Based on the true story of the death of Crown Prince Rudolf and his young mistress Mary Vetsera in 1889, Steven McRae and Sarah Lamb take on these challenging roles in a dark and intense ballet. Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria-Hungary is emotionally unstable and haunted by his obsession with death. He is forced to marry Princess Stephanie. Soon afterwards, his former lover, Marie Larisch, introduces him to a new mistress, Mary Vetsera, a young woman who shares his morbid fascination.
The Dream: Frederick Ashton’s delightful interpretation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a classic of The Royal Ballet’s repertory. Symphonic Variations: Ashton was inspired to create a ballet on the four seasons – but as he began to choreograph he refined and purified until the ballet shook off its original meaning, emerging as an abstract celebration of movement and physicality. Marguerite and Armand: Marguerite, a Parisian courtesan, lies on her deathbed. She recalls her tragic love affair with Armand in a series of feverish flashbacks.
A father is riding with his son through the forest. The sick child thinks he sees the Erlking, who both charms and frightens him. Based on Goethe's poem "Erlkönig" and the music of Franz Schubert and Franz Liszt.
In Japanese theater women's roles are traditionally played by men. The man playing the woman's role, the Onnagata, does not imitate the woman, as in the West, but tries to capture her significance. He need not stick close to his model, but draws far more from his own identity - a shift of value takes place, which is nonetheless not a step beyond. THE WRITTEN FACE is an attempt to offer an insight into the Japanese Kabuki star Tamasaburo Bando, one of the last defenders of this ancient and disappearing performing tradition.
Given the proximity of death, the experiences of the past come to the memory of Juan. In a fragmented, sometimes confused way, Juan relives the crucial moments of his life, always linked to the names of women. Moments that remind him of having missed numerous opportunities to be happy.
The sometimes profound, sometimes slightly sordid tale of Elena, a famous concert pianist who, as a child, was sexually assaulted by a circus clown while the music of Manuel de Falla "Ritual Dance of Fire" could be heard from the circus tent. Since that time, Elena has gone into hysterics every time she hears that composition. Making matters worse, the lascivious clown is now her business manager.
