Choreartium
Ballet in four movements
Choreography: Léonide Massine
Music: Brahms (Symphony no. 4 in E minor, op. 98)
Designs: Constantine Terechkovich and Eugène Lourié
Première: 24 Oct. 1933 by Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, at the Alhambra Theatre, London,
with Baronova, Danilova, Riabouchinska, Verchinina, Zorina, Jasinski, Lichine, Petrov, and Shabelevski.
An abstract choreographic response to Brahms's 4th Symphony, it was the second of Massine's
‘symphonic’ ballets, and considered by the musical establishment to be sacrilegious in its
appropriation, for dance, of a classic score. Massine revived it in Buenos Aires in 1959 and again
in Edinburgh in 1960. Birmingham Royal Ballet staged a major revival in 1991 and The Dutch National
Ballet revived it in 2001.
Birmingham Royal Ballet Première: October 1991, Birmingham, England
"...The restoration of Choreartium to the repertory brings back to life a work that should retain an
honoured place in any assessment of this century's ballet."
Clement Crisp, The Financial Times, October 28, 1991
"It is time to reinstate Léonide Massine's full worth as a choreographer...What first hits you about
Choreartium is its epic scale." The Sunday Times, November 3, 1991
Choreartium is a vast mural in motion that makes recent choreography seem puny by comparison...The
Birmingham Royal Ballet has uncovered a treasure worthy of adorning the repertory of any company."
Jack Anderson, The New York Times, December 1, 1991
Joffrey Ballet Première: 1992
Dutch National Ballet Première: 2001, Amsterdam
Bavarian State Ballet Première: Nationaltheater Munich, November 17, 2012
Revival: March 12, 2016
Choreography: Léonide Massine
Music: Johannes Brahms 4th Symphony
Revived by Lorca Massine
Assisted by: Anna Krzyskow
Costimes and Set Designs Keso Dekker
Lighting: Christian Kass
Video: Lea Heutelbeck