Richmond Ballet to Bring DON QUIXOTE to Carpenter Theatre, 2/20-22

Richmond Ballet will welcome one of the world's most popular ballets back to the River City, as Nicolas Beriozoff's Don Quixote, presented by Morgan Stanley, is set to run February 20th through 22nd at the Carpenter Theatre. It is also with great anticipation that Richmond Ballet prepares to welcome two principal dancers from the National Ballet of China, Wang Ye and Ma Xiaodong who are scheduled to perform the ballet's lead roles. Ms. Wang and Mr. Ma's guest artist appearance in Richmond is the first stop in the Ballet's year-long Road to China cultural exchange program that will carry the company through to a tour of China in May of this year.

Richmond Ballet last performed Don Quixote in February of 2007 and, once again with the National Ballet of Canada's beautiful sets and costumes designed by Desmond Heeley, this full-length production is sure to be full of the bright and joyful spirit Richmond Ballet audiences have come to know and love. Live music will be provided by the Richmond Symphony.

"Don Quixote is one of ballets that is closest to my heart," said Richmond Ballet Artistic Director Stoner Winslett. "It is very special to me because we mounted it in our first season as a professional company in 1985 and because Nicolas Beriozoff himself came to stage his version here in Richmond."

"Don Quixote is popular in Russia, in England, in New York, in China and, of course, we have a truly classic version of Don Quixote here in Richmond as well," Ms. Winslett continued. "Everybody loves stories about Spain, and the production is full of Spanish dancing, Spanish music, and Spanish bravura. There's comedy, there's a beautiful forest white scene, there are gypsies; there's not one thing that Don Quixote doesn't have! Of course, at its heart, it is a love story as seen through the eyes of a dreamer, which brings a tremendous liveliness to this ballet. It's great for audiences of all ages and interests."

Known across the globe for its tremendous bravura dancing infused with high-energy Spanish flair, the ballet Don Quixote was inspired by the famous Cervantes' novel of the same name, which tells of the adventures and misadventures of the aging, yet forever valiant knight, Don Quixote, the eternal dreamer, and his faithful squire Sancho Panza. The ballet takes its central plotline, however, from a collection of episodes from within the dreamer's many wanderings, episodes that find him entangled within a comedic love triangle between the feisty Kitri, her beloved, the opportunistic yet penniless Basilio, and a memorable fool in the nobleman, Gamache, who also seeks the hand of the young Kitri at the urging of her enterprising father. Set against a vibrant landscape of town plazas, taverns and a wind-mill dotted countryside, and colored by ethereal forest spirits, dancing gypsies and bull-fighters full of energy and swagger, this classical favorite is brimming with wit, romance, intrigue and adventure.

The full-length story ballet is one of the classical canon's most fun-filled masterpieces, and Mr. Berizoff's vision retains much of the original choreography by Marius Petipa (preserved and revamped in a 1900 production by Alexander Gorsky), including the famous Act III Grand Pas de Deux that is performed in galas the world over. Danced by Kitri and Basilio, in celebration of their wedding, this pas de deux is marked by its choreographic virtuosity - sky-high lifts, difficult turns and long-lasting balances - and is followed by a set of wonderfully evocative solos, including Kitri's famous "Fan Variation".

The talents of Lithuanian-born Mr. Beriozoff have now become synonymous with the remounting of classic ballets. Heavily influenced by the exoticism and style of Sergei Diaghilev's famed Ballets Russes, Mr. Beriozoff danced across Europe, working with the likes of Michel Fokine and later with George Balanchine after relocating to the United States in 1949. Mr. Beriozoff later restaged many ballet classics such as Swan Lake (which Richmond Ballet also performs), Petroushka, Schéhérazade, and La Spectre de la Rose, and many of his versions remain in the repertory of the National Ballet of Canada, and the English National Ballet (formerly London Festival Ballet) in addition to Richmond Ballet. Mr. Beriozoff died in 1996.

For Ms. Winslett, though, the memory of Mr. Beriozoff continues to be alive and well, living in the halls and studios of Richmond Ballet, even nearly 20 years after his death, and more than 30 years since his last visit to Richmond. "Nicolas Beriozoff was one of the biggest influences on me as an artistic director," she recalled. "So much of what I learned from him, I still hold very dear in the way I approach my work today; it was a privilege to be in his presence and under his tutelage."

The ballet's score, which will be performed by the Richmond Symphony under the baton of Ron Matson for all three performances, was composed by Austrian composer Ludwig (or Léon) Minkus in 1869 while he was serving as the official composer for the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. With hummable tunes, tambourines, and castanets, the sounds of sunny Spain feature heavily in this 19th century score.

Additional information regarding Ms. Wang and Mr. Ma will be distributed as they arrive in Richmond early next month, along with plans for media availability.

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