Word: ashtons
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Nearly a quarter of a century ago, Sir Frederick Ashton wrote: "The older I get, the less interested I am in ballets of the pests, persecutions and cynicism of contemporary life, and frankly I only like ballets which give an opportunity for real dancing." He is 75 now, and those words may well stand as his artistic creed. For the Royal Ballet, he has whirled up Rhapsody, a dazzling, sun-drenched frolic that premiered last week as part of England's birthday tribute to the Queen Mother. There is no plot except from the music, Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody...
This is not a gambol for just any dancers. The work is dominated by Mikhail Baryshnikov, who is appearing as a guest artist. Ashton has created unexampled leaps and spins (and combinations of the two), as if he saw in Baryshnikov the spirit of Paganini, who raised violin virtuosity to a demonic level, and of Rachmaninoff, who did much the same for the piano. The charm of the work is that it never becomes the visual equivalent of piano busting, a mere showcase...
...threaded throughout. Like a young god, he summons up one girl (Lesley Collier) for himself. They dance divertissements that are like games. Baryshnikov is thrown high into the air. He lands, turns and gives the audience a shrug similar to the one Puck gives at the end of Ashton's The Dream. The rhapsody is over...
...cadenzas of flight, the Royal still has a good addition to its repertory. Rhapsody is valuable for the members of the corps because they must stretch into an expansive, lyrical style while dancing complicated steps. The ballerina part is lightly glamorous, but it requires a whipping allegro technique. Ashton, as usual, has thought of the company as well as the star...
...created dozens of works for it, including Symphonic Variations, Daphnis and Chloe, La Fille Mai Gardée and A Month in the Country. In this century there has been only one comparable partnership, George Balanchine's with the New York City Ballet. Since Ashton's rather premature retirement as director in 1970, the Royal has lacked direction and has had difficulty developing young stars. It would be good if he worked with the company more often. After last week's premiere, Ashton commented that nowadays something special is required "to set one off." Rhapsody owes...