Scheherazade

Mauro Bigonzetti's ballet based on the story of The Arabian Nights. The renowned Italian choreographer Mauro Bigonzetti created Scheherazade for the Czech National Ballet, in tandem with Carlo Cerri, his long-term collaborator. Based on the famous Middle Eastern story, the full-length ballet features a mesmerising, diverse dance idiom, and overwhelming visual dimensions.

Scheherazade, a major character in the famous collection of Middle Eastern folk tales The One Thousand and One Nights, has inspired artists worldwide as a great archetype. Nikolai RimskyKorsakov did not compose the symphonic suite Scheherazade with a view to having it set to dance. In 1910, his wonderful piece of music was first adapted as a ballet by Michel Fokine. The story of Scheherazade, her beauty and wisdom, also bewitched Mauro Bigonzetti. In his production for the Czech National Ballet he primarily focuses on two main protagonists, King Shahryar and Scheherazade, representing the masculine and feminine principles, the conflict and mistrust between them, as well as the attainment of balance and establishment of an authentic relationship. The story of Scheherazade dates back from Ancient Persia, yet its message is meta-temporal and meta-spatial. The themes, deeply internalised, have been passed down through the generations, always finding a new, updated form in the culture of the time in which they emerge.

National Theatre Orchestra

• Approximate running time: 1 hour 20 minutes, no intermission

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