Best Ashton

Georges Mendès France’s *Daphnis et Chloé* is a significant ballet from the 20th century. It tells the story of an idyllic love affair between Daphnis and Chloé, set within the world of ancient Greece. The work prominently features music by Maurice Ravel and choreography by Sir William Ashton. It's...

Marguerite and Armand is a ballet by Martha Graham, set to Liszt's Piano Sonata in B Minor. The work portrays a tragic love story between a young woman and a soldier, exploring themes of loss and sacrifice. Notable for its dramatic choreography and intense emotional depth, it is primarily performed...

*La Fille Mal Gardée*, choreographed by Ludwig Minkus, is a cornerstone of classical ballet. This 19th-century full-length narrative tells the story of Giselle, a maid pursued by Albrecht, resulting in a devastating tragedy. The work’s enduring popularity stems from its dramatic storyline and exquis...

Ashton Blake’s *Cinderella* is a full-length ballet adaptation of the beloved fairy tale. The Royal Ballet production distinguishes itself with a contemporary interpretation exploring themes of personal agency and societal pressures through dance. It's particularly relevant for audiences interested...

George Balanchine's *The Dream* is a one-act ballet set to Mendelssohn’s incidental music. It tells a surreal narrative through intricate choreography, primarily performed by a ballerina and dancer. The work highlights Ashton’s innovative approach to ballet storytelling and is notable for its explor...

Balanchine's *Monotones I* and *II* are two influential twentieth-century ballets exploring abstract movement and musicality. These one-act works utilize Schoenberg’s atonal compositions and grayscale costumes to create a visually arresting experience focused on rhythm, spatial design, and the relat...

The Enigma Variations is a ballet choreographed by Margaret Duffield in 1969. It adapts Ralph Vaughan Williams’ orchestral suite, utilizing nine dancers to portray themes of memory and loss. The work’s notable integration of music and movement—particularly Elgar's composition—makes it relevant for d...

“A Month in the Country” is a ballet score composed by Terence Davies adapting Thomas Hardy’s novel. It tells a tragic story of love and loss within the Dorset countryside. The music, featuring Chopin influences and choreography by Roland Ashton, explores character emotions through evocative soundsc...

Ondine is a three-act ballet choreographed by Frederick Ashton to a score by Hans Werner Henze, with a scenario based on Friedrich de la Motte Fouque's story of a water spirit who gains a human soul through love. Created for The Royal Ballet in 1958, it was designed as a major role for Margot Fontey...

Sylvia Ashton’s choreography for *The Winter's Tale* utilizes a predominantly male corps de ballet to depict the shepherdesses, exploring themes of youthful exuberance and pastoral beauty through intricate formations and fluid movement across the stage.

Illuminations, choreographed by George Balanchine to Claude Debussy’s orchestral work, depicts a nocturnal journey through a city illuminated by gaslight and streetlamps, utilizing dancers as abstract figures within the music's evocative atmosphere.

“Façade,” choreographed by Matthew Bourne, reimagines Ibsen’s “A Doll's House” as a gritty, industrial jazz age story set in a munitions factory, exploring themes of control and rebellion through dynamic movement and striking visuals.

“Les Patineurs,” choreographed by Michel Degroas in 1964, is a technically demanding ballet renowned for its intricate fouetté turns and rapid changes of direction performed by male dancers, showcasing a unique blend of athleticism and grace within the classical repertoire.

“Scènes de Ballet,” choreographed by George Balanchine in 1947, is a vibrant and episodic work featuring five distinct vignettes set to music by Igor Stravinsky, showcasing diverse dance styles from Russian folk traditions to Parisian elegance.

“Le Baiser de la Fée,” choreographed by Michel Degivoud in 1976, depicts a young man and a fairy princess’s passionate, yet fleeting, love affair set within a fantastical forest environment utilizing innovative lighting and stagecraft.

“The Two Pigeons,” choreographed by Jiří Kylián in 1995, is a stark and emotionally resonant ballet set to Arvo Pärt’s minimalist music, depicting the quiet, poignant relationship between two aging pigeons through precise, restrained movement.

Dante Sonata (Ashton) is a complex and intensely dramatic ballet exploring themes of guilt, redemption, and the struggle against fate through intricate choreography and evocative music by Olivier Messiaen. (147 characters)

“Les Rendezvous,” choreographed by George Balanchine in 1947, is a neoclassical ballet set to music by Maurice Ravel, depicting a fleeting Parisian encounter through rapid, intricate partnering sequences and elegant, flowing movements.

“Birthday Offering,” choreographed by Jiří Kylián, is a poignant and emotionally intense ballet exploring themes of loss, memory, and the bittersweet nature of remembrance through stark movement and evocative lighting design.

“A Wedding Bouquet” by Ashton portrays the poignant story of a young ballerina’s struggle with a debilitating illness and her unwavering determination to perform in a final wedding dance, exploring themes of resilience and acceptance through expressive movement and evocative staging.

Apparitions, choreographed by Matthew Bourne, reimagines Gilbert and Sullivan’s *The Pirates of Penzance* as a haunting Victorian ghost story set in an asylum, blending classical ballet with macabre theatrical elements.

“Rhapsody,” choreographed by Ashton in 1912, is a groundbreaking work featuring innovative use of music by Igor Stravinsky and exploring themes of primal instinct and human emotion through a cast of eight dancers.

“Homage to the Queen” is a 1964 ballet choreographed by Hans Krallis, set to music by Igor Stravinsky’s *The Rite of Spring*, depicting a stylized and symbolic representation of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign through movement and costume.