Is there a pas de deux in The Nutcracker?
The Nutcracker pas de deux is a dance for the Sugar Plum Fairy and Prince Coqueluche in the ballet The Nutcracker. The ballet was first presented on 18 December 1892 at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. The music was written by Tchaikovsky and the dance was designed by Lev Ivanov.
What is the story behind the ballet Swan Lake?
Swan Lake is the love story of Prince Siegfried, who on a hunting trip encounters a flock of swans, falls in love with the Swan Queen, Odette, and swears his allegiance and undying love to her. As a result of a curse by the evil sorcerer Baron von Rothbart, Odette can only take human form between midnight and daybreak.
Why did Tchaikovsky write The Nutcracker pas de deux?
Upon learning this, Tchaikovsky was angered by the idea of a Minkus composition being inserted into his ballet score, so he composed a new pas de deux for the ballerina, even matching the structure of the Minkus piece so that she would not have to change Petipa’s choreography.
What ballet is the Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux from?
The music associated with the pas de deux we know today as the Black Swan was composed to be performed in Act I of Swan Lake in the first version of the ballet in 1877.
Why is it called pas de deux?
pas de deux, (French: “step for two”), dance for two performers. The strictly classical balletic pas de deux followed a fixed pattern: a supported adagio, a solo variation for the male dancer, a solo variation for the female dancer, and a coda in which both participants displayed their virtuosity.
Did Tchaikovsky write The Nutcracker?
The Nutcracker (Щелкунчик), Op. 71 (TH 14 ; ČW 14), is a fairy ballet in 2 acts and 3 scenes, written and orchestrated by Tchaikovsky between February 1891 and April 1892. The story was based on a children’s fairy tale by E. T. A. Hoffmann, adapted by Alexandre Dumas.
What is pas de deux in dance?
Why did Tchaikovsky write the Nutcracker?
The Nutcracker Suite was commissioned by Imperial Russian Ballet choreographer Marius Petipa in 1891. Petipa wanted a ballet score based on Alexandre Dumas’ (1802-1870) adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffman’s (1776-1882) fantasy story, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.