Onegin

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Between now and Easter Sunday the Dutch National Ballet are dancing John  Cranko's Onegin.  We already have an excellent review from Remco van Grevenstein (see Dutch National Ballet's Onegin 31 March 2017). The Royal Ballet danced Onegin just over two years ago and I reviewed the performance in Onegin: the most enjoyable performance that I have seen at the House since Sibley and Dowell 21 Feb 2015.

This work is conventionally regarded as Cranko's best ballet - though I have a personal preference for The Taming of the Shrew (see Cranko's "Taming of the Shrew": Now's our chance to see one of the Ballets everyone should see before they die 21 Sept 2013).  As I noted in that article:

"He was one of the great choreographers of all time. Born in South Africa in 1927 he choreographer Pineapple Poll in 1951 when he was only 23. In 1961 he was placed in charge of the Stuttgart Ballet when only 34. There he created great full length ballets such as Onegin, Carmen and, of course. Shrew. Sadly he died on the way back from New York at the early age of 45. Think what he would have achieved had he survived."

Happily I see the influence of Cranko in two modern choreographers whether they are conscious of it or not. One of them is Christopher Marney.  The other is Ernst Meisner of the Dutch National Ballet. They are both young men. I think they can achieve in their careers what Cranko would have done in his had he lived,