Counterpointe

See the extremes of ballet collide

Counterpointe pairs an excerpt from the elegant 19th-century classic Raymonda with the mesmerising complexity of Artifact Suite, by the radically inventive choreographer William Forsythe, and adds George Balanchine’s beloved Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux.

In the late 20th century Forsythe revolutionised the European dance scene, reimagining classical technique and challenging his dancers with extended shapes. Artifact Suite, a stunningly intricate ensemble work, showcases his groundbreaking style: clarified speed, extensions of form and dynamically fast weight changes. Fierce, fast pas de deux are framed by the mathematically precise movement of the corps in this electrifying work.

The third act of Marius Petipa’s Raymonda depicts the wedding of its aristocratic heroine. As he did in The Sleeping Beauty and Paquita, Petipa uses the celebration to create an impressive display of technique, with Hungarian-inflected dances culminating in a languorous solo for the leading ballerina. This is classical ballet at its most regal.

Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, with its lyrical duet and delicate female variation, its explosive jumps and fishdives, is a tribute to Petipa’s grand pas de deux; but it also has the speed and attack that give Balanchine’s choreography an edge of risk and modernity. Counterpointe gives us the extremes of ballet, in contrast and conversation.

The radical innovations of Artifact Suite afford a bracing contrast with the elegance of Raymonda and George Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux.