Photograph of the first act of Raymonda at the Bolshoi Theatre in 1900 (courtesy of the Moscow Imperial Bolshoi Theatre, public domain in the United States)
Readers may recall that this is the month when San Francisco Ballet (SFB) will begin its repertory season. As was announced at the beginning of this month, the season will begin with its first full-length ballet, Kenneth MacMillan’s three-act choreographic account of Antoine François Prévost’s novel, Manon Lescaut. The second full-length offering will involve a major rethinking of one of the classics created by Marius Petipa. This was Raymonda, staged from Benesh Movement Notation by Daniel Kraus with choreography for a score based on music by Alexander Glazunov adapted and edited by Gavin Sutherland and Lars Payne. This will be an SFB Premiere production.
Artistic Director Tamara Rojo has decided to reconceive the narrative by setting it during the time of the Crimean War. Those familiar with world history can probably guess that the title character will be reminiscent of Florence Nightingale. Rojo’s intention in creating this adaptation was to redefine the role of women in both wartime and society. As originally conceived, the ballet will be in three acts with an overall duration of about two and three-quarter hours.
Sadly, the SFB Web page for Raymonda says little about the narrative that will emerge from Rojo’s adaptation. My only encounter with this ballet was a production for American Ballet Theatre, which was staged by Rudolf Nureyev. The basic narrative for that staging involved a young woman who gets cold feet on her wedding night and dreams of being abducted by Abderakhman, a Saracen knight whom her betrothed had conquered in the Crusades. This idea of going into a dream-world and staying there for some time should not be unfamiliar to ballet-lovers, since The Nutcracker, first choreographed by Marius Petipa to some of the most familiar music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, has the same overall structure!
The full list of performance dates and times is as follows:
- Saturday, March 1, 8 p.m.
- Sunday, March 2, 2 p.m.
- Tuesday, March 4, 7:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, March 5, 7:30 p.m.
- Thursday, March 6, 7:30 p.m.
- Friday, March 7, 8 p.m.
- Saturday, March 8, 2 p.m.
- Saturday, March 8, 8 p.m.
Dancers will alternate in the title role as usual. All performances will take place in the War Memorial Opera House, which is on the northwest corner of Van Ness Avenue and Grove Street (across Grove from Davies Symphony Hall). A single Web page has been created for purchasing tickets for all of the above dates and times. Tickets may also be purchased at the Box Office in the outer lobby of the Opera House or by calling 415-865-2000. The Box Office is open for ticket sales Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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