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Fantasy triple bills

Blossom
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Blossom

Blossom

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While watching Les Patineurs on ROH stream, it got me thinking about how much I enjoyed the last triple it featured in, in a bill alongside Winter Dreams and The Concert. It was almost all winter themed. Then there was the fabulous Russian triple with Firebird, Month in the Country and Symphony in C. We have the MacMillan and Ashton triples to look forward to in spring and summer.
 

Many other triple bills have had a piece which is not particularly satisfying though. Which gets to the question, which 3 works would make your perfect triple bill?

 

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bridiem

bridiem

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I couldn't name only one perfect triple bill, but I would book without hesitation for any of these:

 

Concerto/The Dream/Symphony in C

Rhapsody/The Firebird/Les Noces

Enigma Variations/Symphonic Variations/Gloria

Scènes de Ballet/A Month in the Country/Requiem

Serenade/Winter Dreams/Raymonda Act III

 

i.e. opening with something engaging, followed by something more dramatic or thought-provoking, and ending with either joy or reflectiveness. Balancing narrative with  abstract, and sometimes with a music 'theme'.

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Sophoife

Sophoife

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The Concert (Jerome Robbins)

Molto Vivace (Stephen Baynes)

Gala Performance (Antony Tudor)

 

In any order. 


A Month in the Country (Frederick Ashton)

Winter Dreams (Kenneth MacMillan)

Les Patineurs (Frederick Ashton)

 

In that order.

 

Le Spectre de la Rose

Scheherazade 

Petrouchka

 

A Michel Fokine triple, wonderful in any order. To add some length, Les Sylphides/Chopiniana could easily be added in.


After the Rain (Christopher Wheeldon)

Aurum (Alice Topp)

Sinfonietta (Jiří Kylián)

 

In any order.

 

Oh, and Twyla Tharp's In The Upper Room is a fantastic finale to any triple bill: energetic and joyful, with its wonderful score.

 

 

Edited by Sophoife
Added last paragraph
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Dawnstar

Dawnstar

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On 10/12/2023 at 10:49, Sophoife said:

Le Spectre de la Rose

 

Scheherazade 

Petrouchka

 

This reminds me of a mixed bill I saw ENB do back in the early 90s. I don't remember it very well, as I was only about 7, but it definitely included Le Spectre de la Rose, Scheherazade & The Dying Swan. I have a feeling there may have also been a fourth piece but I can't recall what, definitely not Petrushka though.

 

I've been trying to come up with triple bills myself but I feel I haven't seen enough one act ballets to informatively do so. There are a number of one act ballets that I really want to see but as I've not seen them before I can't tell which other ballets they would go well with. I have enjoyed all the more classical/traditional triple/double bills I have seen the RB do in the last few years, though not their modern ones.

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Blossom

Blossom

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I love all of the responses so far. I am still trying to work out what would go into my fantasy triple. It feels about time that we have Symphonic Variations again. So for an Ashton triple, I would love Marguerite & Amand with the right cast- I’m imagining that Naghdi/Ball would probably work better than many of the casts I have seen… I just can’t decide on a 3rd. 
 

@Sophoife I would definitely go to your Spectre de la Rose/Petrouchka/Sheherazade triple! Not had the pleasure to see any of them but love heritage works!

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MAB

MAB

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As I mentioned on another thread, music is very important to me.  Some years ago there was an all Stavinsky triple bill including Rite that was conducted by Bernard Haitink that sold like hot cakes.  So all the RB needs to do is lure a internationally famous maestro onto the rostrum.

 

Failing that here are some fantasy triples I'd love to see including an all Stravinsky.

 

Birthday Offering Ashton/Glazunov

Triad MacMillan/Prokofiev

Ballet Concerto No.2 (nee Ballet Imperial) Balanchine/Tchaikovsky

 

Symphonic Dances Scarlet/Rachmaninoff

Symphony MacMillan/Shostakovich 

Firebird Fokine/Stravinsky

 

Scene de Ballet Ashton/Stravinsky

Petrushka Ashton/Stravinsky

Rite of Spring MacMillan/Stravinsky

 

With non Russian Composers

 

Les Biches Nijinska/Poulenc

Voluntaries Tetley/Poulenc

Gloria MacMillan/Poulenc

 

