| | |  | Ballets & Classics | Home » » » Stravinsky - The Firebird & Les Noces / Royal Ballet | | | | | | | Description: | | The Royal Ballet's glorious Stravinsky Double Bill unleashes the spectacular production of "The Firebird" with the stark beauty of "Les Noces," magically choreographed by the legendary Nijinska. The all-star cast includes Zenaida Yanowsky and David Pickering as the Bride and Bridegroom in "Les Noces," Leanne Benjamin as The Firebird, Jonathan Cope as Ivan Tsarevich, Genesia Rosato as The Beautiful Tsarevna and as The Immortal Kostchei, David Drew, who recalls in an absorbing interview his role in Nijinska's original production of "Les Noces." As an added bonus, this unmissable DVD also includes exclusive behind-the-scenes rehearsal footage of the two ballets. | | | Product Details: | | | Actors:
| Jonathan Cope, The Royal Ballet, Leanne Benjamin, Genesia Rosato, David Drew | | Director:
| Ross MacGibbon | | Format:
| Classical, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC | | Number of Discs:
| 1 | | Studio:
| BBC / Opus Arte | | Run Time:
| 108 minutes | | DVD Release Date:
| October 22, 2002 | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 15 reviews |
| | | | Used and New: | | | |
| All | |
| $17.81 | Used
- Good | | | $17.81 | New | | | $17.82 | New | | | $17.88 | New | | | $19.44 | New | | | $19.45 | New | | | $19.54 | New | | | $19.70 | New | | | $19.76 | New | | | $19.80 | Used
- Mint | | | $19.96 | Used
- Mint | | | $20.90 | New | | | $21.86 | New | | | $22.69 | New | | | $23.62 | New | | | $23.92 | New | | | $24.30 | New | | | $26.84 | New | | | $27.11 | New | |
| New | |
| $17.81 | New | | | $17.82 | New | | | $17.88 | New | | | $19.44 | New | | | $19.45 | New | | | $19.54 | New | | | $19.70 | New | | | $19.76 | New | | | $20.90 | New | | | $21.86 | New | | | $22.69 | New | | | $23.62 | New | | | $23.92 | New | | | $24.30 | New | | | $26.84 | New | | | $27.11 | New | |
| Used | |
| $17.81 | Used
- Good | | | $19.80 | Used
- Mint | | | $19.96 | Used
- Mint | |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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 High art, sumputous music, and visually spectacular.Dec 17, 2009
I'm no authority on ballet, yet I love it. This DVD satisfied all my wishes for great at-home entertainment. What disappoints me most about video formats of ballets is that the producer/director often gets carried away with camera movement to the point where much of the production is lost visually. When there are only a few dancers on stage or in movement, it's fine to focus on them, but sometimes, and sometimes too often, the camera gets so busy that we miss the full impact of the spectacle on stage. Not so here. The camera work was much to my liking. Ballet is theatre, not film, and should be recorded with that foremost in mind, and that is what they have done here. I loved everything about the two ballets - the same composer but years apart with Les Noces representing a striking difference illustrating, and ending in his remarkable evolution in style. The entire company was extraordinary, and Leanne Benjamin was brilliantly captivating as the Firebird. That it was choreographed by Michael Folkine brings a pang of melancholy for it takes us back to the days of the great Diagalev - died at 50, quel tragique. So much history of great artists for all to enjoy on this DVD. The interviews and the rehearsals are immensely entertaining as well. Would love to see more of that on ballet DVDs. I should also mention that the audio is sensational. It put my sub-woofer to the test!! I loved it! Highly recommended.
0 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 feast and famineMar 08, 2009
i had mixed feelings about this particular dvd that i am sure will "ruffle the feathers" of stravinsky and modern ballet fans. i found the first feature "the firebird" a feast for the eyes. the story here is your standard type fantasy/fairy tale. you can lump it in with say the nutcracker or maybe sleeping beauty. leann benjamin and jonathan cope turn in marvelous performances here. i found mikhail fokines choreography, while consistent to the story line, interesting enough, though maybe not quite my cup of tea. stravinskys score is familiar and likable enough but again not really my cup of tea. the second feature, "les noces" was absolutely horrid. i hated everything about this "ahem" ballet. the choreography by "the legendary nijinska", is typically (roll your eyes) modern. just endless jumping up and down, running back and forth, stiff movements, the body fighting against itself trying desperately not to exude gracefulness. banal, really. if their are any purely balletic moments they are completely overshadowed by the corps de regimen and their unison hop. the music though is what i think really killed it for me. its shrill and annoying, sounding more to me like the soundtrack to the exorcist. it pierces the silence with shrieking and yelling operatic voices over percussive crashes and symphonic chaos, indeed this is like the "death metal" of classical music. this music would be mucho more at home in say a "batman" flick. now mind you, this is supposed to be a wedding. you know, a time for joy and excitement? the musical score here is anything but. the dancers movement anything but. why these miserable faces? the blank stares? the pervasiveness of doom and gloom is way thick here. some may see expressions of joy. i sense foreboding and an underlying resentment. depressing to watch and listen to. on the technical side, the production is excellent. picture quality is crisp and clear. the color reproduction for the firebird is vibrant and pleasing to the eye. id say the same for les noces but even here the costumes and set(?) were as bland and colorless as could possibly be. both features offer excellent editing. the audio is high quality for those of you who would torture their neighbors and/or loved ones at strange hours with the music of les noces. (i know, i know, im rubbing it in.) in conclusion, i am not especially pleased with this purchase, however, i have heard it said that good art is supposed to make you feel something. and sitting thru les noces induced a repulsiveness in me that i do not normally associate with the fine art of ballet. so maybe it has achieved what the authors set out to do and i have just witnessed a masterpiece.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
A common man's point of view.Aug 16, 2008
I thought I probably already had two of the best "Firebirds" with the Royal Ballet's VHS recording of Dame Margot Fonteyn and The Kirov Celebrates Nijinsky with Diana Vishneva, but when I saw this BBC copy starring Leanne Benjamin, I think I may NOW have the best. (I have since purchased "Return of the Firebird w/ Nina Ananiashvili")........(Return of the Firebird: Petrushka/Firebird/Scheherazade)......and I still like Leanne best. This version is as close to Hi-Def as you can get in quality of reproduction w/o being an HD DVD. Being a PAL format, I cannot play it on my Hi-Def. player but using a Phillips player with HDMI input, it is very close to Hi-DEF. NOTE: Mine is PAL format (from China), but you CAN get it in the NTSC format, be sure and check.
