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Kiran West
ROMANTIC EVOLUTION/S
Mixed Bill
Work specs
La Sylphide
World Premiere (Aleix Martínez)
Cast
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Conductor
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EnsembleHamburg Ballett
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Orchester
La Sylphide − +
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ChoreographyAugust Bournonville
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MusicHerman Severin Løvenskjold
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Production and StagingFrank AndersenEva Kloborg
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Stage and CostumesMikael Melbye
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LightJesper Kongshauge
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Ballet MasterSebastian Kloborg
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Ballet MistressAnne-Marie Vessel-Schlüter
World Premiere (Aleix Martínez) − +
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ChoreographyAleix Martínez
The Production
- Venue Main Stage
- Age recommendation From 12 years
La Sylphide is considered the epitome of romantic ballet, with its premiere in 1832 marking the birth of the art form. Since then, ballet has continued to evolve: for almost 200 years, world premieres by enterprising choreographers have served to renew and expand a universal language that requires no words but is nonetheless highly eloquent.
The double bill ROMANTIC EVOLUTION/S combines La Sylphide with a world premiere by choreographer Aleix Martínez. Commissioned by Interim Artistic Director of the Hamburg Ballet Lloyd Riggins, Martínez will draw inspiration from this romantic classic for his new piece.
La Sylphide revolves around James, a Scottish farmer who falls in love with a sylph on his wedding day. This ethereal spirit of the air – whom he cannot capture – enchants him so much that he leaves his home and his fiancée to follow her into the forest. With the help of the witch Madge, he finally manages to capture the Sylph, only for her to die as a result.
This romantic ballet has survived for almost two centuries not only because of its graceful, floating sylphs, moonlit glades and its picturesque, folkloric dances in James’ manor, but also because of its timeless themes: the relationship between humans and nature, the fascination that the supernatural exerts on us, and the dichotomy between our mundane earthly lives and the spiritual world. Martínez will examine some of these themes in his new piece.
The choreography for La Sylphide is by August Bournonville, whose name is inextricably linked with that of the Royal Danish Ballet. Bournonville's 1836 version is considered one of the most definitive in the international ballet repertory. In Hamburg the ballet will be staged by Frank Andersen, former director of the Royal Danish Ballet and one of the world's leading Bournonville experts. At the invitation of Lloyd Riggins – himself a former Principal Dancer with the Royal Danish Ballet – Andersen will impart the unique style and charm of Bournonville's world-famous ballet to the dancers of the Hamburg Ballet.
The double bill ROMANTIC EVOLUTION/S combines La Sylphide with a world premiere by choreographer Aleix Martínez. Commissioned by Interim Artistic Director of the Hamburg Ballet Lloyd Riggins, Martínez will draw inspiration from this romantic classic for his new piece.
La Sylphide revolves around James, a Scottish farmer who falls in love with a sylph on his wedding day. This ethereal spirit of the air – whom he cannot capture – enchants him so much that he leaves his home and his fiancée to follow her into the forest. With the help of the witch Madge, he finally manages to capture the Sylph, only for her to die as a result.
This romantic ballet has survived for almost two centuries not only because of its graceful, floating sylphs, moonlit glades and its picturesque, folkloric dances in James’ manor, but also because of its timeless themes: the relationship between humans and nature, the fascination that the supernatural exerts on us, and the dichotomy between our mundane earthly lives and the spiritual world. Martínez will examine some of these themes in his new piece.
The choreography for La Sylphide is by August Bournonville, whose name is inextricably linked with that of the Royal Danish Ballet. Bournonville's 1836 version is considered one of the most definitive in the international ballet repertory. In Hamburg the ballet will be staged by Frank Andersen, former director of the Royal Danish Ballet and one of the world's leading Bournonville experts. At the invitation of Lloyd Riggins – himself a former Principal Dancer with the Royal Danish Ballet – Andersen will impart the unique style and charm of Bournonville's world-famous ballet to the dancers of the Hamburg Ballet.
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With the kind support of the
