A chapter from Following Sir Fred's Steps - Ashton's Legacy, the published proceedings of the conference on the choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton and his work, held at Roehampton University in 1994, and edited by Stephanie Jordan and Andrée Grau.
The Royal Ballet Ashton Programme
Panel Discussion
The first of the conference panels was held at the Theatre Museum as an introduction to the Ashton programme at the Royal Opera House. The programme consisted of La Valse, Birthday Offering pas de deux, Sylvia pas de deux, Symphonic Variations, and Daphnis and Chloe. The panel was introduced by Anthony Russell-Roberts, Ashton’s nephew, and administrative director of the Royal Ballet.
Anthony Russell-Roberts:We may consider how these works fit in with Ashton’s development as a choreographer, and express an opinion on which were landmark works. It would be interesting to review how the popularity of certain works may have shifted over the years, and how Ashton approached the preparation of his works, both choreographically and musically.
First of all, Symphonic Variations, which was premiered on the 24 April 1946, with a cast of Margot Fonteyn, Pamela May, Moira Shearer, Michael Somes, Henry Danton and Brian Shaw. Pamela, you were part of the original cast, perhaps you might describe a little about how Symphonic Variations came about.
Pamela May:It really came about because Ashton very much wanted to use that music. We were on tour at the time and he had the records; in fact I think he had two sets. He always carried one of those wind-up gramophones — which shows how long ago it was. We had one in the theatre and another in the digs where we all were living (Ashton and Fonteyn — about six of us altogether). So we had the music of Symphonic Variations playing from morning until night. Whenever there was a spare moment — back to the dressing room to play the record! Finally, we started the rehearsals and the music was so familiar, it was a wonderful way to start rehearsing. By that time, Ashton had a pretty good idea of all the movements he wanted for every section.
In the pas de deux for Fonteyn and Somes, the partner lifts the girl, and she does this gentle, very soft lift on pointe. She hardly appears to be lifted, it’s as if she is drifting through air. It became almost one of his theme steps. I was so thrilled when I saw it, because the first time Ashton used it was for an enchanting pas de deux for me and Michael Somes as the Lovers in The Wanderer, which I loved. I think that was the only particular step that I remember him using for a second time — or maybe even a third time, because I remember he used it in several other ballets.
Anyway, unluckily for Michael, but very luckily for us as a whole, Michael hurt his knee just a few weeks before the opening night of Symphonic, so it had to be delayed by about six weeks. During that time Michael could come and watch although he couldn’t participate very much, but it meant that Ashton could go on improving things. He was lovely to work for because if you had an idea you could always tell him, ‘It would be nice if we could do a lift here instead of a kneel’ and all sorts of little things. We really enjoyed working on it; it was like going through it with a toothcomb until everything was absolutely perfect.
Russell-Roberts:Tell us about how the ballet was received at its first performance, how you felt the public, rather than the critics, responded.
May:I think it was a terrific success. It went very well indeed. At the dress rehearsal we actually had two different endings. There’s the part in the middle where we hold hands in a chain and run round the stage (I think we called it ‘the interlude’), and the ending of the whole ballet was, in fact, to repeat that chain holding hands, and run off backstage, so the curtain came down on an empty stage. I feel it was probably Sophie Fedorovitch who said to Fred, ‘It’s wrong. They should finish where they started.’ Fred said, ‘Try it girls, try it!’ So we did, and we went back to our opening positions. ‘That’s it!’ said Fred, and so we had it.
Russell-Roberts:Donald, you’ve had the task of rehearsing for this revival, and indeed other revivals. Tell us about how dancers today approach masterworks of Ashton, and what it feels like for you, having danced in the piece, to be rehearsing it.
Donald MacLeary:I have to say that I’m always shocked by the lack of stamina they have. It is amazing that when they run it for the first time they can’t get through it. I don’t think it makes any difference whether you’ve been trained then or now, it’s an absolute killer. When I first danced it, it nearly killed me. I couldn’t believe it, it looked so effortless and so beautiful, but I tell you, they’re all in pain! Luckily we still have Pamela and Michael, who were originals, and I worked at rehearsals with Fred; there are many people still around who have been associated with the ballet, so we know what we’re talking about. Once one instils what Fred wanted, you then have to keep doing it and doing it, so they don’t look exhausted and at the end they can stand up and not fall over!
Russell-Roberts:Monica, you are known as a very strong dancer; did you feel the same sense of exhaustion?
Monica Mason:Complete exhaustion! I actually never thought that I would get the chance to be in Symphonic Variations. Then Fred decided to have what he called ‘the large cast’; my partner was Christine Beckley. I didn’t have very long to learn it; then I got one run-through and I was on. I remember being absolutely knocked out by the run-through and thinking, ‘How will I feel on stage?’ We always say we are ‘legless’ — well I was, totally legless at the end! I think it must be one of the most challenging ballets in the repertoire today.
