Pilsen’s J. K. Tyl Theatre Ballet Will Be Guest to National Theatre in Prague
News
Guest performance of Pilsen’s J. K. Tyl Theatre Ballet with the romantic story of the dancing doll Coppélia:
Libretto: Charles Nuitter, Arthur Saint-Léon Libretto adaptation: Jiří Pokorný Choreography and stage direction: Jiří Pokorný Music preparation and conducting: Pavel Šnajdr 2nd conductor: Jiří Petrdlík Sets and costumes: Josef Jelínek Assistant choreographers: Zuzana Pokorná, Jan Kadlec Stage manager: Petr Šmaus
Performances: 6. 1., 20. and 24. 2. 2011 in The National Theatre
No list of romantic ballets would be complete without Coppélia, the story of a mechanical dancing doll, which has been included in the dramaturgy of perhaps all major ballet companies worldwide. The composer Clément Philibert Léo Delibes (1836–1891) found inspiration in the fairy tale by Ernst Theodor Wilhelm Hoffmann (1776–1822) The Sandman. (The most famous story written by this versatile artist, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, served as the basis for Tchaikovsky to create his famous ballet in 1892.) Coppélia was premiered at Opéra de Paris in 1870. It has a firm position in the history of ballet not only due to the choreographically rewarding mechanical doll, but also the music itself, perhaps the composer’s most successful opus. In his time, Delibes was an acclaimed stage music creator who also wrote operettas for Offenbach’s Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens. Besides Coppélia, he composed another celebrated ballet, Sylvia, dating from 1876. Each new staging of Coppélia affords a ballet company a new opportunity to manifest its preciseness and skills in the classical technique – for the audience it is always a nice and humorous performance replete with beautiful music. And for ballet lovers a true delicacy that is worth savouring repeatedly.
Photo by Marta Kolafová
Guest performance of Pilsen’s J. K. Tyl Theatre Ballet with the romantic story of the dancing doll Coppélia:
Josef Bartos
Thank you for your thoughts. One got stuck in my mind – that passion makes us different from AI. Just yesterday I read…I am a dance critic. I am a member of an endangered species