''The Winter's Tale'' is a

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

in three acts choreographed by

Christopher Wheeldon Christopher Peter Wheeldon OBE (born 22 March 1973) is an English international choreographer of contemporary ballet. Life and career Born in Yeovil, Somerset, to an engineer and a physical therapist, Wheeldon began training to be a ballet dan ...

to a commissioned score by

Joby Talbot Joby Talbot (born 25 August 1971) is a British composer. He has written for a wide variety of purposes and an accordingly broad range of styles, including instrumental and vocal concert music, film and television scores, pop arrangements and wo ...

. The ballet is based on '' the play of the same name'' by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

. With scenery and costumes designed by

Bob Crowley Bob Crowley (born 10 June 1952) is a theatre designer (scenic and costume), and theatre director. He lives between London, New York and West Cork in the south west of Ireland. Career Born in Cork, Ireland on 10 June 1952, Bob Crowley is the ...

, lighting designed by Natasha Katz, and special stage effects designed by Daniel Brodie and Basil Twist, it was a co-production of the

Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...

and the

National Ballet of Canada The National Ballet of Canada is a Canadian ballet company that was founded in 1951 in Toronto, Ontario, with Celia Franca as the first artistic director. A company of 70 dancers with its own orchestra, the National Ballet has been led since 2022 ...

. It was first presented at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

, London, on 10 April 2014. The North American premiere occurred the following year.

Background

Wheeldon's ballet is a dance version of

's play ''

The Winter's Tale ''The Winter's Tale'' is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, many modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some criti ...

'' (1609–11), considered by scholars one of his "problem plays," difficult to classify as tragedy, comedy, romance, or a combination of all three. The first three of its five acts are filled with intense psychological drama; the last two are lighthearted and comedic, concluding with a happy ending. It tells a complicated story of jealousy, loss, love, joy, redemption, forgiveness, and reconciliation. Shakespeare chose his title to signify to his audiences that the play was like a tale told in company gathered by a fireside on a winter's evening. A fictional invention—not true, but entertaining and morally instructive.

The story

Leontes, king of Sicilia, is possessed by a mad jealousy, believing that his pregnant wife Hermione is having an affair with his childhood friend Polixenes, king of Bohemia. He orders that Hermione's infant daughter be abandoned. Hermione and their young son Mamillius die of distress, and Leontes is overcome with remorse. The baby is found by a shepherd in Bohemia and named Perdita ("the lost one"). Sixteen years pass. Perdita falls in love with Florizel, son of Polixenes, who returns her affections and proposed marriage. Polixenes is outraged that his princely son intends to marry a commoner and is consumed by fury. Florizel and Perdita, pursued by Polixenes, seek refuge in Sicilia at the court of Leontes. Perdita is recognized, Hermione returns from the dead, and the family is reunited.

Casts

Critical reception

Upon its world premiere at the Royal Opera House, ''The Winter's Tale'' was well received by dance critics. Judith Mackrell of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' gave the ballet four out of five stars and praised the ballet as "one of most fully achieved story ballets to be created at the Royal in years." Writing for the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'',

Clement Crisp Clement Andrew Crisp OBE (21 September 1926 – 1 March 2022) was a British dance critic. He served as dance critic for the ''Financial Times'' from 1956 to 2020. Life and career Crisp was born in Romford, Essex, in 1926, although for many years ...

also awarded the ballet four out of five stars and highlighted the individual performances of the lead dancers. Luke Jennings, writing in ''

'', said that the ballet, although dramatically flawed, was "for the most part a ravishing success" and was definitely "a ballet to keep."

Videography

A performance by the original cast can be seen on Opus Arte DVD 1156D. Directed for the screen by Ross MacGibbon, it was recorded at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in 2014. In light of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performing arts, the recording was released online.

References

External links

Scene from ''The Winter's Tale'' performed at the Royal Opera House, 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winter's Tale (ballet), The Ballets by Christopher Wheeldon Ballets created for The Royal Ballet Ballets based on works by William Shakespeare Ballets by Joby Talbot 2014 ballet premieres Bohemia in fiction Works based on The Winter's Tale