Romeo and Juliet

The (ballet) history of Romeo and Juliet

It is probably the most romantic story ever told: Romeo and Juliet, the tragedy about two Veronese youngsters who become entangled in an impossible love and follow each other to their death. They inspired Shakespeare to create one of his best-known plays, and the British bard in turn inspired numerous other artists, including a great many choreographers. One of them was Rudi van Dantzig, whose Romeo and Juliet has been moving both audiences and dancers deeply for more than fifty years now.

The oldest ballet version of the Romeo and Juliet story known to us is by the Italian choreographer Eusebio Luzzi and dates from the late eighteenth century. Comprising no fewer than five acts, his production premiered in 1785 at the Teatro Samuele in Venice. It was followed three years later by Filippo Beretti’s interpretation for La Scala in Milan, and dance history sources also cite the first productions outside Italy from the beginning of the nineteenth century. For example, Ivan Ivanovich Valberkh – who is regarded as the first Russian choreographer and ballet master – created a Romeo and Juliet in St Petersburg in 1809, and Vincenzo Galeotti made a version for the Royal Danish Ballet in 1811. Galeotti, often dubbed ‘the father of Danish ballet’, was 77 at the time and performed the role of Friar Laurence himself.

Various composers

Different music was used for each of these early productions. Whereas Luzzi chose a composition by his compatriot Luigi Marescalchi, Beretti opted for music by Vincenzo Martin. Valberkh used the Romeo and Juliet score by the German composer Daniel Steibelt, and the Danish composer Claus Nielsen Schall wrote the music for Galeotti’s version. The choice of music often varied for later major productions of Romeo and Juliet as well, in contrast to most ballet classics. In 1926, Bronislava Nijinska made a distinctive production for Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes (about two dancers who escape the ballet rehearsals, and including an entr’acte by George Balanchine) to music by Constant Lambert. For his meditative one-acter for American Ballet Theatre, in 1943, Antony Tudor opted for the composer Frederick Delius. Other prominent choreographers, such as Serge Lifar and George Skibine, took inspiration from Tchaikovsky’s Fantasy Overture Romeo and Juliet. And in 1966, Maurice Béjart created a production to Hector Berlioz’ Romeo et Juliette, starring Jorge Donn and Suzanne Farrell in the lead roles.

Happy ending

Most of the Romeo and Juliet versions created after 1940, however, are set to the music of the same name by Sergei Prokofiev. This music became immortal also due to Leonid Lavrovsky’s production for the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow in that year, although its creation was no easy task. Prokofiev had returned to Russia after many years abroad, lured by the promise that he would be free to write whatever opera or ballet he wished. But although his Romeo and Juliet score was completed in 1935, plans for a ballet version – first at the Kirov Ballet (now Mariinsky Ballet) in St Petersburg, and then at the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow – fell through, due to all sorts of dramas.

The first performance of the ballet, set to a few suites from Prokofiev’s composition, therefore took place in 1938, in the Czech city of Brno, with choreography by Ivo Vana-Psota, who also danced the role of Romeo. It was only after this that the Kirov Ballet expressed interest again, but then the collaboration with choreographer Leonid Lavrovsky did not run smoothly at all. Lavrovsky had made considerable changes to the libretto, for which he needed additional music, and it was only after some fierce arguments that Prokofiev admitted defeat. The composer also reinstated the original tragic ending to the ballet story, which he had initially composed as a happy ending.

Elusive soul

The rehearsal period was also obstructed by the Kirov dancers. They thought Prokofiev’s music was far too modern and impossible to dance to, and the things Lavrovsky asked of them were totally new to them. Inspired by the method of acting innovator Stanislavski, Lavrovsky wanted to see lifelike characters on stage. So the dancers could not hide behind their technique as they were used to, but had to act convincingly and with real feeling. In addition, Lavrovsky used mime to further emphasise the dramatic character of the dance.

All of this did lead to some critical noises after the premiere – some thought Lavrovsky’s heavy-handed version tended too much towards the kitsch – but the criticism died down when the Bolshoi Ballet triumphed internationally with Romeo and Juliet in subsequent years. The production, which was filmed in the fifties and performed in places like London and Brussels, inspired young Western choreographers of the day, like John Cranko, Kenneth MacMillan and Rudi van Dantzig. In particular, a shining example was given by the lyrical, intensely expressive ‘archetypal Juliet’ Galina Ulanova – described by Prokofiev as “the genius of Russian ballet; its elusive soul”.

