Rhapsodypas de deux

Choreography by Frederick Ashton
Music by Sergei Rachmaninoff
Costumes by William Chappell
Lighting by Brad Fields

One of Frederick Ashton’s final and most challenging works, Rhapsody was created in 1980 for The Royal Ballet. Choreographed for Mikhail Baryshnikov and Lesley Collier, this pas de deux features fast, dazzling footwork and luminous musicality. An ode to Baryshnikov’s athletic power and legendary technicality, the virtuosic jumps and turns contrast with the lead ballerina’s control and grace. Married to Sergei Rachmaninoff’s brilliant music, this ballet shows Ashton at his most masterful.