Something less tragic?

[Richard LH]

This year, I have been very fortunate to experience great live productions of Giselle, The Winter's Tale, Manon and Swan Lake, and also seen, at the cinema, the Bernstein celebration and Bourne's Cinderella (the latter being the only one I haven't really enjoyed).  All these have a common thread -  largely serious in content with little if any light relief, and  (in the main) being tales of loss, death and separation.  

Most classic ballets seem to be that way inclined, and being pretty unfamiliar with many other works, I was wondering what is out there  in terms of  lighter, even comic, themes.

I  can think of The Nutcracker of course,  plus there is La Fille Mal Gardee (at Sadlers Wells later this year), and Don Quixote (at the RB next year). But can people recommend favourite other ballets that are basically  cheerful and bright?

[MayKwok]

A few off the top of my head:

 

Coppelia

Les Patineurs - Ashton

Tales of Beatrix Potter - Ashton (maybe a bit contentious...!)

The Concert - Robbins

Who Cares? - Balanchine

Stars and Stripes - Balanchine

 

[Mummykool]

A few more that instantly come to mind:

 

Bolshoi's Bright Stream (if you can find it in Youtube)

also their Pharaoh's Daughter

 

Cranko's Taming of the Shrew

 

Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

 

Corsaire (the Anne Marie Holmes' version used by ENB and ABT)

 

 

less classical, shorter, but great fun:

 

Great Galloping Gottschalk and Push Comes to Shove (both on  American Ballet Theater dvds)

 

 

 

[Lizbie1]

Cranko's Pineapple Poll

[Jan McNulty]

Ashton's The Dream

 

David Bintley's Hobson's Choice

 

David Nixon's A Midsummer Night's Dream

 

Bournonville's Napoli

 

Ashton's The Two Pigeons

[RuthE]

Balanchine's Tarantella (yes I know it's only about five minutes long!)

 

And of course Macmillan's Elite Syncopations!

 

Edited to add Balanchine's Symphony in C, coming back to the RB next year.

Edited May 25, 2018 by RuthE

[Sim]

Dances At A Gathering (Robbins)

Fancy Free (Robbins)

Symphony in C (Balanchine)

[Bluebird]

Asphodel Meadows? (Scarlett)

[Bruce Wall]

In addition to the above - and off the top of my weary head - Tudor's Gala Performance, Robbins' The Four Seasons or certainly Cirus Polka (totally charming); Balanchine's Western Symphony (always good for a laugh when done well) and either De Mille's or Peck's Rodeo.  SO agree about Fille and Two Pigeons .... Delights Personified.  

Edited May 25, 2018 by Bruce Wall

[toursenlair]

The Merry Widow (Hynd)

Most of Justin Peck's ballets are very upbeat

Jiri Kylians Symphony in D (but I don't think anyone is allowed to do it anymore. But its on dvd)

Balanchine's Union Jack. Lots of Balanchine actually.

[Bruce Wall]

What of Ashton's Facade?  It's been a while since I saw it of course.  Agree about the Peck.  Happily he doesn't seem in any way to be impelled by Gothic horror or overly fascinated by mathematical logarithms.  It can come, I've found, as something of a relief.  Perhaps it was his growing up in that Californian sun that turned the tide for Peck .... Ashton too didn't reach British shores until he was 15 - having basked in Ecuadorian and Peruvian glows in his prime developmental years.  Certainly Fille is entirely sun drenched.  You can watch its light prance.  

 

Edited May 25, 2018 by Bruce Wall

[Mary]

29 minutes ago, toursenlair said:

 Lots of Balanchine actually. 

Precisely!

[Don Q Fan]

Don Quixote is the best for cheerfulness IMHO! 

Sleeping Beauty?

[Sharon]

Two ballets that I would dearly love to see the RB - or BRB for that matter, perform are;

Square Dance - Balanchine. I'm not sure if a British company has ever danced this?? I've never seen this ballet live, but every time I watch Jeanette Delgado's quick and nimble batterie and joyous performance, online, I feel uplifted.

Etudes - another joyous, uplifting ballet. Before I get told off for wanting to see the RB dance this, again,( because ENB used to dance this?🙄). I'd like to say it's been a while since ENB performed it - and anyway why shouldn't the RB perform it?

I personally would love to see all the amazing dancers presently in the company get the opportunity to shine in either of these gorgeous ballets.

 

[DrewCo]

For upbeat ballets with more narrative or character elements...one can look back to the repertory of the touring 'Ballet Russes' companies (de Monte Carlo and "original" Ballet Russes) -- eg  Massine's Gaîté Parisienne and David Lichine's Graduation Ball.  But I don't think either is done too often nowadays...and they require a performing style rather different from that of today's dancers.

