Rudolf Nureyev's Don Quichotte (2002)

Fascinated by the knight with the unfortunate physique who goes out into the world with his servant Sancho Pansa to crusade against the deplorable state of society and to perform heroic deeds, Ludwig Minkus (1826-1917) created a ballet which had a very successful premiere in the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow in 1869. This DVD presents the version choreographed by Rudolf Nurejev, as performed in a new production by the Paris opera in April 2002 with an outstanding cast, among whom were Aurélie Dupont as Kitri and Manuel Legris as Basile. Composer John Lanchberry arranged Minkus music for this version. Nurejev treated the group dance in the spirit of the Commedia dellArte; the set designer Alexandre Beliaev took inspiration for the decor and the scenery from Pastoral Scenes by Francisco Goya and from motives from the Gothic-Moorish Spain. The costumes by Elena Rivkina totally fulfil the aesthetic norms of the ballet at the end of the 19th century and have been adapted to fit the Spanish subject. (bron: TDK)