Live, Video: Find classical music concert, opera, ballet and dance reviews | Sir Frederick Ashton

Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) close their 25/26 season with an ambitious triple bill running for just four performances on their home turf at the Birmingham Hippodrome.

An evening of outstanding dancing from the Royal Ballet School and the School of American Ballet. It was a case of spotting tomorrow’s stars in a beautifully balanced programme.

Two vivid debuts as Colas, marked the second revival of La Fille mal gardée this season at The Royal Ballet.

ABT offer some outstanding performances in a classical quadruple bill but there was a lack of confidence and uniformity within the corps de ballet. 

If you’re in need of a pick-me-up, get thee to the Royal Opera House and see La Fille mal gardée, a gem of a ballet. There’s a long roster of impressive casts to choose from.

The National Ballet of Japan gave an excellent rendition of Sir Frederick Ashton's Cinderella, in spite of many new faces and role debuts.

It was a wonderful, heartening afternoon – it’s no wonder nearly all the 2025 graduates have gained contracts with several major ballet companies.

The audience walked out of the theater feeling airborne and filled with the kind of joy you only feel after a truly special performance. Sylvia is an absolute treasure.

Ballet Central provides an extremely varied programme of new and old, classical and contemporary dance, with plenty of aplomb.

Osipova has always, since her very earliest appearances on stage, stood out for the sheer energy and commitment she shows in all her work. This is no exception.

The Royal Ballet revive Ashton's masterpiece with some superlative leading performances in a production that is visually rich and imaginative.

Ballet’s best romcom, a lovingly maintained classic.  

The Royal Ballet School students shine at their annual matinée at the Royal Opera House showing exceptional talent and versatility.

The Royal Ballet School deliver a promising mixed programme with some truly exceptional individual performances.

Bringing Ashton from Florida to The Royal Opera House sounds like “coals to Newcastle” but I think that “discovering buried treasure” might be a more appropriate idiom.

The Royal Ballet gets off to an extraordinary start for its Ashton Celebrated season with some ravishing dancing on offer.

The Sarasota Ballet continues to make a deep impression with its second programme of Ashton ballets, this time including a selection of divertissements and excerpts from longer ballets.

Anyone who is interested in the Ashton repertoire should go and see this marvellous reinterpretation of his repertoire from the excellent Sarasota Ballet.

Two very impressive debuts in the lead roles of Liam Scarlett's Swan Lake with The Royal Ballet, bodes well for the futures of Mariko Sasaki and Joseph Sissens.

Paris Opera Ballet tackles a British classic with aplomb but needs to delve deeper into the quintessentially British humour and charm.

Visually splendid, Liam Scarlett's Swan Lake showcases some wonderful dancing, but there is still room for improvement. 

Ashton's La Fille mal gardée, as performed by the Czech National Ballet, delighted Omani audiences in Muscat.

An excellent and diverse triple bill with an Ashton gem at its centre.

The Dream is such a crowdpleaser that one wishes ABT would do this more often in their Met season, but Ballet Imperial needed more time to relax into. 

Two adaptations of well-known Shakespeare plays make wonderful additions to the repertoire of the National Ballet of Japan.

With five founding dancers in BRB2, this inaugural dance salad was embellished with other ingredients including the addition of seven members from the main company. 

With sumptuous new set designs and costumes, The Royal Ballet are in splendid form in Sir Frederick Ashton's Cinderella.

The finale had Osipova wrapping herself in the area rug like a mummy and rolling on the stage floor. It wasn’t even a guilty pleasure. It was just bad.

Deane has created a production that respects the tradition of Swan Lake without unnecessary embellishment.

Which choreographer's adaptation of A Midsummer’s Night Dream is superior, Ashton or Balanchine? This season, New Yorkers get to compare as ABT revives Ashton's The Dream as part of its Fall season. 

Not every Ashton work is a masterpiece, but Sarasota Ballet presents these Ashton works with such love and care, it ensures that even if the ballets won’t “keep”, they aren’t forgotten.

A much beloved production with magical charm, National Ballet of Japan's Cinderella, choreographed by Fredrick Ashton, is successfully performed to a full house audience, thanks to coaching by Miyako Yoshida who performed the role in her days at The Royal Ballet. 

A richly varied trio of works celebrate The Royal Ballet's former director, performed with sincerity and panache. 

A compelling performance of this revival, dedicated by Vadim Muntagirov to the people of Ukraine.

Marianela Núñez possesses a shimmering, celestial radiance and Vadim Muntagirov is a Prince in his prime.

The whole Company exudes bravura and panache in gala programme headlined by a Zucchetti premiere and a Wheeldon classic.

An event that will be long-remembered for the importance of the occasion, if not for its content. 

A robust testimony to the powerful legacy of Isadora Duncan in Isadora Now at the Barbican.

An enchanting programme of music, film and dance in material moved by the spirit of a great performer.

On the evidence of this performance, there is every reason to be cheerful.

The first mixed programme of the new season is led by a stellar cast.

A brief but innovative tribute to the lasting influence of Merce Cunningham in the Linbury Theatre

A memorable and important event in the history of British ballet, sensitively and sentimentally performed. 

The Firebird/A Month in the Country/Symphony in C is an effective and enjoyable programme to close The Royal Ballet's season.

A well-curated gala with gravitas; showcasing several works and dancers rarely, if ever, seen in London.

Exceptional performances from a cast wholly comprised of first soloists and soloists provide a good omen for the future of The Royal Ballet   

A mixed bag from three titans of twentieth century ballet. of which Les Patineurs stands the test of time, best of all; the perfect winter dream: one that comes in a snooze after mulled wine in front of a roaring log fire.    

Sir Frederick Ashton's quintessentially English ballet returns, dressed in pastel shades with knockabout fun everywhere.

A new Swan Lake is a test for any ballet company. Expectations ran high, but Liam Scarlett's new production hit the target. 

In keeping this production of The Sleeping Beauty in the repertoire, Boston Ballet is providing a vital service to the history of classical ballet, developing its dancers to their fullest potential, and providing Boston audiences with a chance to enter into a magical world of the most exquisite beauty.