Dances of Albion Tetley/Britten

The Four Seasons MacMillan/Verdi

Theme and Variations Balanchine/Tchaikovsky

 

I believe the RB currently has the dancers to do all of the above justice

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San Perregrino

San Perregrino

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54 minutes ago, MAB said:

all the RB needs to do is lure a internationally famous maestro onto the rostrum.


i remember that, for the first run of The Dante Project at the ROH, when composer Thomas Adès conducted the orchestra playing his original score, there were non-ballet audience members who had bought tickets to listen, in the first instance, to the maestro and his music but who got the ballet thrown in too. A win-win situation with tickets sold and a new audience introduced to ballet.

Edited by PeterS
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Sim

Sim

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22 minutes ago, Rob S said:

As a huge John Singer Sargent fan I have to say Strapless...I hear reviews weren't good but I wanna see it.

Symphonic Variations, obviously 

Symphony in C

 

plus

 

Month/Les Pats/The Concert

 

I would stay in the bar for Strapless but would love the others on the same bill.  

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Fonty

Fonty

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I love so many of the choices above.  I don't think Monotones 1 & 2 has been mentioned yet? So maybe:

 

Monotones 1 & 2

Rite of Spring 

The Concert

The last two could be substituted with anything dramatic in the middle and something cheerful and lively at the end, out of the many suggestions already made.  

 

Incidentally, has the RB ever done Etudes?  I believe the last time I saw it was with ENB (?)  Wouldn't mind seeing that as part of a triple bill.  Oh, and the Lesson as part of a triple as well?

 

 

 

 

Edited by Fonty
remembered another ballet
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Scheherezade

Scheherezade

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20 minutes ago, Fonty said:

 

Incidentally, has the RB ever done Etudes?  I believe the last time I saw it was with ENB (?)  Wouldn't mind seeing that as part of a triple bill.  Oh, and the Lesson as part of a triple as well?

 


I have a feeling that Etudes isn’t in the RB rep but stand to be corrected. 

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Dawnstar

Dawnstar

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1 hour ago, MAB said:

I'm surprised it got a second run, the other ballet created for Osipova, Medusa, was far superior in my opinion.

 

I thought Medusa was pretty awful, especially the costumes, so if Strapless was worse than that I can only be glad that I missed it by a couple of years!

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Emeralds

Emeralds

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Posted (edited)
3 hours ago, Rob S said:

As a huge John Singer Sargent fan I have to say Strapless...I hear reviews weren't good but I wanna see it.

Symphonic Variations, obviously 

Symphony in C

 

plus

 

Month/Les Pats/The Concert

 

Strapless wasn't the worst but Wheeldon has done better. Am surprised you missed both runs, @Rob S- there were some nice costumes for curtain calls. I agree re: Les Patineurs, The Concert....Symphonic Variations too....all due for revivals. We need humorous or cheery pieces in these times.

Edited by Emeralds
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Emeralds

Emeralds

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1 hour ago, Scheherezade said:


I have a feeling that Etudes isn’t in the RB rep but stand to be corrected. 

That's correct- Etudes (by Harald Lander) is very much an ENB signature ballet. I also like Suite en blanc (by Serge Lifar) which ENB has also danced, and is similar in style, although very different in character. Vadim Muntagirov in Suite en blanc was sheer bliss. But we're very unlikely to see that again unless for some reason Aaron S Watkin and Kevin O'Hare agree on a very unconventional guesting arrangement! 

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Emeralds

Emeralds

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Posted (edited)

Sorry I can't contribute one perfect triple....there are too many favourite/great ballets to choose from. As the genie that said, "the rules are about the wishes include: you cannot ask for more wishes", I'd make the page crash with too many combinations! Or if I had to pick only 3, it's like choosing between your kids. 

 

Some of the ballets I would recommend include: Serenade, Birthday Offering, Concerto, Song of Earth (combined with v short ballets), Requiem, Les Patineurs, La Source (Balanchine), Lilac Garden, The Leaves are Fading, Symphonic Variations, Apollo, Suite en Blanc, Concerto Barocco,  Still Life at the Penguin Cafe, Flowers of the Forest, In G Major, Afternoon of a Faun, The Firebird, Les Sylphides etc etc (haven't finished!) 😄 

Edited by Emeralds
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