Balanchine / Van Manen / Arqués

Ingenious, tricky choreography

The Four Temperaments is one of the most significant works by the Russian-American George Balanchine (1904-1983). Besides being a key work in his oeuvre, it was also the first Balanchine ballet to be taken into Dutch National Ballet’s repertoire, in 1961. It is hard to believe it has now been around for over 75 years. The ingenious, tricky choreography that frequently crackles with energy still adds a magical dimension to Hindemith’s composition of the same name. 

Turbulent and melancholy 

According to the dance critics, Frank Bridge Variations, by Dutch master Hans van Manen (1932), gives the only possible danced answer to Benjamin Britten’s Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge. In melancholy duets, heated solos and powerful group sections, he indulges in contrasts: sharp and flowing, precise and free, angry and melancholy. But no matter how diverse, together the nine sections form a natural, stunning unity. 

Masculinity 

The third work in this programme is Manoeuvre, created for Dutch National Ballet in 2020 by the Spaniard Juanjo Arqués (1977). Although the piece is abstract, it is inspired by thoughts about the changing views in our Western society of the concept of masculinity. Arqués set the work to Shaker Loops by John Adams, who is celebrating his seventy-fifth birthday in 2022. Arqués says, “It’s music that has been used by many choreographers before me, but I’ve always known that one day I’d want to give my own interpretation of it”.