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Charles Kirby and Jacques Gorrissen as Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in Don Quixote (ca. 1982). Photo by Barry Gray.
Irene Apiné and Jury Gotshalks as Kitri and Basilio in the Pas de Deux from Don Quixote (ca. 1953).
Martine van Hamel as Kitri in the Pas de Deux from Don Quixote (1963).
Charles Kirby and Jacques Gorrissen as Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in Don Quixote (ca. 1982).
Nicolas Beriozoff rehearsing Don Quixote with Artists of the Ballet (1982).
Don Quixote costume sketch by Desmond Heeley (1984).
Marcia Haydée, Kevin Pugh and Yoko Ichino backstage after a Don Quixote performance on the European Tour (1985).
Erik Bruhn’s letter to the company (1986).
Hazaros Surmeyan and Piotr Stanczyk as Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in Balanchine’s Don Quixote (2007).
Contributing PhotographersBarry GrayBallard and JarrettKen BellAndrew OxenhamDavid StreetCylla von Tiedemann
Production Chronology Pas de Deux from Don Quixote Premiere Date: December 10, 1951Choreography: Marius PetipaMusic: Ludwig Minkus
Pas de Deux from Don Quixote Premiere Date: October 17, 1963Choreography: after Marius Pepita, staged by Svetlana BeriosovaMusic: Ludwig MinkusCostume Design: Mark NeginLighting Design: Wallace Russell
Pas de Deux from Don Quixote Premiere Date: January 15, 1964Choreography: after Eugen Valukin, staged by Galina SamtsovaMusic: Ludwig MinkusCostume Design: Mark Negin
Don Quixote Premiere Date: November 10, 1982Choreography: Nicolas Beriozoff, after Marius Petipa and Alexander GorskyMusic: Ludwig Minkus, orchestrated and adapted by John LanchberySet and Costume Design: Emanuele LuzzatiLighting Design: Sholem Dolgoy
This production was made possible by a gift from the Build-A-BalletTM Fund, THE VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE, THE NATIONAL BALLET OF CANADA
Don QuixotePremiere Date: November 6, 1985Choreography: Nicolas Beriozoff, after Marius Petipa and Alexandre GorkyMusic: Ludwig Minkus, orchestrated and adapted by John LanchberySet and Costume Design: Desmond HeeleyLighting Design: Robert Thomson
The original production of Don Quixote is a gift from the Build-A-BalletTMFund, THE VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE, THE NATIONAL BALLET OF CANADA. The new production of Don Quixote has been made possible in part by special gifts from the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Gulf Canada Limited, Kodak Canada Limited, The Ontario Arts Council, The Canada Council, as well as contributions from many individual donors.
Balanchine’s Don Quixote Premiere Date: June 15, 2007 Choreography: George Balanchine, staged by Suzanne FarrellMusic: Nicolas NabokovSet Design: Zack BrownCostume Design: Holly HynesLighting Design: Brad Fields
Blanchine’s Don Quixote is a gift from Roger and Kevin Garland. Produced in association with the Suzanne Farrell Ballet Company.
The ballet Don Quixote is based on the celebrated epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. The production deals with the adventures and misadventures of the rusty old knight, Don Quixote, and his faithful servant, Sancho Panza, as well as the romance between two young lovers Kitri and Basilio. More specifically, the ballet deals with every man’s search for the ideal. The first known use of the story’s theme for ballet was in the 1750s by the choreographer Jean Georges Noverre in Vienna. The version of the ballet that has been passed down to us today was created by Marius Petipa, the French choreographer who is known as the father of classical ballet. Petipa’s production of Don Quixote was first performed at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia, on December 14, 1869. Petipa’s original choreography is now virtually lost since his production was generally replaced by a new one choreographed by Alexandre Gorsky in the early 20th century. Though a few variations and dances have been reworked by Russian choreographers, it is basically Gorsky’s version that is presented today.
