Royal Danish Ballet Presents: La Sylphide and the third act of Napoli August 9, 2008

Time: 2008/8/9-2008/8/10
Venue: NCPA-Opera House
Price: 180/280/480/680/880/1080
Tel: 86-10-64177845
Web: http://www.piao.com.cn/en_piao/ticket_1894.html

For other performances: http://www.piao.com.cn/en_piao/allticket.asp

Performed by The Royal Danish Ballet

The Royal Danish Ballet
TheRoyal Danish Ballet is the world's third oldest ballet companiesfounded back in 1748 – and with its Bournonville tradition the companyholds an exceptional position internationally. No other ballet companyhas kept as many ballets in its repertory, danced in an uninterruptedtradition from the Romantic period of the nineteenth century: La Sylphide, Napoli and A Folk Tale are master pieces, not only in Danish ballet history but also in an international context.

TheRoyal Danish Ballet, however, does not live in the past. During thetwentieth century the Royal Danish Ballet has developed into a companyalso spanning modern style: from the neoclassical works by GeorgeBalanchine via Danish choreographers like Harald Lander and FlemmingFlindt to the choreographers of our time both in Europe and USAsuch as John Neumeier, Maurice Béjart and Jiri Kylián. Adding to thisthat the company also performs the great classics like Swan Lake,Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker it goes without saying that hardlyany other company in the world can meet as many requirements as theRoyal Danish Ballet.

LA SYLPHIDE - A Romantic Masterpiece
La Sylphideis the most captivating character of classic ballet. She appeals toboth audience and dancers, who for generations have been fascinated andbeguiled by Bournonville's timeless message. Portrayed with melancholicsentiment and magnificent dance the ballet deals with the incongruityof settled bourgeois life and the irresistible allure of the unknown.

La Sylphideis a breakthrough work in European Romantic ballet. The ballet mirrorsits time and is eternal in its subject matter. The young Scotsman,James, is split between the world he knows and the dream of adifferent, more tempting and dangerous life. The ballet conveys theRomantic notion that humans are double beings with a light and a darkside. Spleen, Weltschmerz and mal de siècle are keywords inunderstanding this ballet, which with its dramatic representation ofthe human condition has retained its immediate appeal.

Inspired by French Romanticism, La Sylphideis Bournonville's only tragic ballet. Stylistically, it is a sublimecombination of mime and choreography. Bournonville commissioned thecomposer Herman Severin L?venskiold to compose a new, original score.

La Sylphidewas created in 1832 by Filipo Taglioni to his daughter the dancer MariaTaglioni at the Paris Opera. Bournonville saw the ballet in Paris in 1834, and two years later he staged his own version in Copenhagenwith Lucile Grahn as the Sylph and himself as James. While the balletdisappeared from the international ballet stages – the last Paris performance was in 1860 – it remains a traditional repertoire fixture at the Royal Danish Theatre.

NAPOLI - Bubbling joie de vivre
Italian folklore, romantic love and bubbling joie de vivre form the core of Bournonville's famous ballet Napoli. This gripping tale of the charming Teresina and the poor fisherman Gennaro, whose love is challenged by the sea spirit Golfo and his seductive naiads, is homage to love.

Napoliis one of the most important principle works of the Royal DanishBallet's unique Bournonville legacy but it is also among the mostprominent works in the entire international ballet repertoire. Theballet features folktales while also mirroring the Romanticist view oflife shared by the choreographer. This is a commanding example ofpositive, Danish Romanticism where Virtue, Love and Lightness arevictorious. The celebratory dance of the third act has with time becomethe hallmark of the Royal Danish Ballet.

Choreographicallyspeaking, the classic step design of the pas de six is juxtaposed withnational dance – here an Italian tarantella – just as the balletcontains passages of miming that range from the merry to the tragic.

Official Website: http://www.piao.com.cn/en_piao/shouye.asp