Russell-Roberts:It does point out the fact that Fred’s choreography is very demanding, it’s quite deceptive in its lyrical qualities and is exhausting, in terms of concentration, as well as physically
Mason: Plus, you have to make it look so effortless and remain very calm and serene.
Russell-Roberts:Perhaps we should dwell a moment on the contribution that Sophie Fedorovitch’s brilliant design, so full of clarity, has to the production. Pamela, I’ve got my own thoughts from Ashton about how the designs developed, but you and I were talking earlier…
May:Yes, I remember Sophie Fedorovitch talking to us about the backcloth before we actually saw it. She had seen wonderful lines in a book about electricity, and she thought something terribly simple like that would be right for Symphonic.
Russell-Roberts:The idea then developed further because she lived in a cattle barn in Norfolk on the edge of the marsh, and the skyscape overlooking the marsh was absolutely incredible — the horizon and a huge sky. I think the idea of the electricity aligned to this huge skyscape was really the inspiration. The design is still full of modernity today, and it seems extraordinary that it was created back in 1946.
Moving slightly away from Symphonic Variations — Philip, one of the hallmarks of Fred’s choreography was that he arrived in the studio, quite literally, I think it was his expression, ‘drenched in the music’. You might like to tell us what it was like to be part of the creative process?
Philip Gammon:It was always a great honour to work with Sir Fred. I found him such a musical person; not least in the way he did his choreography He never actually wanted to work out counts as such, as so many choreographers like to do. Kenneth MacMillan, for instance, would always want me to work out the dancers’ counts before he even started to create the choreography. Sir Frederick was so immersed in the music that he knew it backwards. His musicality was absolutely wonderful. I want to mention a little anecdote about A Month in the Country. He got me to play the last few bars of the alla polacca many, many times. In the end I got absolutely bored with it and I flung up my arms. Even though I was way out in the corner, Sir Fred never missed a thing, and he saw what I did. He was stuck for some way of ending this particular section, and seeing me do that inspired him to get the dancers to do exactly the same on stage! My name would go on in posterity, for in the score is written, ‘Gammon port de bras’.
Russell-Roberts:It’s true. Fred was famous for not missing anything; nobody could ever put anything on him. I remember talking to Norman Morrice, then director of the Royal Ballet, who would go round to Fred’s house when he wanted something out of him; Fred would have a habit of knowing in advance exactly what it was Norman wanted to get round to, and he would spend the whole evening deflecting! He really didn’t miss anything, and although he was a very modest man, he used to say, ‘I can see under water,’ and I think that’s absolutely true. Interestingly, he was nominated Doctor of Music by quite a few universities. That really is a tribute to his musicality, because he couldn’t read a score at all and he couldn’t play a piano. Yet he was a true Doctor of Music.
Perhaps we should move on to talk about Daphnis and Chloe, which was premiered five years later, in 1951. Fonteyn, Somes, John Field, Violetta Elvin and Alexander Grant were in the cast. Perhaps, first of all, we might talk about the design. Pamela, you probably know something of how Fred came to choose John Craxton as the original designer.
May: Our solo pianist at the time in Symphonic was Jean Gilbert, who had been taught by John Craxton’s father. I think it was through knowing the father that he was interested to know and use the son, whose work he obviously liked.
MacLeary: He did the designs for the revival of Apollo. He’d been chosen because he’d lived in Greece, and was very fond of Greece.
Russell-Roberts: Yes, I think that’s the essential point: that Fred really did want it to have a genuinely Greek feeling. Several of you in the audience may be slightly dismayed that the Craxton designs have been jettisoned. The set had become very old and dilapidated, and there was a worry that the pirate scene might now look outdated. We had discussed with Fred the possibility of a redesign for Daphnis — he had no idea who might do it, but he was very keen to move on. That’s why Anthony Dowell felt justified in looking towards a new design. The designer who we’ve chosen has tried to have a very Greek feeling to the set. Those of you who read Greek might be able to distinguish the names of Frederick Ashton and various others on the hieroglyphics. The pirate scene has been updated considerably.
Now we ought to ask Alexander Grant in the audience: what do you remember of the creative process?
Alexander Grant:You were saying before about Ashton’s choreography being exhausting; that particular ballet is the most exhausting ballet I have ever danced. When I reached a certain age it was actually the only ballet that I asked to be taken out of. I went to Sir Frederick and said, ‘I’m not doing justice to this any more, please take me out.’ And, very kindly, he did. Also something else about the design: he was not at all happy with the red of my costume. He couldn’t find the correct red dye, so he went back to Greece, found the right dye and brought it back!
