Drawing on ancient Greek mythology, Sylvia’s folkloric and classical fusion is set to return to the Metropolitan Opera House stage for the first time since 2016. In this installment of Behind the Ballet, Elizabeth Kaye invites us to immerse ourselves in the mythical world of Sylvia. From its movement language to its musical score, we are guided through the making of the enchanting classical ballet by Frederick Ashton with music by Léo Delibes. Kaye narrates, “Sylvia enchants through its music, through Ashton’s painterly choreography and the musicality and transcendent grace of ABT’s dancers whose expressive movements make Delibes sparkling score not only music you hear but music you can literally see.”

Coming to the Metropolitan Opera House stage for the first time, this Shakespearian tragedy has arrived for its ABT New York Premiere. Drama and romance twinkle at the edges of this mesmerizing piece, performed first at the Royal Opera House in London. In this episode of Behind the Ballet, Elizabeth Kaye explores the creation of The Winter’s Tale by Christopher Wheeldon. Kaye then explains how Shakespeare’s classic play is translated into movement through of Wheeldon’s bold dance vocabulary, a daring ballet spectacle that transforms dance into art.

Taking on the legacy of the Modernist literary talent Virginia Woolf through inspiration of her novels and collected writings, Wayne McGregor’s Woolf Works returns to ABT’s Summer season. Through its contemporary grace, Woolf Works has engaged audiences in a whirlwind of emotion and fluidity. This installment Behind the Ballet provides a rich understanding of choreographer Wayne McGregor’s history and an abstract overview of the ballet’s content. This talk will leave you with much to think about and even more to see on stage.

In this installment of Behind the Ballet, Elizabeth Kaye dives into the complexities of Helen Pickett’s Crime and Punishment, which will make its World Premiere during ABT’s 2024 Fall season. Kaye explores the creatives, characters, and synopsis of this literary classic, including Pickett’s intentional decision to double-cast her protagonist as both a man and woman. This decision invites viewers to consider the protagonist’s identity as a volatile and remarkably complicated human being rather than focusing on their gender.

In this episode of Behind the Ballet, Elizabeth Kaye examines Signature Works through the marriage of works by two disparate yet irretrievably linked artists, Twyla Tharp and Marius Petipa. Kaye describes how Tharp, who turned classical ballet on its head in the 20^th century by fusing it with other dance elements, weds grace with athleticism in The Upper Room. In contrast to Tharp’s dynamic work is The Kingdom of the Shades, one of ballet’s most beloved classical gems. Created by Marius Petipa, the father of classical ballet, and later staged for American Ballet Theatre by Natalia Makarova in 1974, this extended scene from the ballet La Bayadère demonstrates the essence of classical ballet’s purity and precision. Finally, Kaye highlights the iconic pas de deux selected as part of the Signature Works program, including from George Balanchine’s Sylvia Pas de Deux, Twyla Tharp’s Sinatra Suite, and Lynne Taylor Corbett’s Great Galloping Gottschalk. 

Elizabeth Kaye explores Choreographers of the 20^th and 21^st Centuries in this installment of Behind the Ballet, focusing on landmark ballets from two iconic choreographers, George Balanchine’s Ballet Imperial and Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room, during ABT’s 2024 Fall season. Kaye describes how Ballet Imperial, one of the first plotless ballets, carries a rich graciousness that permeated the grand 19^th century ballets such as Swan Lake. Unique to this year’s Fall season are the new sets and costumes that establish a world and mood before a single step is performed. Kaye then describes how Tharp, who turned classical ballet on its head in the 20^th century by fusing it with other dance elements, weds grace with athleticism in The Upper Room.

Discussing the first program in the 2024 Fall season, Elizabeth Kaye looks at Innovation Past and Present, which features the World Premieres of Gemma Bond’s La Boutique and Kyle Abraham’s Mercurial Son, and the return of Harald Lander’s Études during ABT’s 2024 Fall season. Kaye describes Bond’s La Boutique as “an abstract tutu ballet, blending classical attire with modern, plotless movement.” Though Abraham has remained secretive of his Mercurial Son, Kaye shares that the work draws on hip-hop, West African movement, and the songs of British composer James Blake, offering force and emotion to the tumultuous beauty of the work. Finally, Kaye explores Études as a tribute to the artistry of technique, alchemizing the steps dancers practice every day into art.

In this final installment of  Behind the Ballet for the 2024 Summer season, ABT Principal Dancer Herman Cornejo joins Elizabeth Kaye to discuss Like Water for Chocolate and its layered three-act story. From adapting to a non-balletic character and demanding acting scenes to onstage sensuality and heartbreak, this exclusive interview offers a unique perspective on two-time Tony Award® winner Christopher Wheeldon’s full-length ballet, based on Laura Esquivel’s iconic novel of the same title.

In this installment of Behind the Ballet, Elizabeth Kaye revisits the creation of The Royal Ballet (1965) in the wake of World War II, which sought to bring back “what was lost after the war—the gentleness of life.” Kaye then explains how Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy is translated into movement through four heart-wrenching pas de deux and three acts of forbidden young love that reveal the universal language of ballet in Romeo and Juliet.