Romeo and Juliet

The tragedy of the Veronese lovers, written by William Shakespeare in 1593, is indeed a love story consigned to eternity.

The fame of the ill-fated lovers, who, despite their youth and possible naiveté, follow their deep feelings of love with determination and abandon, regardless of the consequences, was translated musically for the stage by one of the 20th century's greatest composers, Sergei Prokofiev. After the Russian Revolution of 1917, Prokofiev lived abroad, mainly in Paris.

Although by then he had composed several works for ballet, Romeo and Juliet was the first he created for staging in the Soviet Union, where he returned in the summer of 1936. However, this creation's path to the stage proved rather thorny. It was initially conceived for production by the Kirov Ballet in Leningrad (today's Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg). However, the collaboration with the Kirov Theatre ended even before the composer turned his attention to composition.

Therefore, Prokofiev offered his ballet to the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, but the dancers rejected it claiming it was impossible to dance. The composer transformed the work into orchestral suites, which were first performed before audiences in 1936 and 1937.

The ballet Romeo and Juliet Op. 64 finally debuted in 1938 in Brno (former Czechoslovakia) and was not premiered in the Soviet Union, at the Kirov Theater, until 1940. And it has been a part of the great classical ballet tradition ever since. In terms of the score, the work is innovative in that it brought much more than just an elaborate musical form that was supposed to accompany the dance. What stands out everywhere is Prokofiev's exceptional talent for musical characterization and the creation of moods.

The lyrical element does not find fulfillment in this way in any other work by the great Russian composer. The reason why Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet has become the finest work of classical art for dance and a significant part of the repertoire of every ballet ensemble in the world undoubtedly lies in its intense and expressive music describing the amorous mood, reminiscent of 18th century Romanticism in its atmosphere, technique and style.

In this version of the ballet signed by Renato Zanella, the tragic story of the two young Veronese lovers thwarted by their families, which inspired William Shakespeare, is revived by dressing up in clothes and habits in keeping with contemporary sensibilities. “Great attention to contextualization to today by the choreographer to accentuate the repetition of mistakes by society. The violence of the youth group and the desire to belong, unleashes a war directed by the patriarchs who do not relent even in the face of the innocence of a love of their children. Death and regret therefore are dressed in a blackness that appears not as pain but as inevitable fate.” (Laura Poretti Rizman)

Renato Zanella from Verona is a true European master of dance, artistic director of the corps de ballet of the SNG Opera in Balet Ljubljana and a leading signature of dance at the Vienna State Opera in its golden years.

 In the words of the choreographer, “For a Veronese person, this title is a true Proustian madeleine, but in addition to the evocation of that balcony that has always attracted lovers from all over the world, it has also been a recurring encounter in my professional life, especially in Cranko's choreography, which I found both in Stuttgart and Vienna.” And again, “Romeo and Juliet is a challenge, we cannot change the ending but we can tell the story differently. I chose to tell Verona of today. Juliet is an emancipated young woman who knows what she wants. But she is not the only woman on stage, the female component is strong, also thanks to her mother and the presence of Rosalinda, Romeo's friend, who lives as she wants and does what she wants. Three women's stories, driving elements. All while respecting the music and its classical language, which inspires us.”

Bucharest National Opera and Ballet

Romeo and Juliet

Music: Sergei Prokofiev

Direction and Choreography: Renato Zanella

Set design: Alessandro Camera

Costume design: Carla Ricotti

Lighting design: Vinicio Cheli

With the participation of Soloists and corps de ballet of Bucharest National Opera and Ballet

Duration 2h 30 (with 1 interval)