Russell-Roberts:If we now move on to discuss Sylvia. Donald, perhaps you would like to describe the pas de deux. I imagine it is technically very demanding?
MacLeary:Yes, it’s a lovely pas de deux because it is technically demanding but at the same time there’s a beautiful romantic quality. Some passages are really what I think is the essence of Fred. He had a wonderful romantic feeling for things. He liked pushing you all the time —demand, demand, demand — so it isn’t easy Again, dancers today find it very difficult.
Russell-Roberts: We really can’t discuss Sylvia without making reference to all the versions there were. It started off as a three—act ballet and Fred was never entirely happy with it. Would any of you like to comment?
Mason:Deanne Bergsma and I were the understudies when Fred made it into the one—act for Nadia Nerina, Svetlana Beriosova and Donald. Fred took all the best bits, all the solos and pas de deux, and crammed it all into one act. It turned out to be completely exhausting, and he wasn’t interested that it was so very tiring. Nadia would say to Sir Fred during the Sylvia rehearsals, ‘Aren’t you going to take anything out?’ and he would say, ‘No, I love this bit!’
Russell-Roberts:I’m sure several of you are wondering why Sylvia is not revived. It is a project that may well happen at some time in the future; but, apart from many excellent memories from people, all we have as a faithful record is a video with the dancers looking like little white leaves in a snowstorm. However, it certainly could be possible to reconstruct it, and perhaps one day we might look forward to seeing the whole piece again. There is great virtue in doing historical reconstruction so that you can actually see what it was like, and it is very interesting to see how some pieces have endured. Ashton created over one hundred ballets, and if you look at the pieces that are actually easily revivable there are probably less than twenty. That’s a point of great sadness.
On now to 1956, to Birthday Offering. It was an important piece because it was created to celebrate the company’s twenty-fifth birthday. When I read the names of the seven ballerinas involved you will appreciate it must have been a splendid occasion: Margot Fonteyn, Beryl Grey, Violetta Elvin, Nadia Nerina, Rowena Jackson, Svetlana Beriosova and Elaine Fifield, accompanied by Somes, Grant, Shaw, Philip Chatfield, David Blair, Desmond Doyle and Brian Ashbridge. It was the same year that another very important event occurred for the Royal Ballet.
May: The Sadler’s Wells Ballet was given its Royal Charter on 31 October 1956.
Russell-Roberts:These days, perhaps, the acceptance of a Royal Charter might not seem that important, but it set an important seal on the company’s stature and reflected the international success of the company.
Being set on seven ballerinas, Birthday Offering is a real challenge. Donald, is it fair to say that it was set on the particular strengths of the individual ballerinas?
MacLeary:Oh, absolutely
Russell-Roberts:What is it like to rehearse it for today’s audiences?
MacLeary:You just have to try and remember what Fred used to say; you have an image and a record in your mind. Nobody is ever going to look like Margot Fonteyn because she was unique, but he didn’t mind that when he rehearsed other people in that role. He tried to get more out of whatever that person had. He would emphasise it, and that’s simply what I tried to do, with the thought of him in my head.
Russell-Roberts:Have you found that there are any roles out of the seven variations that are particularly difficult for today?
MacLeary:Monica could tell you about Nadia’s — that was a fiendishly difficult one. None of them was easy because they were all choreographed for that person’s special talent. To follow on in anything is always difficult.
Russell-Roberts:The interest, then, was not only that it was a wonderful set of variations, but at that particular time it really did make a statement about the tremendous strength of the company.
Mason:I probably taught all the variations at some time or another in the Royal Ballet School, and I always think it is a particularly fun thing to do: talking about the ballerinas, trying to inject a feeling for the time it was created, and what it was like to have such a splendid roster of ballerinas. Also, it helps the students to understand about the heritage of the Royal Ballet. Those variations are extremely challenging for students, but they learn a great deal about the qualities of Fred’s work in that way.
Grant:I can tell you something interesting about Birthday Offering. Frederick had just seen Cranko’s Lady and the Fool, in which Beryl Grey was lifted very many times because she had four different suitors. They lifted her all over the place. Freddie said, ‘In the next pas de deux I am going to do there’s not going to be a single lift’ — and Birthday Offering has not a single lift.
Russell-Roberts:Pamela, in 1956 you had just retired from dancing. What did it feel like for you? Did you regret very much that you were not in the opening night?
May:I was in the audience on the opening night and, naturally, at many rehearsals, but oh, how I envied those ballerinas and wished that it had all been a few years earlier!
