Birmingham Royal Ballet - Spring Passions

An island paradise in ancient Greece: lost in their love for each other, Daphnis and Chloë struggle against jealous rivals and marauding pirates to be together, but ultimately only the power of the god Pan can reunite them. Considered by many to be Maurice Ravel’s greatest orchestral score and with choreography by Frederick Ashton, Daphnis and Chloë is one of the many great ballets from the outstanding legacy left by Sergei Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes.

Frederick Ashton’s poignant Parisian idyll, The Two Pigeons, tells of a young man, growing up and finding himself frustrated with the immaturity of his fiancée. He flies the nest, leaving her to her tears, and falls in with a group of wild gypsies. The young girl pursues him and battles for his heart with a gypsy beauty. The beauty’s jealous lover beats the young man to within an inch of his life. Realising what he has given up, he returns to his apartment in Paris, into the forgiving arms of his sweetheart.

Created shortly after his hit comedy La Fille mal gardée, Ashton’s 1961 version of this romantic classic, which has been in the repertory continuously since its original premiere in 1886, features some of his best choreography. The closing reconciliation pas de deux, which features two live pigeons, is a true tear-jerker and a favourite in galas the world over. A lush romantic score by André Messager perfectly compliments the drama and emotion of the dance.