Fall Repertory
Monday, September 28, 2009 - 8:00 PM
Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall

Accompanied by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Ron Spigelman

 
SCOTCH SYMPHONY
Music by Felix Mendelssohn
Choreography by George Balanchine
© George Balanchine Trust
Staged by Paul Mejia

RAYMONDA
Music by Alexander Glazunov
Choreography by Marius Petipa
Staged by Alexander Vetrov

 
The program opens with George Balanchine's spirited Scotch Symphony, music by Felix Mendelssohn, German composer of the Romantic Era who was inspired to write his Scotch Symphony by a visit to Scotland in 1829; the work was dedicated to Queen Victoria.  Balanchine used the last three movements of the work for his ballet, which premiered on November 11, 1952 by the New York City Ballet at the City Center of Music and Drama in New York.

The evening closes with Alexander Vetrov's staging of two acts from the Great Russian ballet classic, Raymonda, a knightly legend set in the Middle Ages.  Alexander Glazunov composed the exciting musical score for the ballet, which was choreographed by Marius Petipa in his 80thyear.  Considered to be his last great masterpiece, it was first presented at the Mariinsky Theater, St. Petersburg, Russia in 1898.  Act II is characterized by powerful dance scenes filled with exotic charm, but the highlight is the final the grand pas, which skillfully combines classical and character dance.

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