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Preview of tonight’s new Wheeldon ballet: The Winter’s Tale

ByGramilano 10 April 20147 July 2024 Reading Time: 1 minute

Sarah Lamb as Perdita and Steven McRae as Florizel in Act II of The Winter's Tale - photo ROH / Johan Persson, 2014 — Sarah Lamb as Perdita and Steven McRae as Florizel in Act II of The Winter’s Tale – photo ROH / Johan Persson, 2014

The Royal Ballet’s newest commission débuts at the Royal Opera House tonight: Christopher Wheeldon’s full-length ballet, The Winter’s Tale.

An exciting cast features Edward Watson and Lauren Cuthbertson as Leontes and Hermione, Steven McRae and Sarah Lamb as Florizel and Perdita and Federico Bonelli and Zenaida Yanowksy as Polixenes and Paulina.

The London run is almost all sold out, before anyone has had the chance to see it, which says something for the audience’s faith in the Royal Ballet, their dancers, and Mr Wheeldon. Ballet lovers world-wide will get a chance to see the ballet on Monday 28 April. In the meantime, here is a first glimpse of The Winter’s Tale.

RBwinterstale2014prodJP00601 — Edward Watson as Leontes in The Winter’s Tale

Gramilano

Graham Spicer, aka 'Gramilano', is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman's Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.

Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.

He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.