‘Got used to the idea’

In 1958, Cranko presented his first Romeo and Juliet production in Milan, MacMillan presented his in 1965 in London, and in the mid-sixties artistic director of Dutch National Ballet, Sonia Gaskell, was also set on adding a new version of the ballet to the repertoire (after the Ballet van de Nederlandse Opera and the Nederlands Ballet had danced a version by Serge Lifar in 1957 and 1959 respectively). She asked Van Dantzig to create his own production, but initially he refused point blank. She then sent him off to get Lavrovsky involved, but Lavrovsky thought the stage dimensions of the Stadsschouwburg (municipal theatre) in Amsterdam were far too small. Neither was the next candidate, MacMillan, interested in staging his ballet in the Netherlands, so Gaskell ended up asking Van Dantzig again. As he said later, he had “got used to the idea by then”, although he was not exactly overjoyed. The same applied to the dancers, who initially would have preferred Lavrovsky’s version, and some of the critics were also very disparaging about the premiere of Van Dantzig’s Romeo and Juliet on 16 February 1967. They would rather have seen a production in the spirit of Van Dantzig’s earlier, contemporary creations, like his Monument for a Dead Boy, and thought it lacked his personal style. Only Yvonne Vendrig, who danced the lead role, and Toer van Schayk, who designed the wonderful, stylish sets and costumes, were immediately showered with undivided praise.

On a grand scale, true to life and with sensitivity

With each restaging of this first Dutch Romeo and Juliet, however, the reactions became more enthusiastic and the critics more complimentary. And gradually, people came to realise how much Van Dantzig had actually put his own mark on the production, despite the classical choreography. Prompted by the great social engagement that characterised him as a choreographer and as a person, he enriched Shakespeare’s tragedy by accentuating the feud between the two families, the Capulets and the Montagues. The more ‘ordinary’, more human Montecchi are in a different league to the rich, arrogant Capuleti, but the real victims of their vendetta are the poor, oppressed people of Verona. The emotions that flare up between the families and the repercussions on Romeo and Juliet are convincingly expressed by Van Dantzig in sensitive atmospheres and subtle character sketches: on a grand scale, true to life and with extraordinary sensitivity. This is why his production is not only more deeply moving than other versions of Romeo and Juliet, but is also timeless, just like Shakespeare’s story – a heart-rending ballet tragedy about two young, idealistic people, who come to grief through manipulations and intrigues from outside.

Text: Astrid van Leeuwen

‘You run to him, with every ounce of your being’

It’s evident that Juliet isn’t just any role and Romeo and Juliet isn’t just any ballet. When talking about it, Jane Lord and Salome Leverashvili regularly get choked up. Salome has danced the role once before and now can’t wait to dive into it again “with all the emotion I possess”. Jane has danced the role umpteen times, starting with her first poignant series of performances at the Carré theatre, in 1984, and is now returning to the ballet as Juliet’s nurse. “I’ve come full circle”, she says.

That first time in Carré, says former principal dancer Jane Lord (64), was ‘extremely special’. “I was 23 and when Rudi (van Dantzig – ed.) asked me to do it I was still in the corps de ballet. He had cast me and Barry Watt, my boyfriend at the time, as the youngest couple, which felt like an enormous responsibility. The rehearsals were also exceptionally intense. We repeated each tiny detail endlessly and Rudi continually pushed us beyond our limits. He wanted more, more and still more… He pulled the emotion out of you, as it were, sometimes to the point of tears.”

For her first interpretation of Juliet, in 2019, soloist Salome Leverashvili (27) worked intensively with coach and associate artistic director Rachel Beaujean, and she is now rehearsing with Anna Tsygankova (who is also dancing the role herself again in this performance series) and ballet master Jozef Varga. “From all the stories they tell, you can gather what a huge gift Rudi was for Dutch National Ballet. And as for Juliet, they too keep saying, ‘Rudi wants it full out. If you can not go any further, go further!’ Rachel also taught me, ‘You mustn’t act; you have to really feel it.’ They wanted me to be as raw as possible, and for the emotions to really come from my innermost depths. I think that’s wonderful. Our work as dancers can sometimes be very clean and technical, so it’s great to be able to let rip as Juliet.”

