustrate it. Using Jock McFadyn’s designs
The Judas Tree is set on a building site using Canary Wharf as its backdrop. It is a highly charged ballet of betrayal and sexual violence, a resounding condemnation of humanity’s flaws.

Deborah MacMillan says: “I am delighted that The Royal Ballet have decided to reconsider the contribution that the Company is making to the International Celebration of Kenneth MacMillan. The programme that replaces The Prince of the Pagodas incorporates key works from the beginning and end of his career alongside one of his great choral works.”

Romeo and Juliet
Kenneth MacMillan
as part of the international celebration of Kenneth MacMillan
4, 6, 9, 10, 12, 13 June at 7.30pm
5 June at 2.30 and 7.30pm, 7, 14 June at 12 noon

Revival sponsored (2001) by The British Land Company plc and The Friends of Covent Garden

Shakespeare’s tragedy of star-crossed lovers has inspired generations of leading artists from Gounod to Peggy Ashcroft to Baz Luhrman; Kenneth MacMillan is no exception. Marrying the play and Prokofiev’s passionate, brooding score, he produced a classic of 20th Century choreography and one of The Royal Ballet’s most popular works, all the more remarkable considering that it was his first full-length ballet. Using Nicholas Georgiadis dramatic designs, reworked in the newly opened Royal Opera House, this ballet provides pas de deux of startling lyrical beauty that are danced against a spectacular and forceful portrait of Renaissance Italy.

The Press release is at:
http://www.royalopera.org/News/Index.cfm?ccs=326&cs=721

Ballet.co has a MacMillan Forum, as part of the International Celebration, where we have been talking about what a MacMillan Triple might be and is the place to talk about the man and his works:
MacMillan Forum

Of course these season changes follow in the wake of Ross Stretton's rapid departure from RB and which has spawned more threads and postings then we have ever had before:
Ross Stretton's resignation from RB

But on the Nureyev topic, who do you think will be dancing Apollo?

Shame Pagodas has been dropped again. I think this is an important work and we really have to hold onto it. Was anticipating a Cojocaru debut in this.

Nice Nureyev tribute - these changes really demonstrate the flair and heritage of the RB.

But do we really need R&J again?!

It strikes me the finances must be finely balanced if we are relying on so many crowd pleasers. Does anybody know paid (as opposed to papered) attendance figures for last season?

>But on the Nureyev topic, who
>do you think will be
>dancing Apollo?

I was really surprised to see this, given the problems between the RB and the Balanchine Trust last time around. Kobborg, maybe (can't remember whether he's danced it before)? Otherwise, guest artists, I would think. It'll depend on who the Trust approves.

Disappointed that others haven't got the chance to dance the role from the looks of things!

Glad to see that.

To further the theme
>of the International Celebration of
>Kenneth MacMillan The Prince of
>the Pagodas will now be
>replaced by a triple bill
>of Danses Concertantes, The Judas
>Tree and Gloria.

Interesting programme. Oddly enough, I was reading about Danses in the Brinson/Crisp "Ballet for All" book only yesterday and wishing they'd revive it. OTOH, I was watching The Judas Tree on video and wondering who on earth they'd get to dance it with Mukhamedov gone (I was about to start a thread on the MacMillan page, in fact). I can't imagine anyone else bringing that degree of intensity to it. Always pleased to see Gloria, of course, particularly if Benjamin is dancing in it.

Finally there
>will be a run of
>10 performances of Romeo and
>Juliet in June 2003

So I *was* right about that! They managed to get the posters out extremely quickly after Stretton left, didn't they?

>four more performances of The
>Sleeping Beauty 12, 15, 21
>April (matinee and evening).

Not *more* performances! (unless it's Hatley, of course).

>The divertissements will include a solo
>from Marius Petipa’s Le Corsaire,
>
>MacMillan’s pas de trois from Images
>of Love,

That was another one I was going to suggest after reading Brinson/Crisp.

>August Bournonville’s La Sylphide

Kobborg? Pretty please???!!!

>John Tooley: "I am
>extremely happy that The Royal
>Ballet is now able to
>honour Rudolf Nureyev's memory ... This is of immense
>importance in that The Royal
>Ballet was the first western
>company Rudolf was associated with
>for any length of time
>after his defection."

A nicely pointed remark, there .

Interesting that they're going back to the original designs for Danses Concertantes.

Well I'm happy. The mixed bills sound infinitely more interesting than Pagodas which I was not keen to see at all. Can we ask Sarah Wildor to guest/return as well? And I don't mind more R&Js - maybe we can see Yoshida and Benjamin have a go this time too.

Replacing the fascinating Prince of the Pagodas with a triple bill which includes the vile Judas Tree is outrageous. Judas Tree should be excluded from the repertory permanently. I fail to see how the rape of a woman can ever be viewed as entertainment. This ballet upset a lot of people first time around and there is no decent argument for ever reviving it.

