Wichita Grand Opera
Wichita Grand Opera
Century II Concert Hall
225 W. Douglas Ave.
Wichita , Kansas 67202
316.683.3444 Admin Office
316.262.8054 Box Office
Romeo & Julier Header Photo
   
 
presents
The Crown of Russian Ballet
 
Sergei Prokofiev’s

Romeo & Juliet
A Ballet in 3 Acts
 
Sunday, March 13, 2011, 7:00 PM
Century II Performing Arts Center, Mary Jane Teall Theater
   
Libretto by Adrian Piotrovsky and Sergey Radlov
Based on William Shakespeare’s play
World Premiere: the Kirov Ballet, January 11, 1940
   
Anatoly Emelianov
Knight of the Second Diaghilev Order
Artistic Director and Choreographer
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Production and Artists subject to change
 
This production is sponsored in part by:
Mrs. Jacqueline Nagel, Mary Lynn & Bill Oliver and Cargill, Inc.
   
Setting:Japan, 1900
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Synopsis:
 
ACT I begins with a beautiful morning in Verona. Romeo and the townspeople peacefully begin their day with the MORNING DANCE which quickly turns into a QUARREL in the town square. The dispute escalates to a violent FIGHT between the eternally feuding Capulets and the Montagues until it is finally broken up by the Prince’s decree. Later, Juliet and her Nurse are PREPARING FOR THE BALL at the Capulet house. Romeo Montague dons a disguise to crash the party, where he meets Juliet Capulet. He falls instantly in love with her. The two secretly proclaim their eternal love for each other in the LOVE DANCE, on the balcony.

ACT II commences at a Carnival. Revelers happily dance a FOLK DANCE while Romeo pines over his beloved Juliet. In Scene 2, hoping to finally put an end to the family feud, Friar Laurence secretly marries Romeo and Juliet. But the feuding continues to a tragic result: Juliet's cousin Tybalt kills Romeo's friend MERCUTIO during a fight. A distraught Romeo kills Tybalt in a fit of revenge, and is sent into exile in the FINALE.

ACT III opens the morning after the fight in the Capulet household as Romeo and Juliet say their LAST FAREWELL. Completely distraught and alone, JULIET REFUSES TO MARRY PARIS and turns to Friar Laurence for help. AT FRIAR LAURENCE’S they devise a plan for Juliet to drink a sleeping potion to make her appear dead. After her family buries her, Friar Laurence will tell Romeo the truth; Romeo will rescue Juliet from her tomb and take her away, where they will live together happily ever after. That night, Juliet drinks the potion. When her distraught family finds her dead the next morning, they proceed to bury her. The news of Juliet's death reaches Romeo, but he never received Friar Laurence’s message. Heartbroken, he returns for Juliet’s FUNERAL. Then, believing she is truly dead, Romeo drinks poison AT JULIET’S BEDSIDE. When Juliet awakens, she sees that Romeo is dead and stabs herself in the final scene, DEATH OF JULIET.

To read more about the story and history of Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet, click here.

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Company Bios:
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The Crown of Russian Ballet

          An innovative company of more than 30 of Russia’s finest dancers, The Crown of Russian Ballet was founded in 1997 as ever-increasing skills of modern dancers and choreographers demanded new repertoire. The company’s first new production was Cross Winds, created by Artistic Director and Choreographer Anatoly Emelianov and set to Chopin’s music. Now, over a decade later, this piece, as well as many of the company’s other productions, have become standard repertoire in theaters around the globe. Last year Cross Winds was a huge success at the Metropolitan Classical Ballet in Fort Worth, Texas.

          In addition to creating new works to push the limits of modern choreography, the company also maintains a large repertoire of classical ballets. The artists, led by Mr. Emelianov, believe that classical choreography is the foundation for all that has come since.  Gems by Petipa, Fokine, and Gorsky, as well as lyrics by Pushkin, Esenin, and Lermontov, and music by Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and Stravinsky will always be masterpieces. The Crown of Russian Ballet is widely acclaimed for performances of classics such as The Nutcracker, Cinderella, Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Giselle, and many more.

          The ballet corps consists of graduates of the best Russian choreography schools. The Crown of Russian Ballet has toured successfully in Russia and around the globe including the USA, Spain, Great Britain, Canada, Germany, Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia, Israel, Japan, Sri-Lanka, China, and Romania. In May 2006 the Crown of Russian Ballet gave the first-ever performance of Western ballet in East Africa.

 
Anatoly Emelianov

          Anatoly Emelianov, a Knight of the Second Diaghilev Order “for Contributions to Russian Culture”, holds degrees from the Perm State Choreography College and the Russian Academy of Theater Arts.  In addition to his duties as Artistic Director and Choreographer for the Crown of Russian Ballet, he is also a principal dancer with the Metropolitan Classical Ballet.  He has previously danced for the Moscow City Ballet and the Moscow Ballet Festival under noted director and choreographer Sergei Radchenko.  His career began with the Opera and Ballet Theater in Nizhny, Novgorod.  As a dancer, his repertoire includes lead roles in Cinderella, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, and many more.  His choreography credits include Cross Winds set to music of Chopin, Daylight Leaves the Earth to music of Tchaikovsky, and Tristan and Isolde to music by Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, Mahler, and Barber, in addition to original versions of Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, and Cinderella.