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SOIREE MUSICALE
1938 – Photo from Ballet Rambert Archives
No photo credit; Photo Courtesy of Judith Chasin-Bennahum
Synopsis:
The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing was an organization that supervised the quality of
dance teaching in England. Tudor himself had several certificates from them, and these permitted him to teach certain
grades of ballet and character dance. He explained that Soiree was not created as a ballet: “It was done as a demonstration
piece for the Cecchetti Society (Imperial Society of Dancing) for an annual meeting.”
A group of dancers entertained one another with “ballet-national idioms in costume suggested by early nineteenth
century prints.”
The ballet received a semblance of unity from the fact that all nine dancers remained on stage the entire time;
those who were not dancing sat or stood at the sides to watch the various dances.
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| Choreography |
| Antony Tudor |
| Music / Composer |
Gioacchino Rossini
Arranged by Benjamin Britten, Soirees Musicales |
| First Performance |
London
Palladium Theater
November 26, 1938
Cecchetti Society matinee
London Ballet |
| London Ballet Premiere |
December 12, 1938
Toynbee Hall, London |
| London Cast |
| Canzonetta: Gerd Larson, Hugh Laing; Tirolese: Maude Lloyd, Antony Tudor; Bolero: Peggy van Praagh,
Charlotte Bidmead, Therese Langfield; Tarantella: Monica Boam, Guy Massey |
| Costumes / Scenery |
| Hugh Stevenson |
| Notated |
| 1962 by Ann Hutchinson Guest; notation revised in 1975 by Airi Hynninen, Muriel Topaz, Rochelle
Zide (Labanotation); 1967 by Elphine Allen; in 1973 by Bronwyn Curry (Benesh Notation) |
| Number of Dancers |
| 6 Women, 3 Men |
| Average Length |
| 12 Minutes |
| Costume / Set Design |
| Peter Harvey |
| Costumes / Scenery |
| Contact Antony Tudor Ballet Trust or DNB |
| Licensing Information |
| Contact Us |
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