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In 1860s Vienna, the financially troubled Waldner family hopes to marry off Arabella, while her sister Zdenka is disguised as a boy. Zdenka secretly loves Matteo and sends him letters signed with Arabella’s name to keep him from despair. Arabella falls for Mandryka, who has inherited his uncle’s fortune and proposes. A mistaken identity at the hotel leads Mandryka to suspect Arabella, but Zdenka reveals the truth, Matteo agrees to marry Zdenka, and Arabella and Mandryka reconcile.
A wealthy Viennese host orders a serious opera and a commedia dell’arte troupe to perform simultaneously after the evening’s dinner runs late. The young Composer reluctantly accepts, then despairs over the changes. In the opera within the opera, Ariadne, abandoned on Naxos, mourns her lost love and longs for death. Zerbinetta and her troupe try to cheer her, with Zerbinetta advising her to find another lover. Ariadne mistakes Bacchus for the messenger of death, but they fall in love and she agrees to follow him.
At a château near Paris around 1775, poet Olivier and composer Flamand debate whether words or music make the greater art. Both love Countess Madeleine, who cannot choose between them. The theatre director La Roche defends the stage, while the guests discuss their arts and the Count suggests making an opera from the events of the day. Left alone that evening, Madeleine remains uncertain about the opera’s ending and her choice of lover.
A ballet suite in eight movements, adapted from Couperin's keyboard pieces and first presented within a 1923 Viennese ballet evening. The evening's Couperin segment was described as social and theatrical dances in the manner of Louis XV.
Daphne, devoted to nature, rejects the love of her childhood friend Leukippos and of a mysterious herdsman, who is Apollo. At a Dionysian festival, Apollo reveals Leukippos’s disguise and kills him with an arrow. Grieving Daphne, Apollo asks Zeus to transform her into a tree, and she rejoices in her union with nature.
In Vienna, the Marschallin’s young lover Octavian is asked to serve as the Knight of the Rose for her cousin Baron Ochs, who is engaged to Sophie von Faninal. When Octavian presents Sophie with a silver rose, they fall in love. Sophie refuses to marry Ochs, and Octavian helps her devise a scheme to break the engagement. Ochs is caught in a compromising situation and leaves in disgrace. The Marschallin recognizes that Octavian loves Sophie and lets him go; the young couple reunites.
The Empress, daughter of the spirit king Keikobad, has no shadow. Unless she obtains one, her father will reclaim her and her husband, the Emperor, will turn to stone. She and her Nurse descend to the human world and try to obtain the Dyer’s Wife’s shadow. The Empress refuses to take it at the cost of the other woman’s future happiness. She receives a shadow of her own, the Emperor is restored, and the Dyer and his Wife reunite.
Danae’s father Pollux seeks a wealthy husband for her, and Midas arrives to woo her. Midas is actually disguised as his own servant; Jupiter, pursuing Danae, impersonates Midas. At the wedding Jupiter forces Midas to take his place, but Danae turns to gold when she embraces him. She is restored to life and chooses the mortal Midas. Though Jupiter curses them with poverty and later tries once more to win Danae, he finally accepts her choice.
Retired naval captain Sir Morosus disinherits his nephew Henry after learning that Henry’s wife Aminta is an opera singer. The barber devises a sham marriage so Morosus will abandon his plan to wed. Disguised as the quiet bride Timidia, Aminta marries him, then becomes noisily impossible. When a mock divorce fails, the troupe reveals the deception. Morosus laughs, blesses Henry and Aminta’s union, and restores Henry as his heir.
The sorceress Aithra shipwrecks Helen and Menelaus to save Helen from her husband’s murderous jealousy. She tells Menelaus that the real Helen was hidden away years earlier and that his wife had been a phantom, then uses magic and a potion to reunite them. Menelaus later kills Da-ud while hunting and believes he has killed Paris; Aithra helps restore the couple, and their daughter Hermione is reunited with them.
At the palace of Mycenae, Elektra mourns her murdered father Agamemnon and urges her sister Chrysothemis to help avenge him by killing their mother Klytaemnestra and her lover Aegisth. Chrysothemis refuses. Elektra meets Orest, returned in disguise, and learns he will carry out the revenge. Orest and his followers kill Klytaemnestra and Aegisth. Elektra celebrates the deaths in a frenzied dance and collapses, dead.
During Munich’s Midsummer festival, the sorcerer Kunrad offers his house for the bonfire and kisses the mayor’s daughter Diemut, who rejects him and traps him in a basket. He extinguishes every festival fire and says they can be restored only by a virgin’s body. The people persuade Diemut to yield to him; after their encounter, the fires return and the two emerge singing together.
Four Last Songs is a ballet made by Lorca Massine to Richard Strauss' eponymous music from 1946-48. First presented in 1970 at the workshop of its affiliated School of American Ballet, the New York City Ballet premiere took place on 21 January 1971 at the New York State Theater, Lincoln Center.
