| Manon | Music: Massenet, Jules (1842-1912) Choreography: Sir Kenneth MacMillan |
| Ballet de l'Opéra de Paris | |
| Martin Yates | Conductor |
| Sir Kenneth MacMillan | Director |
| Nicholas Georgiadis | Set Designer, Costume Designer |
| John B. Read | Lighting Designer |
| Orchestre de l'Opéra national de Paris |
Inspired by L’Abbé Prévost’s legendary heroes, Kenneth MacMillan expresses his fascination for lost characters and dramatic subjects. The choreographer stays faithful to the novel’s plot and reconstructs the tragic story of the sensual yet naïve creature who is more victim than demiurge of her own fate.
In Regency Paris, bourgeois society gorges itself on luxury and easy pleasures. Swept by this swirl, Manon can’t resist the temptations, dragging down with her her faithful lover Des Grieux.
The choreographer structures his ballet on a mosaic of extracts by Massenet, choosing a music that brings drama, freshness and romance necessary to this great dance fresco. The crowd and ball scenes are followed by intimate, lively pas de deux, right up to the ballet’s sublime and tragic end.
This recording was made during the farewell to the stage of the Dancer Etoile Aurélie Dupont.