The Macmillan special should be an opportunity to re-evaluate the man's work and contribution. The Nureyev triple bill smacks of a hasty cut and paste job.

Most importantly, this seems to me a clear signal of the way forward that those in power at the moment want to go, that is not forward at all. Pointe shoes stuck fast in a comfy mythical past.

One more thing, the rape of a woman on stage is profoundly disturbing. But then so is the gouging out of a man's eyes, the execution on a cross of a prophet and the psychological torture humans inflict on each other. Classical Greek theatre anyone? er... Shakespeare, Albee, Williams?
This goes to the heart of the matter - is the point of art solely to entertain? Do the flutterings of an invented winged creature with a totemic association with candied fruit make for art?

I didn't notice that it had been axed - must have glossed over the bit in the press release that said that. But having read the reviews of Helikopter and Sacre I can't say I'm too bothered.

>And I'm pleased that instead
>of twittering on about who
>did/might/should dance which role

A little courtesy to your fellow posters might be nice here. Most of us are members of the audience and to the audience the most important thing is what's being danced and who's dancing it.

>MAB
>is asking about the financial
>implications. Compensation will (rightly) have
>to be paid to those
>whose commitment had already been
>secured.

I'm certain that the management will have considered these implications - if not then the company doesn't deserve to survive anyway.
>
>The Macmillan special should be an
>opportunity to re-evaluate the man's
>work and contribution. >

Do you feel that it doesn't? How would you suggest changing it so that it does?

>The Nureyev
>triple bill smacks of a
>hasty cut and paste job.
>
Well, it is! Again, any suggestions?
>
>Most importantly, this seems to me
>a clear signal of the
>way forward that those in
>power at the moment want
>to go, that is not
>forward at all. Pointe shoes
>stuck fast in a comfy
>mythical past.

Well, what on earth do you expect? RS was reviled for not preserving what the company is famous for.

Well, one would hope so - although I remember there were questions about whether the ROH management had fully taken into account the cost of cancelling the opera season at Sadler's Wells during the closure - but that's a little damning on the company, isn't it, to suggest that they don't deserve to survive if the management can't do its job properly?

1. Well, I suspect that Pagodas is more postponed than cancelled but what is very encouraging is that Mason et al. have made a very strong statement about the importance of mixed bills. Pagodas went probably because there were simply too many full-lengths.

2. Le Parc has the reputation in Paris of being a bit of a snoresfest. Its also only 90 minutes long AND after seeing Monica Mason sitting through Preljocaj's Rite of Spring @ the Wells last season, I'm not surprised she pulled it.
Why exactly 'should' the RB have any Preljocaj anyway?

3. As for Judas Tree, I agree with other posters that 'vile' it may be (any more vile than The Invitation?), but it contains good choreography and the score is impressive.

4. Apollo is excellent news (let's hope we keep the 'London' version with the staircase and the birth of Apollo)because RS seemed to have excised Balanchine completely in his plans.

5. Let's not forget the musical side: taking on two Stravinskys, a Glazunov and the commissioned score for Judas Tree is not bad at all.

I for one am delighted that Monica Mason has made such a bold statement - it bodes very well for this not being just a 'caretaker' period. Pointe shoes rooted in the past? Maybe, but you can hardly criticise Monica for not being able to commission new works with a couple of months notice! The past, after all is what made the company great...

I'm told that at the press conference Monica Mason said that although she much admired the POB dancers in Le Parc, she didn't think it was right for the RB's dancers. She has already invited Preljocaj to make a new piece for the company in one of the next two seasons. (And incidentally I think it's an excellent sign that she'd prepared to stand up at press conference and explain what she's doing and why she's doing it.)

Presumably they will recoup at the box-office some of the money they've already paid out, if they charge normal triple-bill prices for the Nureyev programme - weren't we told that the top price for Le Parc would be £44?

I've no idea what the reputation of Le Parc in Paris might be, but when I saw it at the Bastille earlier this year the theatre was full and it had a warm reception. I did, it's true, hear one man snoring, but as this happens at Covent Garden nearly every night, whatever the show, I don't think there's much to be read into that. Personally I think anyone who could sleep through the last pas de deux should probably see a doctor.

Nadine Meisner reviewed Le Parc in the Times a few seasons ago:

http://www.times-archive.co.uk/news/pages/tim/99/04/16/timartdan03001.html?1135482

and my own view of it is very similar. I don't actually agree with Monica Mason that it wouldn't suit the RB as a whole, but I do think it would be difficult to find casts to rival those at POB - I saw Maurin and Legris at the Bastille, and some people have a video of the original cast, Guerin and Hilaire - all are very fine. One of it's great advantages, for me, is that cast like that it's a ballet about grown-ups - not a Young Girl in sight!

I am a bit dissappointed with withdrawal of Le Parc as well although I like the Triple Bill replacing it