128
CL AS SIC BALLET REINVENTED DON QUIXOTE AT THE HIPPODROME
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s new production of the classic Don Quixote will put a smile on faces and bring a touch of summer sunshine, promises company director Carlos Acosta.
The show, which comes to the Birmingham Hippodrome from February 18 - 26, is a firm favourite of Carlos’ and he is convinced it will also be hugely popular with audiences. Created by one of history’s most renowned choreographers Marius Petipa to music by Ludwig Minkus, it was premiered in 1869 and has been a key part of the world ballet repertoire ever since.
Diane Parkes talks to him about the forthcoming production. “Don Quixote is the best ballet to attend if you are not a ballet connoisseur,” Carlos says. “If you don’t know anything about ballet this is a great chance to learn something about it. It appeals to family audiences, it is great for children because the story is easy to follow.
“It’s very sunny and people will laugh a lot. The world of ballet is so full of tragedies, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet etcetera, they are all tragedies but in Don Quixote nobody dies, it’s a happy tale.
“The ballet is very exotic, it provides escapism into this amazing world of colour and the music has an amazing Spanish flavour.
When it’s raining and cold then you want to come and see Don Quixote because it’s a sunshine ballet. It’s a great show - when you’ve seen it, you leave on a high.”
The ballet is based on Spain’s most famous novel – Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote which follows the adventures of the knight Don Quixote and his trusty servant Sancho Panza. The ballet focuses on one of the tales in the book – that of the young lovers Kitri and Basilio whose hopes to marry risk being thwarted by Kitri’s father who has other plans. But with Don Quixote a firm believer in true love, maybe he can help the young couple find happiness.
For Carlos, Don Quixote has always been a special work. He performed an excerpt from the ballet to win the Gold Medal at the prestigious Prix de Lausanne at the age of 16. Success at the international dance competition catapulted the Cuban teenager onto the world stage, launching a career which saw him dance in theatres across the globe.
“Don Quixote is the ballet I have performed the most,” he recalls. “I’ve been performing it since I was 16, winning competitions. And we share the Spanish heritage. I have a lot of knowledge in terms of the role and the production, having participated in productions all over the world.
LIVE24-SEVEN.COM
ENTERTAINMENT DON QUIXOT E
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140