 

Recent narrative ballets that are light or comic include several by Ratmansky; I'm thinking of Bright Stream, Little Humpbacked Horse, and Whipped Cream...All very fun and though the first is not without some serious irony in its depiction of Soviet collective farms in the 1930's (cough), it is also laugh-out-loud funny in spots, really a farce. Will these works last?   I've enjoyed all three, but still couldn't say. The first two do at least seem to have a regular spot in their respective companies' repertories; Whipped Cream (which I loved) premiered just last year with American Ballet Theatre, and did well at the box office. If it's successful again this year, then I expect we will see it revived pretty regularly. Next week Ratamansky's reconstruction of Petipa's commedia dell'arte Harlequinade premiers with ABT. (At New York City Ballet, Ratmansky's witty -- and strange -- Namouna has an implicit rather than explicit narrative. I think it one of his most wonderful works, but I'm not sure if its craziness counts as light in the way RichardLH intends.)

 

Among better known, established works--Ashton's The Dream has already been mentioned and several Balanchine ballets, but not, I think, Balanchine's Midsummer Night's Dream. Balanchine also choreographed his own version of Harlequinade -- in the "spirit" of Petipa, but not a reconstruction. And from Ashton's joyful narrative ballets I'd include Sylvia along with those already mentioned, though it does have some serious underlying themes as most lighthearted ballets do.  And, from the nineteenth century, in addition to Napoli, two other joyful and comic Bournonville narrative works that I'd love to see the Royal Danish Ballet continue to revive are A Folk Tale and Guards at Amager. I don't think they are very likely to make it into the International repertory though.

 

I suppose one might ponder why a certain type of narrative comic ballet isn't always easily assimilable to the "international" repertory.  (Not just certain Bournonville works. Bright Stream makes more sense at the Bolshoi than it did at American Ballet Theatre.) And though one can come up with a list of more cheerful, bright narrative ballets, it's probably still true that only a few have the hold on the international repertory and people's imaginations that, say, Giselle does. Coppelia was mentioned above. When I was a child, I was encouraged to think of Coppelia as ballet's classic, comic masterpiece--a Twelfth-Night to Giselle's Hamlet. Probably a well-known critic or dance historian referred to it that way, and others here may remember who...Certainly, a great performance of Coppelia is one of the happiest times at the ballet I know. 

Edited May 26, 2018 by DrewCo

[Mary]

All of these suggestions sound marvellous and I would like to see a lot more cheerful, comic, or just joyful ( Symphony in C) programming generally. We seem to live in an age of doom, tragedy, woe etc. and (melo)dramas about terrible suffering are what's wanted. Not by me...

A minority view I know! I would like a whole season of joyful dancing rather than angst-ridden expressive acting (might make an exception for Swan Lake and Giselle).

 

 

[Timmie]

If you want one you can see quite soon then definitely The Sleeping Beauty. On at the London Coliseum from the 6th of June. One of the classics with fantastic music and a very joyful ending 😁. I haven't seen the ENB version yet but I am sure it will be great.

Edited May 26, 2018 by Timmie

[Angela]

I know Béjart is not a favorite in English-speaking countries, but his version of Gaîté Parisienne is lovely, uplifting and it makes you smile. Christian Spuck's Le Grand Pas de deux and Eric Gauthier's Ballet 101, both funny gala pieces.

 

[Bruce Wall]

2 hours ago, Angela said:

Christian Spuck's Le Grand Pas de deux and Eric Gauthier's Ballet 101, both funny gala pieces.

 

 

The former is being done at the ROH Spring Gala (Cuthertson/Alexander Jones) on 30th May  

[alison]

8 hours ago, Sharon said:

Square Dance - Balanchine. I'm not sure if a British company has ever danced this?? I've never seen this ballet live, but every time I watch Jeanette Delgado's quick and nimble batterie and joyous performance, online, I feel uplifted.

Etudes - another joyous, uplifting ballet. Before I get told off for wanting to see the RB dance this, again,( because ENB used to dance this?🙄). I'd like to say it's been a while since ENB performed it

 

Square Dance is in ENB's repertoire - and it's not that long since they danced Etudes.

 

6 hours ago, DrewCo said:

I suppose one might ponder why a certain type of narrative comic ballet isn't always easily assimilable to the "international" repertory.  (Not just certain Bournonville works. Bright Stream makes more sense at the Bolshoi than it did at American Ballet Theatre.) And though one can come up with a list of more cheerful, bright narrative ballets, it's probably still true that only a few have the hold on the international repertory and people's imaginations that, say, Giselle does. Coppelia was mentioned above. When I was a child, I was encouraged to think of Coppelia as ballet's classic, comic masterpiece--a Twelfth-Night to Giselle's Hamlet. Probably a well-known critic or dance historian referred to it that way, and others here may remember who...Certainly, a great performance of Coppelia is one of the happiest times at the ballet I know. 

 

How could I have forgotten Napoli?  (Perhaps it has something to do with the Royal Danes' current production of it?)

 

And I'm coming to the conclusion that the general public doesn't really think of ballet as a comic art, more like a dramatic/tragic one in the same way that they do opera.

 

2 hours ago, Geoff said:

 

The ENB production is by Kenneth MacMillan, made originally for the Royal Ballet in 1973. Here is a description, from the website of the MacMillan Estate:

 

https://www.kennethmacmillan.com/the-sleeping-beauty-1/

 

 

But as I indicated in the ENB/Sleeping Beauty thread, that is very unhelpful.

