A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM at Paris Opera

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, one of George Balanchine’s rare narrative ballets, is entering the Paris Opera Ballet’s repertoire.

Numerous choreographers have delved into Shakespeare to find dramatic material for their ballets, beginning with Jean-Georges Noverre, an ardent defender of the “action ballet” and Marius Petipa, who was the first to use Mendelssohn’s stage music. George Balanchine, who also loved the score, would prove no exception. In 1962 he created his version of Shakespeare’s comedy for New York City Ballet. Faithful to the Bard’s vocabulary whilst adding a subtle touch of pantomime, he portrays a complex love story in two acts and six scenes. Theseus, Duke of Athens, and Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, get caught up in a domestic quarrel between the king of the elves and the queen of the fairies which results in the intervention of the mischievous Puck and his magic potion along with a troupe of amateur actors. The denouement is celebrated in the form of a grand virtuoso entertainment. The sets and costumes for this production have been designed by another magician of the stage, Christian Lacroix.

Live broadcast in Cinema on March 23rd 2017

English title A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
Genre Dance
Recording location Opera national de Paris
Recording date March 18th and 23rd 2017
Production year 2017
Duration 100'
Video format HD
Production Company Telmondis
Co-Production Company Opéra national de Paris, NHK, France Télévisions
Director Vincent Bataillon
Distribution TV Telmondis Distribution
Choir Paris Opera Chorus
Composer Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Orchestra / Band Paris Opera Orchestra
Conductor Simon Hewett
Choreography by George Balanchine
Dance Company Étoiles, Premiers Danseurs and Corps de Ballet of Paris Opera
Costumes Christian Lacroix
Soloist Pranvera Lehnert
Soloist Anne-Sophie Ducret
Original Text William Shakespeare