''Anastasia'' is a
ballet created by
Kenneth MacMillan. The first version in one act was premiered in 1967 by the
Deutsche Oper Ballet
Deutsch or Deutsche may refer to:
*''Deutsch'' or ''(das) Deutsche'': the German language, in Germany and other places
*''Deutsche'': Germans, as a weak masculine, feminine or plural demonym
*Deutsch (word), originally referring to the Germanic ve ...
. In 1971 MacMillan expanded the work to three acts for the
Royal Ballet; the original one-act version became the final act of the 1971 work.
["Anastasia (three acts)"]
Royal Opera House Collections Online, retrieved 10 October 2014
The 1967 version uses
Bohuslav Martinů
Bohuslav Jan Martinů (; December 8, 1890 – August 28, 1959) was a Czech composer of modern classical music. He wrote 6 symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal and instrumental works. He bec ...
's
Symphony No. 6 (1953) and untitled electronic music by Fritz Winckel and Rüdiger Rüfer. The three-act version also used
Tchaikovsky's
Symphony No. 1 and
Symphony No. 3.
[
The ballet is based on the story of Anna Anderson, who purported to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia. After MacMillan's death, DNA tests showed that Anderson was unrelated to the Russian imperial family, but at the time the ballet was created many, including MacMillan, were inclined to accept that she might be the lost Grand Duchess. Anderson was confined for a time to a mental institution in Berlin in 1920. The 1967 ballet depicts her there, painfully attempting to recover her memory. The first two acts of the 1971 version show Anastasia's life (or Anderson's mental image of it) in her privileged surroundings before the ]Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
. MacMillan chose Tchaikovsky's music for these acts, to provide a dramatic contrast with the ''musique concrète'' and the edgy Martinů score in the third act.
The first performance of the single-act version was given at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Deutsche Oper, Berlin on 25 June 1967. The title role of Anastasia/Anderson was danced by Lynn Seymour. The three-act version was premiered by the Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on 22 July 1971. Barry Kay designed costumes and scenery for both productions. After MacMillan's death the ballet was revived, with minor changes, under the supervision of his widow Deborah MacMillan in May 1996. New costumes and scenery were designed by Bob Crowley. In that, and later revivals, the title role was performed by Viviana Durante, Leanne Benjamin, Gillian Revie, Mara Galeazzi, Lauren Cuthbertson, Laura Morera, and Natalia Osipova.
Original cast (one-act version)
Deutsche Oper, Berlin, 25 June 1967
* Lynn Seymour
* Rudolf Holz
* Vergie Derman
* Gerhard Bohner
Original cast (three-act version)
Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, 22 July 1971:
* Lynn Seymour
* Svetlana Beriosova
* Antoinette Sibley
* Derek Rencher
* Anthony Dowell
* Gerd Larsen
* Vergie Derman
* Jennifer Penney
* Lesley Collier
* Marilyn Trounson
* David Wall (dancer), David Wall
* Michael Coleman (dancer), Michael Coleman
* Adrian Grater
Videography
The 2016 production, starring Natalia Osipova, Marianela Nuñez, Federico Bonelli, Edward Watson (dancer), Edward Watson, Thiago Soares, Christina Arestis and Christopher Saunders was released on a DVD. In light of Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performing arts, the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic and it's impacts on the performing arts, the Royal Opera House released the recording online.
See also
* List of historical ballet characters
Notes
References
* {{cite book , last=Parry , first=Jann , year=2010, origyear=2009 , title= Different Drummer, location=London , publisher=Faber and Faber , isbn=978-0-571-24303-7
Ballets by Kenneth MacMillan
1967 ballet premieres
1971 ballet premieres
Ballets created for The Royal Ballet
Ballets based on actual events
Cultural depictions of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia