- choreographed by maestro John Cranko (1927-73)
- based on Pushkin's Russian poem story of the same name
- adopting Tchaikovsky's various music pieces (other than his Onegin opera)
Audience needs not do homework before watching it, because the story is clearly told by means of dancing, body languages, and music -- just like a mime. Audience easily feels the poetic vision of love, depression and sadness, insanity and struggles of love.
As we watch only segments, here's an outline:
1. Tatiana's sister and the latter's fiance dance
2. Tatiana meets and falls for sophisticated Onegin [0:17]
3. Onegin rejects plain-looking Tatiana and tears up her love letter [0:36]
4. Onegin flirts with her sister [0:57] and then kills the fiance in a duel [1:08]; Onegin has to disappear for years
clip #1
Missing from the above video is:
2A. In her sweet dream, Onegin loves her.
5. Tatiana got married to a prince who loves her [2:18]
6. Onegin returns and falls for Titiana, now a noble beauty [7:50]
7. Titiana rekindles her old flame and enjoys being courted by Onegin [10:50]
8. ... for a while
clip #2
Highly recommend that you watch a full version, any version. 譚元元or曹舒慈of China also excel. Alert: you may need some tissues for your eyes.
Cranko founded the Stuttgart Ballet company in the German city, famous for making Mercedes and BMW. In 1973, on a flight across the Atlantic to Germany, he died young from over-sensitivity to a sleeping pill. Pity.
Comments by dancers
譚元元：
