Jewels is a three-act ballet composed by George Balanchine and first performed in 1967. It was inspired by the music of French composer Gabriel Fauré, and the ballet consists of three distinct movements – Emeralds, Rubies, and Diamonds.
Emeralds is a romantic piece set to Fauré’s ‘Shylock’ and ‘Pavane’. The costumes are green and white, with the women wearing long white tutus and the men wearing green tunics. The choreography is lyrical and graceful, with lots of slow pirouettes, lifts, pas de deux sequences and gentle embraces.
Rubies is much faster-paced than Emeralds; set to Stravinsky’s ‘Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra’, it features strong angular movements combined with a jazzy accompaniment. The costumes for this act are bright red with black accents; the women wear red leotards with black tutus while the men wear black tights with red jackets.
Diamonds is set to Tchaikovsky’s ‘Symphony No 3’ in D major; this movement features large group numbers as well as intricate solos performed by both male and female dancers. The costumes are sparkly white and silver (or occasionally gold) – the women wear white tutus while the men wear tight-fitting white shirts with silver trousers or trunks.
What Kind of Ballet Is Jewels?
Jewels is a classical ballet composed by George Balanchine featuring three distinct movements – Emeralds, Rubies, and Diamonds – each inspired by different musical works by French composer Gabriel Fauré, Igor Stravinsky, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky respectively. The choreography throughout all three acts follows Classical Ballet conventions such as slow pirouettes, lifts, pas de deux sequences, strong angular movements combined with jazzy accompaniment in Rubies section etc., whilst also featuring intricate group numbers as well as solos performed by both male and female dancers in Diamond section.
Conclusion:
Jewels is an exemplary example of classical ballet that successfully combines all elements of traditional ballet dancing into one cohesive performance that showcases its own unique style throughout each act whilst also paying homage to its classical roots .