 

3 minutes ago, Bruce Wall said:

 

The former is being done at the ROH Spring Gala (Cuthertson/Alexander Jones) on 30th May  

 

Assuming that Cuthbertson is able to dance it.

[toursenlair]

3 hours ago, alison said:

 

And I'm coming to the conclusion that the general public doesn't really think of ballet as a comic art, more like a dramatic/tragic one in the same way that they do opera.

 

 

 

I think this is true. I showed Spuck's Le Grand pdd (mentioned above) to someone and she said "Who knew ballet could be funny?" Well of course, WE all knew that. I have a lecture that I give called "Ballet Laughs: The Unexpected Comic Side of a Classical Art" in an attempt to dispel this notion, and it never fails to evoke guffaws.

 

Not mentioned so far are the comic relief moments in otherwise serious/sad ballets, eg the drunk pdd in Manon, and one of my faves, the bakers' Rose Adagio and Cyrano's "man in the moon" solo in David Bintley's Cyrano, which I ADORED.  There are funny moments in Still LIfe at the Penguin Cafe, and I suspect in other Bintley ballets I haven't seen. I understand his Sylvia was quite funny.

[Richard LH]

7 hours ago, Bruce Wall said:

 

The former is being done at the ROH Spring Gala (Cuthertson/Alexander Jones) on 30th May  

Bruce thank you so much  for reminding me about the Gala. When I looked into it a while ago it seemed almost sold out apart from some £250-£350 stalls seats. But there are now a few much cheaper seats available and I have nabbed a couple! Looking forward to a great evening.....

[Richard LH]

9 hours ago, Timmie said:

If you want one you can see quite soon then definitely The Sleeping Beauty. On at the London Coliseum from the 6th of June. One of the classics with fantastic music and a very joyful ending 😁. I haven't seen the ENB version yet but I am sure it will be great.

Timmie thank you. I did book this a while ago but neglected to include it as an example in my opening post. We are looking forward very much to seeing it and yes I trust it will fulfil the "joyful" brief.

[Richard LH]

Thank you everyone for your contributions. There are clearly many more "bright" ballets than one might first think and there is a lot here to investigate further, based on your thoughtful suggestions.

[alison]

26 minutes ago, Richard LH said:

Bruce thank you so much  for reminding me about the Gala. When I looked into it a while ago it seemed almost sold out apart from some £250-£350 stalls seats. But there are now a few much cheaper seats available and I have nabbed a couple! Looking forward to a great evening.....

 

I have put up an upper slips ticket in the Tickets section.  Thanks for reminding me, I meant to email the box office and return it this afternoon, but it's too late now.  They'll be open on Monday, presumably.

[JohnS]

I don't think any one has mentioned Christopher Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland - I recognise it's not every one's cup of tea but I find it works really well in the theatre and guarantees many smiles.

 

I also find Mats Ek's Bye very uplifting, helped of course by Beethoven's final piano sonata.

[Angela]

There are uplifting ballets that still make you cry - Ek's Bye was Sylvie's goodbye, what a sad moment. The same goes for Dances at a Gathering which has so many melancholic, tender moments that with all the joy of the waltzes and mazurkas I would never consider it a funny ballet...

[Angela]

I had a great laugh in Christopher Wheeldon's ballet spoof "Variations sérieuses", when the shortsighted primaballerina thinks she jumps into the arms of a waiting partner in the wings but misses very scarcely and jumps into the orchestra pit instead... also a very funny piece, I think he made it for a gala years ago.

[Melody]

I wouldn't call it bright, but I found Symphonic Variations to be very peaceful and uplifting.

 

I remember seeing excerpts from Tudor's Gala Performance years and years ago, and it looked hilarious.

Edited May 28, 2018 by Melody

[Fonty]

3 hours ago, Melody said:

I wouldn't call it bright, but I found Symphonic Variations to be very peaceful and uplifting.

 

 

Absolutely!  And I felt very mellow indeed after watching Monotones 1 & 11. 

[Guest]

I have never seen it, but is The Prospect Before Us a comic ballet?

 

Michael Corder's Melody on the Move was witty, doubt ENB will be dancing that again.

 

A Wedding Bouquet is a funny and sad ballet. Facade and Les Rendezvous are both light-- hearted. Lots of Ashton ballets are comic or have comic sections - Jazz Calendar is another example.

 

What was the MacMillan pas de deux made on Seymour and Nureyev? Bonne Bouche? Never saw it.

 

I find Raymonda Act 3 and Paquita both uplifting examples of the sheer joy of classical ballet

[Guest]

Oh - and lots of comedy in La Sylphide, but ultimately its a tragedy!

[Springbourne3]

Ashton’s ‘Cinderella’ - hoping the RB will bring this ballet into a future season.  

Another Ashton is the joyous ‘Voices of Spring’ PDD and does anyone remember Nijinska’s ‘Les Biches’ which I think was in the RB’s rep back in the 60s (!) - think it was Beriosova who then danced the elegant hostess with the cigarette holder - would love to see this performed again.  

No tragedy in any of the above!

Edited May 29, 2018 by Springbourne3