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Desmond Kelly and Marion Tait were our hosts pre-interval, holding large black folders and delivering their interplayed script with theatrical relish between each piece like an awards ceremony. A screen above them displayed images of Sir Fred and Mr B. and some of their ballets.

Balanchine’s Tarantella, a light and lively opener, was followed by Monotones II, created by Ashton in 1965. Dancers from the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago performed this enigmatic pas de trois. It seemed to be lit by moonbeams, the diamond-spangled caps and white leotards glinting as the dancers moved with a poetic beauty to Satie’s Gymnopedies.

Picking up the pace again, a charming corps of eight ladies from BRB supported Molly Smolen and Rachel Peppin in Balanchine’s Concerto Barocco, danced to Johann Sebastian Bach.

Then, against a background of snow-covered branches and Japanese lanterns, students from the Royal Ballet school treated us to one of Ashton’s earlier creations ‘Les Patineurs’( White pdd and Blue pdt ). This is such a pretty piece with the dancers in skating outfits; a chance to show off their ability to pirouette.

Rather a jump then to the starkness of Balanchine’s Agon. In the central pdd, the glacial beauty of the fabulous Zenaida Yanowsky highlighted the precision with which she takes every step. Her partner Federico Bonelli has Balanchine sussed; clean lines and confident support for his ballerina in some very tricky poses.

How else to complete the first half than with the fun of The Clog Dance from La Fille Mal Gardee? The audience was in stitches even before David Bintley had taken a single step! David had a ball as the Widow Simone, the simpering dame showing off her party piece with glee.

Mr Bintley returned as a witty compere at the start of the second half, still exhausted from the clog dancing but now resplendant in black tie! He had an anecdote about Balanchine, who once said that, "All ballets should be called Swan Lake". When asked why, he stated simply, "Then people would come." !!

With her red hair loose about her face and dressed in peach-coloured, diaphanous chiffon robes, Molly Smolen captured the essence of Isadora Duncan in Ashton’s Five Brahms Waltzes. Whether running freely around the stage with a floating scarf or trailing glorious handfuls of rose petals, her portrayal of one of the pioneers of modern dance was exquisite.

David Bintley's appearance with a broom to sweep up the petals that had drifted beyond the curtain brought us down to less ethereal heights. Slaughter On Tenth Avenue was a show-stopper, with the sultry Monica Zamora’s seemingly endless legs high-kicking to the ceiling as she seduces Iain Mackay’s Hoofer. Her legs were mirrored by the high heeled and stocking-clad skyscrapers of the backdrop. This excerpt from the Rogers and Hart musical On Your Toes is a sexy romp. It was very interesting for me to see the original Balanchine choreography, having watched the recent Adam Cooper version several times (OK nine). No, I shall not compare them, they are both terrific!

Thais pdd is another rarely seen gem, often kept only for Gala evenings and similar occasions. The costumes are an oriental delight in shades of peach, burnt orange and amber. The guest dancers from Dance Theatre of Harlem, Melissa Morrisey and Duncan Cooper, danced this love duet perfectly to Massenet’s hauntingly romantic music. The delicate mood was soon disrupted by the appearance of an oily Spanish dago dancing the Tango from Façade. None other than Irek Mukhamedov with his partner Marian Tate in a screaming orange gown and feathered head dress! As he ran his jewelled fingers down her spine her flesh shivered, whether in revulsion or pleasure we could not tell! Pupils from Elmhurst School joined them in the Finale, which received tremendous applause from the many Elmhurst students in the audience.

The Ballroom pas de deux from Cinderella followed, with Federico Bonelli appearing again to partner Miyako Yoshida. As ever her dancing was a sheer pleasure to watch, as she span around him weaving her enchantment and capturing his heart.

The finale belonged to Balanchine, the kitsch Wild West ballet Western Symphony making us all want to get up and yell ‘Yeehar!’. I loved the cowboys, especially the handsome Tiit Helimets in the leading role. The flirty bar room girls in ruffles and frills, led by Asta Bazeviciute, gave them as good as they got. What a lively ending to a glorious evening.