During the final day of the Thirty Years’ War, the commandant of a besieged town refuses the townspeople’s plea to surrender and prepares to destroy the fortress rather than yield. His wife Maria stays with him. When the opposing commander arrives to announce the armistice, the two leaders nearly fight, but Maria intervenes and they embrace in reconciliation.
In medieval Germany, the minstrel Guntram becomes entangled with Freihild, the saintly wife of the evil Duke Robert, in a story of love and redemption.
Christine, left alone while her husband Robert is away conducting, befriends a young baron. A letter about an assignation leads her to believe Robert has been unfaithful, so she demands a divorce. Their friend Stroh explains that the letter concerned him, not Robert. Once the baron confirms this, Christine dismisses him, and she and Robert reconcile.
Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme refers to two different ballets by George Balanchine set to Richard Strauss's Concert Suite (1917), with a libretto after Molière's 17th-century comédie-ballet of the same name. The first Balanchine Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme ballet was produced in 1932 by the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo. In 1979, Balanchine (with the assistance of Jerome Robbins) created all-new choreography (who at the time was 41 years old).
A neoclassical ballet created for the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo, set to Richard Strauss's Concert Suite and based on Molière's comédie-ballet.
Salome leaves Herod’s banquet and hears the imprisoned prophet Jochanaan. She persuades Narraboth to bring him out and becomes fixated on him, but he rejects her. Narraboth kills himself, and Jochanaan is returned to the cistern. Herod, who desires Salome, asks her to dance and promises to grant her wish. After the Dance of the Seven Veils, Salome demands Jochanaan’s head. When it is delivered, she kisses the severed head. Herod orders his soldiers to kill her, and they crush her beneath their shields.
Children celebrating their confirmation visit a Viennese cake shop where sweets come to life. After one boy overeats and falls ill, he dreams of Princess Pralinée’s party, amorous liqueurs, dancing confections, and a cake riot calmed by beer.
A ballet conceived as dance visions from two centuries. Choreographers Pia and Pino Mlakar proposed reconstructing choreography from Couperin's era using Feuillet's Chorégraphie; Richard Strauss composed additional dances and incidental music.
Vienna Waltzes is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to music by Johann Strauss II, Franz Lehár and Richard Strauss, made as a tribute to Austria. It premiered on June 23, 1977 at the New York State Theater, performed by the New York City Ballet, and was an immediate success among the public.
In 1860s Vienna, the financially troubled Waldner family hopes to marry off Arabella, while her sister Zdenka is disguised as a boy. Zdenka secretly loves Matteo and sends him letters signed with Arabella’s name to keep him from despair. Arabella falls for Mandryka, who has inherited his uncle’s fortune and proposes. A mistaken identity at the hotel leads Mandryka to suspect Arabella, but Zdenka reveals the truth, Matteo agrees to marry Zdenka, and Arabella and Mandryka reconcile.
A wealthy Viennese host orders a serious opera and a commedia dell’arte troupe to perform simultaneously after the evening’s dinner runs late. The young Composer reluctantly accepts, then despairs over the changes. In the opera within the opera, Ariadne, abandoned on Naxos, mourns her lost love and longs for death. Zerbinetta and her troupe try to cheer her, with Zerbinetta advising her to find another lover. Ariadne mistakes Bacchus for the messenger of death, but they fall in love and she agrees to follow him.
At a château near Paris around 1775, poet Olivier and composer Flamand debate whether words or music make the greater art. Both love Countess Madeleine, who cannot choose between them. The theatre director La Roche defends the stage, while the guests discuss their arts and the Count suggests making an opera from the events of the day. Left alone that evening, Madeleine remains uncertain about the opera’s ending and her choice of lover.
A ballet suite in eight movements, adapted from Couperin's keyboard pieces and first presented within a 1923 Viennese ballet evening. The evening's Couperin segment was described as social and theatrical dances in the manner of Louis XV.
Daphne, devoted to nature, rejects the love of her childhood friend Leukippos and of a mysterious herdsman, who is Apollo. At a Dionysian festival, Apollo reveals Leukippos’s disguise and kills him with an arrow. Grieving Daphne, Apollo asks Zeus to transform her into a tree, and she rejoices in her union with nature.
In Vienna, the Marschallin’s young lover Octavian is asked to serve as the Knight of the Rose for her cousin Baron Ochs, who is engaged to Sophie von Faninal. When Octavian presents Sophie with a silver rose, they fall in love. Sophie refuses to marry Ochs, and Octavian helps her devise a scheme to break the engagement. Ochs is caught in a compromising situation and leaves in disgrace. The Marschallin recognizes that Octavian loves Sophie and lets him go; the young couple reunites.