Leanne Benjamin, with those huge, startlingly beautiful brown eyes, makes for a perfect subject of a bird in captivity, as she struggles fiercely to escape Prince Ivan's grasp. She can open her eyes wider than anyone I have ever seen. Leanne's struggle for freedom is better than either Fonteyn or Vishneva who struggles the least. Have you ever held a wild bird in your hands? They never give up trying to get away until they are completely exhausted. Leanne is very impressive in her struggle to get away from Ivan.
The camera work on this ballet is very good, as they get close-ups w/o losing any of the dance steps, to concentrate on those beautiful eyes yearning so desperately to be released. When the camera gets a close-up of her face just before she is released I catch my breath it is so utterly beautiful. I freeze frame on that close-up and just stare at her face, it is so remarkable. She is not the most beautiful woman perhaps, but in this role, with her big eyes, her long nose, and pert lips she fit the part very well. Her dancing in this ballet is as good as Margot Fonteyn's, if I can say that without bringing the wrath of all the ages down upon me. The only complaint I could make here, is the ballet isn't long enough. I just didn't want it to end.
The Firebird is by far Stravinsky"s best music, however Les Noces did not appeal to me, in fact, I gave up on it before the end. But, I will be fair and play it again through to the end. You will watch The Firebird over and over again I can assure you.
The costumes and sets for this ballet are good but the stone wall made up of victims of the Immortal Kotchei, in the Kirov version was the most impressive, and the costume on Kotchei in the Kirov version is the best, plus his acting is also best. The costumes on the twelve princesses are pretty much the same in all the ballets I've seen, except the Kirov version, where the Tsarevna has a splash of color that distinguishes her from the others......The Kirov Celebrates Nijinsky / Sheherazade, La Spectre de la Rose, The Polovtsian Dances, The Firebird
This ballet by the Royal Ballet Company is worth every penny you pay, just to see the close-up of Leanne Benjamin's face before she gives Ivan her feather, but of course, you do get to hear some wonderful music by Igor Stravinsky as well. You will need to turn the volume up to hear the opening strains of the bass violins of the Prelude. They are magnificent. Some of Stravinsky's best and most beautiful music occurs during the interaction of Ivan, the twelve princesses and the Tsarevna. It's nice to hear the change in style of the music, because the rest of the music is so raucous, good mind you, but very energetic, to say the least. The producers of this version of The Firebird do a good job of keeping her in the picture during the "dance to exhaustion" scene where it is important to see her instructions to the dancers with her arm and hand gestures. Margot Fonteyn is completely left out of the picture for quite a bit of that segment, and to my mind, she should never be off camera.
This is not a cheap DVD, by any means, but I think you will enjoy it as much as I have. I have not said anything about Les Noces because, as I said, it did not appeal to me. I had never heard of it before, but did read a review before purchasing this DVD. Les Noces means "The Wedding". It is too much like modern dance for my taste. I purchased this for The Firebird. The running time for the entire DVD is only 80 minutes, and Firebird is a little over 49 minutes including the credits, so it is quite short, but still worth owning, if only for Firebird.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Gems!Aug 01, 2008
I want to add my bit to the reviews here. I have enjoyed every moment of these two ballets which are of totally different styles of dancing.I have seen the extended version of Firebird on the 'Firebird Returns' but for personal drama this is the better version. The Les Noces, in my opinion, is beautiful and unique in its cheography. The sound is very solid - surround sound - and the thumps give one the goosebumps. All said, one has to recall the different choreographies of the two ballets to fully enjoy the DVD. The beautiful and unique sounds that end the Wedding are particularly powerful and one will remember them for years.
 An impressive FirebirdJul 29, 2008
My wife and I enjoyed this video very much. The technical quality was excellent. The performance was very good, well danced and entertaining, Why only four stars? It was somewhat less exciting than the best of the live performances we have seen. But we recommend it enthusiastically.
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