Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme (ballet)

Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme
Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme
Choreographer	Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux; Patricia McBride
Genre	neoclassical ballet

Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme
Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme
Choreographer	George Balanchine
Music	Richard Strauss
Libretto	after Molière
Based on	Molière's Le Bourgeois gentilhomme
Premiere	1932; Opéra de Monte-Carlo
Original ballet company	Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo
Characters	Mr. Jourdain; Lucille; Cléonte
Design	Alexandre Benois
Setting	17th-century France
Created for	David Lichine and Tamara Toumanova
Genre	neoclassical ballet

Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme refers to two different ballets by George Balanchine set to Richard Strauss's Concert Suite (1917),^[1] with a libretto after Molière's 17th-century comédie-ballet of the same name.

The first Balanchine Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme ballet was produced in 1932 by the

Lincoln Center, in New York City. This production was notable for being the first ballet Balanchine ever choreographed for Rudolf Nureyev^[2]

Performance history

Balanchine's first Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme ballet was performed in 1932 by

In 1944, the ballet was performed by the second iteration of the

The 1979 version of Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme included choreographic input from Jerome Robbins, who stepped in during a period of Balanchine's illness,^[2] as well as from Peter Martins, who choreographed one scene near the end of the ballet.^[1] By staging the ballet with the New York City Opera instead of Balanchine's customary New York City Ballet, the production was able to use Nureyev, who was not a member of NYCB.^[1] Costumes and sets were designed by Rouben Ter-Arutunian.^[2]

The premiere took place on 8 April 1979 at the

Lincoln Center, as part of a double bill with Henry Purcell's short opera Dido and Aeneas.^[1]

1979 opening night cast:

On 22 May 1980, the

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Kisselgoff, Anna. "Balanchine-Robbins Work for Nureyev From Moliere," New York Times (Apr. 9, 1979).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Hodgson, Moira. "A Balanchine Ballet for Nureyev," New York Times (April 9, 1979).
^ "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme," New York City Ballet website. Accessed Jan. 24, 2015.