A tribute gala to Serge Diaghilev is as much a rebuke of our times as a celebration of his. The Russian impresario came to Europe 100 years ago, trailing glamour and talent and umpteen new ballets.
Many are cornerstones of today’s rep, which only reminds you how few we’re creating for tomorrow.
This couldn’t be clearer than in the ballet Tamar. The original by Mikhail Fokine, Diaghilev’s choreographer in the pre-WWI era, has been reimagined by Jurijus Smoriginas, and it’s a stretch and pump piece so dull you fear for the future of ballet.
Happily, the extract programme featured mostly Diaghilev originals, and these are worth seeing. There were ballets little performed in London, like Le Tricorne and Le Carnaval, as well as familiar Diaghilev works that bear repeated viewing (Apollo, Les Biches). And then there was the starry roster of dancers from St Petersburg, Paris, and our own Royal Ballet including Ulyana Lopatkina, Mathias Heymann, Tamara Rojo, Dmitri Gudanov, Marianela Nunez and Andrei Batalov — even if we’re not producing the work, we can still produce the dancers.
Arguably, the programme was unevenly weighted to Fokine when Nijinsky, his sister Nijinska and Balanchine left just as radical a choreographic heritage. They were also squeezed by the inclusion of extracts from classics such as Swan Lake — Diaghilev popularised all Russian ballet, not just his own, but you can see Swan Lake anywhere.
Also so-so was the opening film segment (poor quality, poorly edited). Still, a reminder of Diaghilev’s legacy.
Diaghilev Gala
Covent Garden
WC2
