The Royal Ballet [DVD] [1960]

Paul Czinner was a visionary film maker who preserved a number of great historic performances. Among them are Furtwangler's Don Giovanni at Salzburg with Cesare Siepi and Elisabeth Grummer, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf's Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier, an abridged Bolshoi Giselle with Galina Ulanova, and in this worthy company, Margot Fonteyn in The Royal Ballet.

Czinner invented an effective method for filming stage performances. Here he captures the pre-Rudi Fonteyn, lovely, creamy and with enough moist, bloom of youth for close and intimate shots. While the film is called The Royal Ballet, it's really a Fonteyn extravaganza.

There are three balletic excerpts that all feature Margot Fonteyn. In the Daneman biography "Margot", we learn that Fonteyn was closely identified with Ondine, but The Firebird should have gone to Nerina, whose "spectacular attack and ballon cast her as an obvious Firebird." Beriosova was an acclaimed and legendary Odette, but was overlooked. Sadly, there are almost no commercial films available of Beriosova's dancing.

Fonteyn is stunning, though, in Swan Lake. Her acting abilities and velvety power are mesmerizing in a gorgeous Act II, where she is partnered by the blandly handsome Michael Somes. However, she's not quite Firebird material. A bit too proper and ladylike to be believable as the mythological beast, even her costume seems to overpower her refined daintiness. But I love it anyway, although Nina Ananiashvilli has much more of the wild and sexual animal in her than Fonteyn could ever hope to muster on stage.

Ondine, written for Fonteyn by Sir Frederick Ashton, is a perfect vehicle for her gifts. She's at her best as the vulnerable nymph who emerges from the waterfall. The story is pretty dumb, and the ballet is too long, but it is a masterpiece nonetheless thanks to Fonteyn's silky eroticism and the spectacular dancing of the great Alexander Grant, considered the finest male dancer to emerge from The Royal Ballet. As brilliant a dancer as he was, it's tragic how few documents one can find of his dancing. He is featured, though, in the marvelous Sleeping Beauty telecast for NBC. In that performance he dances one of the Three Ivans. There, his power, grace and charisma are the high point in a ballet filled with high points. Here, in Ondine he dances the Sea King with such drama and intensity that he steals every scene.

This is a museum-quality document of an historic period of dance that will never be duplicated. Margot Fonteyn was the jewel around which de Valois built the Royal Ballet. Here in her prime, before Nureyev, we can see why she was worshipped as an immortal icon of dance. Later on, Czinner would make another film with her, a Romeo and Juliet with Nureyev. By this time the bloom is off the rose and in spite of critical praise for what was seen as her instant transformation into a teenager, I find her Juliet just too painful to watch. In this film, we have to thank Czinner in whatever world he's in now, for preserving a youthful, sensuous and unforgettable Margot. I hope this film will one day get transferred to an NTSC format and released in North America. It's a masterpiece.

This is a brilliant display of artistry by Margot Fonteyn at her peak. In particular in Ondine, a new ballet created for her, she shows both an exceptional technique and superb musicality. My only criticism is the title of the disc. It is not really about the Royal Ballet as a whole but a tribute to Fonteyn. I would have expected a disc with the title "Royal Ballet" to feature several more of their top artists even though of course Fonteyn was by far their undisputed Prima Ballerina Assoluta.

As others have said this is worth having as a record of the RB at one of its best periods. For that alone it is a good buy and to see Fonteyn in her prime makes it exceptional.What a pleasure to see her elegant skill again and to be reminded of the added charisma seen when she was performing live.Regretably no dvd can communicate that but this one comes close for those of us fortunate to have seen her on stage.She is the star of this dvd and rightfully so, with the bonus of a New Zealand connection through Bryan Ashbridge and Alexander Grant. Ashbridge was married to Rowena Jackson who was renowned at the time for her technique in completing the 32 fouettes in Act 3 of Swan Lake (and how times have changed with that) while Grant (like Jackson) was another New Zealander who went to England and a wonderful career with the RB. To see him in his prime is a rare opportunity to also be reminded of just how good he was so for anyone from the New Zealand ballet community this is a must have recording.Highly recommended both as a dance documentary and for the quality of the performances thanks to Czinner's production.Now if only someone could find a vault with films of the other stars of the RB of the time as mentioned by others, what a trip down memory lane that would be!