Love gives courage

“Juliet is innocent, playful and a bit naughty too, in the way she often plays tricks on her nurse”, says Jane. “Initially, she also thinks it’s okay to marry Paris, until she meets Romeo at the ball and all her feelings turn towards him.” Salome says, “In the first scene, you really have to try and convey how young she is (fourteen – ed.). For example, through very quick footwork and in the way she larks about with her little brother or pinches a bunch of grapes. She’s mischievous and cheeky.” Jane adds, “It’s only in the balcony pas de deux that you see her become more grown-up, due to circumstances, and start to rebel.” Salome says, “Love gives her exceptional courage. It’s a revelation to her that her feelings for Romeo are bigger than all the social pressure from outside, however much that makes her oppose her father, Paris and all her surroundings.”

“In the classical ballet repertoire, Juliet isn’t regarded as the most technically challenging lead role. It’s not like Swan Lake or Sleeping Beauty”,  says Jane. “The challenge lies in conveying the enormous development she goes through in a very short space of time, so that the audience can empathise with it and be moved by it.” “And also”, adds Salome, “that you give your own interpretation and overtone to her relationship with each individual – her nurse, her parents, Tybalt, Paris and Romeo.”

Totally lost and wrung out

They both say there are plenty of special and moving, if not heart-rending moments. Salome says, “That budding emotion when they meet one another at the ball. And afterwards, the total abandonment in the balcony pas de deux. The almost impossible decision to take the potion. And then, of course, the final scene.” Jane says, “When you wake up from your apparent death, climb down from the tomb and see or brush against Romeo’s cape, and then that music… You see him lying there, realise he’s dead and run to him, with every ounce of your being…”

Tears trickle down both their cheeks. Salome says, “In a short time, you experience a roller coaster of emotions, as if you go through a whole lifetime in a couple of days.” Jane explains, “Of course you rehearse everything, like how to pick up the potion bottle and drink the potion; every little gesture. But that’s nothing compared to what you go through on stage. At the end of that scene, too, I was always in tears.” Salome agrees, “You’re totally lost and wrung out.”

Jane says, “From an emotional point of view, you want to give your all, but you’ve still got to be able to dance the steps. So you have to continually find that balance: how far can I go in my emotions and still be capable of doing justice to the choreography?” Salome says, “At the moment after the bed scene, where she resolutely says no to her father, I always had a lump in my throat. But at the same time you know: I can’t give way to that emotion yet, I can’t break down yet.”

‘Letting go’ of Juliet

Following the many times Jane had danced the role of Juliet with Dutch National Ballet, she performed it again in 2000, at the end of her career, at an open-air theatre in Florence for three weeks. That was at the express wish of Rudi van Dantzig, with Altin Kaftira as her partner. “It was an incredible gift. Juliet was the role of my life, and with Altin I could really fly.”

Now, 25 years later, she’s returning to Van Dantzig’s ballet, but this time as the nurse. “That’s taking some getting used to. The nurse is a totally different character. In the rehearsals, I sometimes still move too nicely and elegantly, whereas the nurse clomps about in a raw, earthy and rather ungainly way.” She laughs, “I have to keep walking around with my legs wide apart. It’s a huge challenge!”

But the main thing she’s had to learn is to ‘let go’ of Juliet. “The role is still so much in my body that when I was learning the nurse in advance, in 2019, I often had the urge to run along with one of the new Juliets. And even now, I mustn’t focus on Juliet too much, or else I’d get wrapped up in her emotions.”

Salome was deeply moved when she watched the video of Jane and Barry Watt. “Jane is so beautiful as Juliet, and her emotions are so true to life. I’m absolutely inspired by that, but I don’t want to imitate her. In this role, it’s really necessary to find your own way in it, and to portray Juliet in accordance with your own feelings at the time of each performance.”

Jane says, “Returning now as the nurse is very precious to me. Dutch National Ballet is my family and I’ll forever cherish the opportunity I had to work so intensively with Rudi. The love of this ballet, and the depth of the role – it’s all coming back to me in these weeks. Actually, it’s as if I’ve never been away.”

Text: Astrid van Leeuwen