Manon

Manon, Kenneth MacMillan's landmark ballet for the Royal Ballet, unfolds a story of passionate love and ruinous ambition drawn from Abbé Prévost's immortal novel. Manon Lescaut, beautiful and impossible to resist, is torn between the devoted student Des Grieux — who offers her everything except the riches she craves — and the world of wealth and corruption that ultimately destroys them both. Set to the sumptuous music of Jules Massenet, the ballet moves from the gaiety of 18th-century Paris to a harrowing final act that leaves audiences breathless with grief.

First performed by the Royal Ballet in 1974, Manon is among the most celebrated achievements of MacMillan's choreographic genius — a choreographer who transformed the possibilities of narrative ballet during his years as Artistic Director of the company. The pas de deux he created for Manon and Des Grieux are widely regarded as some of the most extraordinary in the repertoire, demanding both supreme technical ability and the deepest dramatic commitment. An unmissable evening of pure ballet storytelling at its finest.