Manon’s brother Lescaut is offering her to the highest bidder when she meets Des Grieux and falls in love. They elope to Paris, but when Monsieur G.M. offers Manon a life of luxury as his mistress she can’t resist.
Prince Siegfried is celebrating his coming of age. The Queen Mother informs him that, the following day, during the grand ball held to mark his birthday, he must choose a future wife. Displeased at not being able to choose her out of love, he goes into the forest during the night. It is then that he spots a flock of swans. He raises his crossbow, prepares to shoot, but stops immediately: before him stands a beautiful woman dressed in white swan feathers, followed by twelve other women dressed in the same way, four of whom are known as the ‘little swans’. ‘Swan Lake’ is a ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, comprising 4 acts and 4 scenes, or 3 acts and 4 scenes. The staging is based on a libretto by Vladimir Begichev and Vasili Geltser. The story is an ancient German legend recounting the tale of the beautiful Princess Odette, transformed into a swan by the curse of the evil sorcerer Rothbart. Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, on 17 March 2015.
Short Polish dance film
A dramatic, energetic adaptation of Heinz Spoerli's ballet based on Grieg's Peer Gynt by the Zurich ballet. Marijn Rademaker is excellent as the title character, clearly telegraphing the emotional range required. Each of the characters and the dramatic scenes are supported by the orchestral passages and songs provided by Grieg; some spoken word passages extracted from the Ibsen play.
Commissioned by Opera North, the Brothers Quay created the installation and film 'She, So Beloved' inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke’s poem ‘Orpheus. Eurydice. Hermes.’ The Orfeo myth is re-told through a combination of art forms; film, dance, music and visual art contained within a contemporary staged installation to provide an intimate sensory experience.
Film-ballet written by composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The authors of the movie tell the story of the ballet's creation, as well as about various stage productions with the participation of outstanding performers of the role of Odette-Odile. The movie includes fragments of the ballet staged by choreographers Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov.
A choreography of Benvindo Fonseca to 19 songs performed live by the music group Madredeus and the dance group Madredeus of Contemporary Ballet of Lisbon. Filmed in Lisbon, at the 'Centro Cultural de Belém', in 29th of June 2006. Madredeus musical group is from Portugal but do not sing fado. His music combines influences of Fado and Portuguese folk music with classical music and popular contemporary music, especially Brazilian popular music (especially bossa nova). The founding members of the group were: Pedro Ayres Magalhães (guitar), Rodrigo Leão (keyboards), Francisco Ribeiro (cello), Gabriel Gomes (accordion) and Teresa Salgueiro (voice).
Steven McRae, principal dancer with the world-renowned Royal Ballet, is 33 years old and at the pinnacle of his career when he severely damages his Achilles tendon in the middle of a show attended by 2,500 spectators. This is the story of his amazing rehabilitation and the nerve-racking days leading up to his triumphant return to the stage.
Acclaimed Ukranian dancer Svetlana Zakharova, who later became one of the youngest ballerinas in Moscow's Bolshoi Ballet, stars in the title role of the famed Romantic ballet "Giselle," recorded at the Teatro alla Scalla in Milan in April 2005. The production, with a libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier, and music by Adolphe Adam, also features La Scala star Roberto Bolle as Albrecht.
Shannon Davidson and Ashley Shaw at the iconic Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, delving into their thoughts and feelings about the timeless classic "The Red Shoes" to celebrate its 75th anniversary.
A story set in revolutionary China, whose proletariat suffers and starves, but refuses to be passive and rises to decisive resistance. Even the artists believe in the victory of the working class, and the symbol of this victory becomes the red poppy, a flower given by a sailor from a Russian ship that brought the much-prized flour to China as a gift to the Chinese comrades.
This recording of all six cantatas from the Salle Henry Le Bœuf in the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Belgium, in December 2012 features internationally renowned Bach expert Philippe Herreweghe and the Collegium Vocale Gent.
16mm film close-up of a ballet shoe being untied.
A well-composed psychological dance drama of a completely different kind from the usual romantic and sometimes superficial ballets. And an intrusive interpretation of August Strindberg's play.
The story of Don Quixote tells of the old knight who dreams of chivalry and his comic squire, Sancho Panza. This performance by the Kirov has been hailed as one of the greatest large cast ballet productions ever recorded on film. The tremendous resources of the Kirov Ballet flash and dash through the four acts of joyous Petipa and Gorsky choreography making Don Quixote a thrilling visual treat. This delightful spectacle features the great Soviet dancers Tatyana Terekhova and Farouk Ruzimatov as the lovers Kitri and Basilio. Don Quixote is performed by Kirov star Vladimir Ponomaryov. Filmed live at the Kirov Theatre in Leningrad.
Prima ballerina Darcey Bussell talks about her life at the top. From tears at ballet school and forgetting the steps, to becoming the Royal Ballet's youngest-ever principal and her favourite roles, Darcey recalls her performing career from its earliest days.
A dance film-fantasy, a tour of old and new Tallinn from its own unique angle - from the rooftops. First colour film of Eesti Telefilm.
When the beautiful dancer Nikiya and the warrior Solor meet in secret, they swear eternal mutual fidelity. However, the High Brahmin, who is also in love with Nikiya, overhears them. He rushes to reveal their secret to the Rajah, who has decided that Solor will marry his beloved daughter Gamzatti. Recorded live, January 2013.
"Music is a dream from which the veils have been lifted. It's not even the expression of a feeling, it's the feeling itself." This quote from Claude Debussy describes the musical world of this programme, made up of his own works and works by Maurice Ravel. In the choreography of Ravel's and Debussy's music by Jeroen Verbruggen and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, fluid lines, dream and atmosphere are strongly present.
Alesia is a five year old girl growing up in an industrial city of Donetsk, Ukraine. She has to face the reality of her surroundings after growing up in love and hope in the warm family nest.