The Empress, daughter of the spirit king Keikobad, has no shadow. Unless she obtains one, her father will reclaim her and her husband, the Emperor, will turn to stone. She and her Nurse descend to the human world and try to obtain the Dyer’s Wife’s shadow. The Empress refuses to take it at the cost of the other woman’s future happiness. She receives a shadow of her own, the Emperor is restored, and the Dyer and his Wife reunite.
Danae’s father Pollux seeks a wealthy husband for her, and Midas arrives to woo her. Midas is actually disguised as his own servant; Jupiter, pursuing Danae, impersonates Midas. At the wedding Jupiter forces Midas to take his place, but Danae turns to gold when she embraces him. She is restored to life and chooses the mortal Midas. Though Jupiter curses them with poverty and later tries once more to win Danae, he finally accepts her choice.
Retired naval captain Sir Morosus disinherits his nephew Henry after learning that Henry’s wife Aminta is an opera singer. The barber devises a sham marriage so Morosus will abandon his plan to wed. Disguised as the quiet bride Timidia, Aminta marries him, then becomes noisily impossible. When a mock divorce fails, the troupe reveals the deception. Morosus laughs, blesses Henry and Aminta’s union, and restores Henry as his heir.
The sorceress Aithra shipwrecks Helen and Menelaus to save Helen from her husband’s murderous jealousy. She tells Menelaus that the real Helen was hidden away years earlier and that his wife had been a phantom, then uses magic and a potion to reunite them. Menelaus later kills Da-ud while hunting and believes he has killed Paris; Aithra helps restore the couple, and their daughter Hermione is reunited with them.
At the palace of Mycenae, Elektra mourns her murdered father Agamemnon and urges her sister Chrysothemis to help avenge him by killing their mother Klytaemnestra and her lover Aegisth. Chrysothemis refuses. Elektra meets Orest, returned in disguise, and learns he will carry out the revenge. Orest and his followers kill Klytaemnestra and Aegisth. Elektra celebrates the deaths in a frenzied dance and collapses, dead.
During Munich’s Midsummer festival, the sorcerer Kunrad offers his house for the bonfire and kisses the mayor’s daughter Diemut, who rejects him and traps him in a basket. He extinguishes every festival fire and says they can be restored only by a virgin’s body. The people persuade Diemut to yield to him; after their encounter, the fires return and the two emerge singing together.
Four Last Songs is a ballet made by Lorca Massine to Richard Strauss' eponymous music from 1946-48. First presented in 1970 at the workshop of its affiliated School of American Ballet, the New York City Ballet premiere took place on 21 January 1971 at the New York State Theater, Lincoln Center.
During the final day of the Thirty Years’ War, the commandant of a besieged town refuses the townspeople’s plea to surrender and prepares to destroy the fortress rather than yield. His wife Maria stays with him. When the opposing commander arrives to announce the armistice, the two leaders nearly fight, but Maria intervenes and they embrace in reconciliation.
In medieval Germany, the minstrel Guntram becomes entangled with Freihild, the saintly wife of the evil Duke Robert, in a story of love and redemption.
Christine, left alone while her husband Robert is away conducting, befriends a young baron. A letter about an assignation leads her to believe Robert has been unfaithful, so she demands a divorce. Their friend Stroh explains that the letter concerned him, not Robert. Once the baron confirms this, Christine dismisses him, and she and Robert reconcile.
Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme refers to two different ballets by George Balanchine set to Richard Strauss's Concert Suite (1917), with a libretto after Molière's 17th-century comédie-ballet of the same name. The first Balanchine Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme ballet was produced in 1932 by the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo. In 1979, Balanchine (with the assistance of Jerome Robbins) created all-new choreography (who at the time was 41 years old).
A neoclassical ballet created for the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo, set to Richard Strauss's Concert Suite and based on Molière's comédie-ballet.
Salome leaves Herod’s banquet and hears the imprisoned prophet Jochanaan. She persuades Narraboth to bring him out and becomes fixated on him, but he rejects her. Narraboth kills himself, and Jochanaan is returned to the cistern. Herod, who desires Salome, asks her to dance and promises to grant her wish. After the Dance of the Seven Veils, Salome demands Jochanaan’s head. When it is delivered, she kisses the severed head. Herod orders his soldiers to kill her, and they crush her beneath their shields.
Children celebrating their confirmation visit a Viennese cake shop where sweets come to life. After one boy overeats and falls ill, he dreams of Princess Pralinée’s party, amorous liqueurs, dancing confections, and a cake riot calmed by beer.
A ballet conceived as dance visions from two centuries. Choreographers Pia and Pino Mlakar proposed reconstructing choreography from Couperin's era using Feuillet's Chorégraphie; Richard Strauss composed additional dances and incidental music.
Vienna Waltzes is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to music by Johann Strauss II, Franz Lehár and Richard Strauss, made as a tribute to Austria. It premiered on June 23, 1977 at the New York State Theater, performed by the New York City Ballet, and was an immediate success among the public.