Riot at the Rite
- Director: Andy Wilson
- Writer: Kevin Elyot
- Producer: Ross MacGibbon; Peter Maniura
CGiii Comment
Stravinsky’s Right of Spring, choreographed by Nijinsky – and made into a BBC drama - it was a disaster then and, surprise surprise, a disaster now.
The blame squarely lies with the script (Elyot screws it up again) and the direction is flat – for a film of dance – that is, frankly, unacceptable.
Instead of just doing a production of this notoriously difficult piece – the production team introduce a flimsy backbone of a story about Nijinsky and Diahgliev which merely skims the surface.
An astonishing ineptitude shown by the BBC in both the commissioning of director and (let’s flop again) Elyot.
Admittedly, the music is akin to the wailing of a disgruntled pussy.
Elyot's writing fails entirely to throw a single beam of light on the significance of the music and dance, the response by audience and critics.
It is a difficult piece made more difficult by an inept interpretation of the event.
For it was an event - an event of the new, the different.
Watch...
The(ir) Blurb...
In the spring of 1913, Parisian businessman Gabriel Astruc opens a new theater on the Champs Elysées. The first performance is the premiere of Igor Stravinsky's 'The Rite of Spring', danced by the Ballet Russes. The rehearsal process is extremely fraught: the orchestra dislike Stravinsky's harsh, atonal music; the dancers dislike the 'ugly' choreography of Vaslav Nijinsky. The volatile, bisexual Nijinsky is in a strained relationship with the much older Sergei Diaghilev, the Ballet Russes' charismatic but manipulative impresario. Public expectation is extremely high after Nijinsky's success in 'L'apres-midi d'un faune'. Finally, 'The Rite of Spring' premieres to a gossip-loving, febrile, fashion-conscious Parisian audience sharply divided as to its merits.
Cast & Characters
Adam Garcia as Vaslav Nijinsky;
Alex Jennings as Sergei Diaghilev;
Aidan McArdle as Igor Stravinsky;
Rachael Stirling as Marie Rambert;
Emma Pierson as Romola;
Griff Rhys Jones as Astruc;
Jonathan Aris as Jean Cocteau;
Christian McKay as Pierre Monteux;
Richard Hope as Grigoriev;
Philip Herbert as Antoine;
Naomi Wattis as Lydia;
Andre Schneider as Ivory;
Philip Battley as Bassoonist;
Peter Copley as Elderly patron;
Steve Pemberton as Critic