This new ballet by the great Thierry Malandain, presented at the gorgeous Royal Opera of Versailles, is one of his best and most enchanting: The Seasons brings together Antonio Vivaldi's famous Four Seasons with a parallel set by his contemporary, Giovanni Antonio Guido, in one bold and breathtakingly graceful program!
The exact date of composition of Guido's Four Seasons is unknown, but they are likely to have been written around the same time as Vivaldi's, or even a bit earlier. Though both composers present musical celebrations of nature, Guido spent most of his adult life in France, and his Four Seasons—likely inspired by a series of paintings by Antoine Watteau—are clearly influenced by the French style. The juxtaposition of the two sets makes Vivaldi's sound brand new—and look it too, as the brilliant Malandain Ballet Biarritz prove their excellence once again in a choreography of supreme kinetic elegance, gorgeous geometry, and captivating chiaroscuro tableaux.
Photo © Olivier Houeix
