"The Dream is wonderful to watch for its big, generous heart and exuberant humanity. Monotones II, meanwhile, works for its eerie yet celestial other-worldliness. There is a purity, and stirring emotion, in witnessing this physical poem unfold." - Sydney Morning Herald
"Frederick Ashton's highly distilled, vastly enjoyable version of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream... sent the audience out on a blissful high." - Limelight
"With The Dream/Marguerite and Armand, the production teams deliver geometric spectacle, intimidating athleticism and a sense of aesthetic decadence that is rivalled only by the Grand Opera traditions of the 19th century." - ARTS Hub
The Dream
Part one of our Frederick Ashton double-bill is The Dream, an airy, romantic work created to celebrate the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s birth, and a homage to his play A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Set in an enchanted wood, Ashton’s ballet captures the play's themes of love and magic, exploring a poetic space of imagination away from the ‘everyday world.’ Set to Mendelssohn’s tender score, The Dream features vivid characters and a storyline transporting audiences to a realm where the human meets the supernatural.
Choreography - Frederick Ashton
Music - Felix Mendelssohn arranged by John Lanchbery
Costume and set design - David Walker
Lighting design - John B Read
The Dream is generously supported by The Arthur and Roma Norcott Fund and The Frank and Thora Pearce Fund.
Marguerite and Armand
Created for, and made famous by, the legendary partnership of Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev in 1963, Marguerite and Armand brings the passion of a tragic affair between the doomed courtesan Marguerite and her lover Armand, framed through a series of flashbacks. Frederick Ashton created these roles from the passion that Fonteyn and Nureyev embodied when dancing together.
In an Australian premiere, this work will equally serve as a vehicle for the artists of this company. Franz Liszt’s music pulses through each scene, including his famous Piano Sonata in B minor, enhancing the emotional intensity of this unforgettable ballet.
Choreography - Frederick Ashton
Costume and set design - Sir Cecil Beaton
Lighting design - John B Read
Marguerite and Armand is generously supported by The Margaret Ellen Pidgeon Fund and The Maina Gielgud Fund
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