Australia Dancing - Fille mal gardee, La

Fille mal gardee, La

McMurdo, Don: Christine Walsh and Jonathan Kelly in 'La Fille mal gardee', the Australian Ballet, 1984

The Royal Ballet premiered Frederick Ashton's version of La Fille mal gardee at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, on 26 January 1960. The opening night cast was led by Nadia Nerina as Lise, David Blair as Colas, Stanley Holden as the Widow Simone, Alexander Grant as Alain, Leslie Edwards as Thomas and Franklin White as the Notary. The score by Herold had been arranged by John Lanchbery, who also conducted the first performance. Designs were by Osbert Lancaster. The first performance in Australia of Ashton's Fille took place at the Tivoli Theatre in Sydney on 12 October 1967. The Australian Ballet cast included Marilyn Jones as Lise, Bryan Lawrence as Colas, Ray Powell as the Widow Simone, Alan Alder as Alain, Roger Myers as Thomas and Colin Peasley as the Notary. Ashton's Fille has been revived on many occasions over the life of the Australian Ballet.

La Fille mal gardee has, however, a long history that predates the Ashton production. The very first production was staged by Jean Dauberval in July 1789 in Bordeaux, France. Two years later this work, which had been inspired by an engraving by Pierre-Antoine Baudouin of an angry mother scolding her daughter, was staged in London at the Pantheon Theatre when the work received its current name of La Fille mal gardee. From then on it was revived over and over again and seen across Europe. Australian audiences first saw this early staging in 1855 in Sydney and Melbourne when the role of Lise was danced by Aurelia Dimier. Until Ashton created his production the work was known in several choreographic versions and was danced to a variety of scores.

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