Shakespeare in ballet:

A challenge to choreographers

by Gwen Herat

If ballet existed during Shakespeare's time, certainly it was in France and not in England. He would never have imagined or dreamed that his plays would, centuries later down the line, would make an entry to the world of ballet let alone the big and small screen. He would have known what ballet was and he needed no reason to be updated on its virtuosity. Certainly, he would have been upset because of the total absence of his marvellous dialogues. Shakespeare's wizardry was his tantalising dialogue that seized the world of English by storm. Never, ever have we found such brilliant voicing in any other writer or poet who could have come to a striking distance.

And Shakespeare survives magnificently and gorgeously in ballet because they have been time-tested, enhanced with the passage of time, collecting more and more brilliance on the way.

He appeared to have been one of the least inventive among writers and preferred subjects that he was adaptable to from the point of looking at the theatre of the day. Most of his works were dramatised during his lifetime. All his characters give an idea when some are sworn to devote entirely to love and look at love as the supreme master of destiny.

This is very apparent in Romeo and Juliet. The joys of love upon themselves even to a sacrificial and tragic end. With nothing left for any imagination, Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn danced the title roles creating an essence of eternity in the audiences. No one else could have danced better. The manifest and moral of this tragedy is multi-fold and ask the question what laws does love obey. I have the answer......

School drama Spiritual love.

But how are the chords that bind hearts, broken later. I felt a bit of it when I acted as Ophelia when 15-years-old in school drama.

The impact of emotion was so tensed, I automatically grew up in seconds and still feels its aura in my trail. Again it was Nureyev's turn to chide Ophelia and he did so brilliantly that no one missed the dialogue. The dancing was perfect and Shakespeare relived in every step. In matters of greater consequences Shakespeare is clearer in conservatism that enabled his plays to take any turn wherever deemed no matter whether they were performing arts or classroom education, we do accept the fact that he created his own glossary and they are well structured in his plays which takes us to the question how his plays became ballets without any character opening his/her mouth.

Much has been debated on Shakespeare's philosophy that many reflections on life appear where necessary but he is into illusions, scattering fragments that are embodied in his deeper recesses in his mind. When he gets into a spot that he cannot extricate himself, come in the illusions.

His mind constitutes a body of doctrine he simply lay at supernatural happenings. In such instances, ballet rises to the top to translate what lies behind his genius mind. Then philosophy vanishes giving place to the opposite and making Shakespeare incoherent and less than reality. There is nothing in Shakespeare's philosophy that is distinctive or carries conviction.

Shakespeare's ballets

Taming of the Shrew is a ballet in two acts choreographed by Cranko to the scores of Scarlatti-Stolze, produced for Stuttgart Ballet in 1969. It was revived for Munich State Opera Ballet in 1976 and for the Royal Ballet in 1977. Germany's Second channel televised it in 1971 and later, yet another version in 1980 with music by Olderich Flosmann.

Romeo and Juliet is the most danced of his plays and still remain a firm favourite. First version in Russia in three acts and epilogue and choreographed by Lavrovsky to the haunting music of Prokofiev in 1938. This was followed in 1940 at the Kirov with Ulanova and Sergeyev again choreographed by Lavorovsky. In 1946 Bolshoi mounted it and again for TV in 1976. Again it was revived in West Berlin for the German Opera Ballet. London's first production was in 1955 and it was choreographed by Ashton for the Royal Dance Ballet.

In 1985 it was revived for the London Festival Ballet and choreographed by Ashton. Australia Ballet and National Ballet of Canada followed its trail. Then came a spectacular version with Fonteyn and Nureyev to Royal Ballet, Convent Gardenin 1969 and yet another version was mounted at the Dutch National Ballet by Van Danzig. The same year, there was a film done with Nureyev and Fonteyn in the title roles. And so one R and J continued keep afresh in the minds of all choreographers to date.

Midsummer Night's Dream

Balanchine choreographed this lively play written by Shakespeare for children, in 1962 for the New York City Ballet with Mendelssohn's music. The ballet consisted two acts and six scenes. Later it was filmed under Balanchine's direction in 1967. In 1872 and 1902 both London and St. Petersburg versions came under Petipa and Fokine with the same scores of Mendlesson. Other productions in Basle-1975, Hamburg-1977 and Manchester-1981 were also successful ballets. The last one was in East Berlin in 1981.

Twelfth Night

In Cross-Gartered in London, Tudor mounted this ballet way back in 1937 to Frescobaldi's music and the same version in 1942 with music by Greig in Liverpool. Hamlet is my favourite play of Shakespeare in any form let alone in ballet. From the beginning, Hamlet was well sought after both as ballet, film and drama. The first version saw the light of day in 1942. It was choreographed by Helpmann at the Sadler's Wells to glorious music of Tchaikovsky. The ballet showed the last thoughts of the dying Hamlet reliving some of the traumatic events in his life. Revived by the Royal Ballet, in 1964 and 1981, it gave precedence for other to follow.

Much Ado About Nothing was not favoured by choreographers and hence only saw one version mounted in Moscow in 1976 to the music of T. Khrennikov was choreographed by V. Boccadoro.Merry Wives of Windsor is a ballet in three acts and seven scenes, choreographed by Bournmeister and Kurilov to the score of Oransky in 1942 for the Moscow Theatre. This comedy of Shakespeare has been given many versions throughout the USSR.

Othello - Moor's Pavane

Yet, another ballet that did not pick up, Othello's production had 1 act and was choreographed by Limone to the music of Purcell and debuted in 1949 in New London. Along with Limone and B. Jones, Hoving and Koner, it was stylised for 4 people. After the first mounting, Othello went in to the repertories of Amer Ballet, The Royal Danish Ballet, the National Ballet of Canada and Rudolf Nureyev's concert production. It was filmed in 1950 and televised by Amer (1953), Swedish TV (1973) and the BBC (1957).

Macbeth

One of Shakespeare's greatest historical tragedies that was great on stage but with ballet companies probably because of too many main characters. But the tragedy have inspired various ballets on and oft. Le Picq choreographed it to Locke's music in London in 1785. Galleoti mounted it to Schall's music in 1816 in Copenhagen. In Milan it saw to the music of Pugni directed by Henry and still later in 1830 Pistoni choreographed Macbeth to the music of R. Strauss. Vasilev took over in 1980 in Moscow to the scores of Molchanov. Macbeth remains dormant in many repertories.

Perhaps the Bard's most ambitious play where mixed tragedy, romance a breathtakingly beautiful Queen and remaining within the authenticity of history. This ballet in 1 act was choreographed for the first time by Fokine to the music of Arensky. In 1908 for the Maryisky Theatre, St. Petersburg with Pavlova dancing the title Fokine's version was repeated by many choreographers who staged the ballet both in the UK and the USA.

Coriolanus

To begin with, I do not know why any choreographer should have attempted this play for a ballet though S. Vigano choreographed the play with music by Weigl in Milan in 1971.

The Tempest

Yet another not suitable to dance to and of all people, Rudolf Nureyev had to dance and choreograph it for the Royal Ballet in 1982 along with Antony Dowell dancing with him.

This ballet in two acts were first seen in 1979 choreographed by Tetley to Arne Norheim's music. Tetley revived it again in San Francisco in 1980 to Purcell's music.

Most of these ballets were differently filmed or in excerpts and proved very successful and popular among ballet audiences.