Frederick Ashton’s Ballet “A Month in the Country”

Frederick Ashton’s elegant retelling of Turgenev’s play A Month in the Country distils the essence of the drama into a one-act ballet, where all the action unfolds in the family’s living room. Characters come in and out, their feelings for one another displayed through solos and pas de deux, highlighting Ashton’s talent for playing out complex drama through detailed and intricate choreography.

The ballet had its premiere in 1976 and was one of the last works Ashton created for The Royal Ballet. Julia Trevelyan Oman’s designs evoke the stifling world of the wealthy family’s country residence, and the emotive music of Fryderyk Chopin, arranged by John Lanchbery, adds another layer of feeling to the exquisitely rendered passions of Ashton’s steps.

On 5 and 7 June starring principal dancer of the Royal Ballet Natalia Osipova.

This work is being performed as part of a mixed programme: The Firebird / A Month in the Country / Symphony in C