Royal Ballet announces casting for Ashton Celebrated
LES RENDEZVOUS / THE DREAM / RHAPSODY
6–19 JUNE 2024
The Royal Ballet‘s mixed programme for Ashton Celebrated opens with the buoyant Les Rendezvous, a fizzing succession of dances following a group of friends who meet in a park. The Dream, Ashton’s witty and tender reimagining of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream, follows set to Felix Mendelssohn’s gossamer light music. The one-act ballet follows two pairs of mortal lovers, their fates at the hands of Oberon and Titania, the King and Queen of Fairies. Ashton’s lyrical masterpiece, Rhapsody, concludes the programme, its explosive jumps and fleet footwork a bravura match for Sergei Rachmaninoff’s virtuosic Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.
Thursday 6 June – 7.30pm
LES RENDEZVOUS
Marianela Nuñez, Reece Clarke*
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Francesca Hayward, Marcelino Sambé
RHAPSODY
Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Taisuke Nakao*
Monday 10 June – 7.30pm
LES RENDEZVOUS
Fumi Kaneko*, Vadim Muntagirov*
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Francesca Hayward, Marcelino Sambé
RHAPSODY
Mayara Magri*, Luca Acri*
Saturday 15 June – 1pm
LES RENDEZVOUS
Marianela Nuñez, Reece Clarke
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Francesca Hayward, Marcelino Sambé
RHAPSODY
Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Taisuke Nakao
Saturday 15 June – 7pm
LES RENDEZVOUS
Marianela Nuñez, Reece Clarke*
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Lauren Cuthbertson, Vadim Muntagirov
RHAPSODY
Mayara Magri, Luca Acri
Wednesday 19 June – 7.30pm
LES RENDEZVOUS
Fumi Kaneko, Vadim Muntagirov
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Yasmine Naghdi*, Calvin Richardson*
RHAPSODY
Francesca Hayward, Marcelino Sambé
THE DREAM / SHORT WORKS / RHAPSODY
7–22 JUNE 2024
Frederick Ashton’s masterful Shakespearian character study The Dream and his exhilarating ballet Rhapsody, created for the stellar talents of Mikhael Baryshnikov and Lesley Collier, come together again in this second mixed programme of Ashton ballets.
Completing the demonstration of the master choreographer’s abundant creativity is a selection of short works: Five Brahms Waltzes in the manner of Isadora Duncan, Ashton’s homage to the legendary dancer; Hamlet and Ophelia, a restaging of the Hamlet Prelude choreographed for Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev; plus The Walk to the Paradise Garden performed by Sarasota Ballet.
Friday 7 June – 7.30pm
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Lauren Cuthbertson*, Vadim Muntagirov*
FIVE BRAHMS
Natalia Osipova
PARADISE GARDEN
Sarasota Ballet
HAMLET AND OPHELIA
Francesca Hayward*, William Bracewell*
RHAPSODY
Sae Maeda*, Daichi Ikarashi*
Tuesday 18 June – 7.30pm
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Natalia Osipova, William Bracewell*
FIVE BRAHMS
Mayara Magri*
PARADISE GARDEN
Sarasota Ballet
HAMLET AND OPHELIA
Sarah Lamb*, Cesar Corrales*
RHAPSODY
Sae Maeda, Daichi Ikarashi
Friday 21 June – 7.30pm
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Yasmine Naghdi, Calvin Richardson
FIVE BRAHMS
Mayara Magri
PARADISE GARDEN
Sarasota Ballet
HAMLET AND OPHELIA
Francesca Hayward, William Bracewell
RHAPSODY
Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Taisuke Nakao
Saturday 22 June – 1pm
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Natalia Osipova, William Bracewell
FIVE BRAHMS
Romany Pajdak
PARADISE GARDEN
Sarasota Ballet
HAMLET AND OPHELIA
Sarah Lamb, Cesar Corrales
RHAPSODY
Mayara Magri, Luca Acri
Saturday 22 June – 7pm
THE DREAM
Titania/Oberon
Yasmine Naghdi, Calvin Richardson
FIVE BRAHMS
Natalia Osipova
PARADISE GARDEN
Sarasota Ballet
HAMLET AND OPHELIA
Sarah Lamb, Cesar Corrales
RHAPSODY
Francesca Hayward, Marcelino Sambé
*role debut
Booking: LES RENDEZVOUS / THE DREAM / RHAPSODY
Booking: THE DREAM / SHORT WORKS / RHAPSODY
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 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.
