Ballet Appreciation Series (2014#6) - Roland Petit

Roland Petit (1924-2011)
Coach introduced 3 ballets choreographed by Roland Petit.

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Carmen (1949) ballet is based Bizet's superb opera of the same name. 
Its music is also from the opera. 50 minutes long, not a full-length ballet. 

It is a love tragedy between wild Gypsy factory worker Carmen and naïve soldier Don José, in Seville of Spain. 
* Part 1

Falling for Carmen, José let her loose from jail, deserted the army, and committed smuggling... 
* Part 2 

Then, Carmen found a bull-fighter a more exciting lover... 
* Part 3 

I'd like Bizet's opera version more, though.

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Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977)

Roland Petit choreographed the Chaplin Dances (1991), based on his impressions of Charlie Chaplin in a number of silent movies. 

Later, Fuji TV made a 1-hour stage recording called Charlot ("Little Charles"), starring Tamiyo Kusakari and 60-year-old Luigi Bonino.

* Luigi Bonino  
* Tamiyo Kusakari - Her husband is the film director, meeting Petit and Chaplin's son in Japan.
* Charlie Chaplin himself 
* BGT

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Pique Dame / The Queen of Spades (2001) ballet, choreographed by Roland Petit, was introduced next. 

Only half-an-hour long, it adopted Tchaikovsky's opera of the same name, and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6.

It was about a desperate young man, who would try anything to acquire the superb gambling skills from an aged gambling queen. I'm not impressed. 

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Petit has many other better choreography masterpieces, such as 
* Bizet's L'Arlesienne (1974).
* Ravel's Bolero