George Balanchine, the prolific choreographer and founder of the New York City Ballet, is known for his innovative interpretation of the narrative. While Russian productions relegate Don Quixote to an amiable old fool, Balanchine placed him at the centre of the story and commissioned a new score from Nicolas Nabokov. Despite the fact Balanchine’s Don Quixote premiered in 1965 it has only been performed by three companies, New York City Ballet, the Suzanne Farrell Ballet and The National Ballet of Canada.
Get more insight into the production - Ballet Notes are detailed guides to the company's dynamic repertoire. Read the synopsis and articles and view more photos in the Don Quixote Ballet Notes.
Read the 2011 Ballet Note
Read the 2007 Ballet Note
Artistic Director Celia Franca added Marius Petipa’s famous Don Quixote Pas De Deux to the repertoire one month after The National Ballet of Canada’s founding. The Pas De Deux was first performed by husband and wife pairing Irene Apiné and Jury Gotshalks on December 10, 1951 at the Forest Hill Community Centre.
In 1953, the National Ballet was invited to perform at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, the longest running international summer dance festival in the United States. This marked The National Ballet of Canada’s American debut and saw the company perform an array of ballets, including the Don Quixote Pas De Deux featuring Apiné and Gotshalks reprising their roles as Kitri and Basilio. The National Ballet of Canada returned to the prestigious festival only once more in 1957.
Two new versions of the Don Quixote Pas de Deux were staged during the 1963/64 season. The first was by Svetlana Beriosova, daughter of Nicolas Beriozoff, after the original Marius Petipa. The second was staged by National Ballet Principal Dancer Galina Samtsova, after Eugen Valukin. A young Martine van Hamel was cast exclusively as Kitri in both versions throughout the season. After leaving the National Ballet in 1969, van Hamel continued her illustrious performing career as a Principal Dancer with American Ballet Theatre for over 20 years.
In 1982, celebrated Ballet Master Nicholas Beriozoff mounted the full-length version of Don Quixote on the National Ballet. This version was set to the traditional composition of Ludwig Minkus, orchestrated and adapted by John Lanchbery and featured designs by Emanuele Luzzati.
Beriozoff’s Don Quixote premiered at the O’Keefe Centre in Toronto on November 12, 1982 with Charles Kirby in the title role, and Karen Kain and Frank Augustyn as the young lovers Kitri and Basilio.
In the Spring of 1985 The National Ballet of Canada included Don Quixote in its extensive tour throughout Europe. It was performed 17 times in 10 cities, including Luxembourg, Berlin, Zurich and Milan.
Artistic Director Erik Bruhn commissioned Desmond Heeley to breathe new life into Don Quixote through the creation of new sets and costumes. The production premiered on November 6, 1985 at Toronto’s O’Keefe Centre and again featured Charles Kirby as Don Quixote alongside American Ballet Theatre’s Cynthia Gregory and Fernando Bujones in the roles of Kitri and Basilio. The pairing of these special Guest Artists was hailed by the press as “a partnership made in heaven”.
Shortly before his untimely death on April 1, 1986 Artistic Director Erik Bruhn addressed company members in a personal letter celebrating the triumph of the revamped Don Quixote. The new production had been restored as a popular favourite among the National Ballet’s repertoire while at the same time cementing Erik Bruhn’s lasting legacy as the company’s Artistic Director.
Read Erik Bruhn's Letter to the company
The National Ballet of Canada was granted the rare opportunity in the 2006/07 season to mount George Balanchine’s Don Quixote as restaged by Suzanne Farrell. The original production created for New York City Ballet in 1965 had stopped being performed by 1978, only to be revived by Farrell’s own company in 2005. Set to a commissioned score by composer Nicolas Nabokov, Balanchine’s adaptation departs from the traditionally choreographed versions of Miguel de Cervantes’s story and makes Don Quixote himself the central subject in a much darker ballet.
Balanchine’s modern masterpiece had its National Ballet premiere at the Four Season Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto on June 15, 2007 with Hazaros Surmeyan as the tragic hero Don Quixote and Heather Ogden as his unattainable love Dulcinea.
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