Russell-Roberts:If we move on now to La Valse in 1959. Fred chose André Levasseur to design the scenery and costumes, as he had for Birthday Offering. It was the first piece that Anthony Dowell selected when he became director of the Royal Ballet, and it shows quite considerably how the company can be seen to have strengthened, in spite of many injuries at the moment. It’s a hugely atmospheric piece, with a marvellous score by Ravel.
Mason:Again, I just want to say of La Valse: it’s an absolute killer. It’s an exhausting ballet for both the corps de ballet and the principals, and again, this must completely disguised. Because it’s a relatively short piece, sometimes Fred would say, ‘We’ll do it all from the beginning once again, and we would look in complete disbelief. Off we’d go again and we would literally be dropping. In the opening of La Valse, when the girls are lifted, the whole point is to lift the girls quickly and to bring them down very slowly I remember the boys completely loathed this.
MacLeary:I actually did it once for the Queen’s Jubilee gala after I had already retired. I was thrilled to be asked to be in the gala, but I didn’t know what had hit me when I got to rehearsal.
Grant:I might just shed a little light on what you are saying about Frederick wanting you to do it full out every time: his first teacher was Léonide Massine, and he was exactly the same.
Russell-Roberts:Christopher Carr, our ballet—master who rehearsed the ballet, approached this revival with tremendous trepidation because he felt it was one of the hardest acts that he has had to pull together. He has worked tremendously hard, and having brought it together, the ballet looks terribly easy to do; but, of course, the reverse is the case.
It might be worth spending some moments on general matters. It would be interesting to reflect on what it is that makes an Ashton dancer.
MacLeary:I don’t think he had a set pattern. Different people inspired him; his genius was getting things out of different people. I think it’s wrong to say ‘an Ashton dancer’.
Russell-Roberts:Though it is a phrase that you hear all the time. Sarah Wildor, a soloist with the company, commented in a press interview about the neatness and sharpness of footwork. Is that something that maybe an Ashton dancer particularly has to have?
MacLeary:He would get it out of you whether you had it in the first place or not!
Russell-Roberts:Would you say that it’s a characteristic or attribute that he looked for particularly?
MacLeary:He loved Pavlova’s feet; he was always talking about Pavlova.
May:He would say, ‘Run like Pavlova!’ Your feet had to move like Pavlova, bourrées had to be like Pavlova.
Russell-Roberts:Another point we should cover is to what extent Fred’s ballets sit comfortably on other companies. Until recently, Symphonic Variations, and now A Month in the Country hadn’t been done by other companies; but increasingly works are being done around the world. It must be, for the recipient company, the equivalent problem to us, for instance, when importing a Balanchine ballet. If we attempt to stage Balanchine works without a Balanchine répétiteur, it seldom works. I feel the same with Ashton works. It will be interesting, as a result of this conference, and as a result of general interest in Ashton’s work, over the next few years what pressures there will be for the works to be taken into other companies, and whether works like A Month in the Country might not suit certain countries.
Mason:I couldn’t have imagined anybody not falling instantly in love with Symphonic, but it didn’t seem to appeal to the Russians at all.
Russell-Roberts:Philip, is there anything further you would like to mention from a musical point of view?
Gammon:We are in for a treat during tonight’s performance, because we have in the pit none other than Bernard Haitink. I played for the piano rehearsals for Daphnis and that’s a terribly difficult piece to play: you’re not only playing so many notes but you’re also turning pages rapidly. I was amazed at the rehearsal that Bernard Haitink even offered to turn pages for me. What other conductor would do that?
Russell-Roberts:Talking to Fred about his ballets at the end of his career, he was saying, ‘You know, I’m really quite bored by many of them, they’re far too long!’ But he really is the master of economy. If he could say something in two words that others might say at great length, he wouldn’t say it in six sentences. You would have thought that at the end of his career he would have looked back and felt that he had made a great achievement, being one of the very great choreographers of the world. However, I think there was a sense of failure. He said to me once, ‘I would very much rather have been the greatest dancer that there had ever been.’
Finally, I will leave you with the thought that Ashton is thought to have created an English style. It’s a very difficult concept to grapple with, but I am sure that there will be much deliberation and Fred would probably be amazed at what all the fuss is about.
Maybe a further question that some of you might have is: why is there no Ashton Foundation? As Ashton’s nephew, it is a difficult question to answer. I think that, much the same as happened with Balanchine, there will come a time when his friends and collaborators to whom he left the ballets will feel that it is the right moment to club together and to form a foundation. I would leave you with the reassurance that matters are in very good hands. What is interesting is to see how we can dig and excavate, and make live today, ballets that are thought to be long extinct. That is a task that I think should be addressed.