La Fille mal Garde The Badly Kept Girl

La Fille mal Gardée (The Badly Kept Girl/ The Well-Guarded Daughter) Sir Frederick Ashton 1960

Frederick Ashton, the early years • • • Born in Ecuador, on September 17 th 1904 Spent his early years in Peru It was while he was at school in Lima that he first saw Anna Pavlova, an event which changed his life: he became determined to be a dancer His love for Pavlova remained a major influence on his choreography throughout his whole career His choreographic style is seen as lyrical, witty, consummately musical and often passionate Ashton came to England when he was 15, as a boarder at Dover College, and left school after three unhappy years He started ballet lessons with Leonide Massine When Massine moved away from London he sent Ashton to Marie Rambert It was Rambert's clever eye which saw the potential choroegrapher in the would -be dancer, and entrusted him with his first ballet, A Tragedy of Fashion, 1926 He was already recognised by the 1930 s as the first important choreographer to develop in the post-Diaghilev era in Britain

Frederick Ashton, the later years • • • Ashton left Rambert for a year to dance with Bronislava Nijinska, another of the major influences on his work When he returned he began choreographing regularly for Rambert At the same time he started making work for Ninette de Valois and the Vic-Wells ballet, and in 1935 he left Rambert and joined de Valois permanently His first major work for the Vic-Wells was the 1933 Les Rendezvous, made for Alicia Markova When Markova left the company he focused his attention on her successor, a young girl called Margot Fonteyn Ashton's career was interrupted by war service, but he returned in triumph when the company moved to Covent Garden in 1946, making one of his greatest ballets, Symphonic Variations When de Valois retired in 1963 he became Director of the Royal Ballet, introducing to the repertoire some great works from outside He continued to make ballets for the company until a few years before his death: the last major work was Rhapsody, made for Baryshnikov in 1980 He died at his Suffolk home on August 19 th, 1988

Choreographic Style • • • Frederick Ashton was a choreographer of ballets, in the post-Diaghilev era. Ashton’s early works were popular due to the fusion of movement, music, and décor. For Ashton the figure of discipline in his early choreographies was Constant Lambert. After the war Ashton moved away from Lambert’s significant influence, exemplified in his first post-war choreography, Symphonic Variations. Ashton is often thought of as frivolous and funny, but there is a much darker side to be perceived from his post-war choreographies. For Ashton ballet was an expression of emotions and ideas through dancing. Ashton’s ballets are often perceived as narratives, however this structure often only acted as a superficial vehicle through which he could explore the human condition and dance. Scholars have noted Ashton’s habit of reusing his own material. Ashton’s signature move is the bouree which he uses in various ways.

La Fille mal Gardée • “Here’s something to put a smile on your face. Frederick Ashton’s eternally delightful La Fille mal gardée, a rustic comedy of abundant English charm. . . So much of what we love about Ashton is present here. The sparkling humour, the wealth of character, the bright happy dancing (spiced with plenty of technical brilliance), the tenderness of young love. Oh, and a rooster, a quartet of dancing chickens and the sweetest farm girls ever to grace the ballet stage. ” The Times Online Reviews, 2005

La Fille mal Gardée – basic info • • A ballet A narrative Includes mime A love story A rework of an original A ‘Great English classic’ Divided into two acts • The 1828 Hérold score is adapted and arranged by John Lanchbery • A lot of ribbon is involved!!!

La Fille mal Gardée - History • When Frederick Ashton's La Fille mal Gardée was new, in 1960, Marie Rambert described it as 'the first great English classic'. • In its original form, with choreography by Dauberval and music by an anonymous hand it had its première in Bordeaux in 1789 • It has been revived in a dozen different forms since then. - Most importantly in Paris in 1828, with a new score by Herold - St Petersburg in 1885, with music by Hertel and choreography by Petipa and (mostly) Ivanov - its touching mime scene is preserved in Ashton's ballet. - Pavlova had a version in her repertory, but by 1960 Fille was seen as a piece of faded history • Ashton's decision to recreate it was greeted with surprise and some scepticism.

La Fille mal Gardée - Roles • Fille was one of the first ballets about 'real' people, rather than gods or kings and queens. • Its hero and heroine are an ordinary young couple, and its plot is a very simple variation on 'boy meets girl - problems arise and are overcome - boy gets girl'. • Ashton's version is saved from over-sweetness by the character of Alain, the heroine's childish, rather reluctant, but extremely rich suitor, whose rejection can seem almost tragic in the right hands. • Lise's mother, Widow Simone, is seen as the comdeic character

An Outline of the Story – Act I 1. Dawn in the French countryside is greeted by hens and roosters 3. Lise is secretly in love with Colas a neighbouring farmer 2. 4. She ties a ribbon in a lovers knot and leaves it for him The prosperous farm belongs to Simone and her daughter Lise 5. He finds it and then he finds her

6. 7. Simone however wants Lise to marry Alain, the son of Thomas – a wealthy and pompous farmer 8. Meanwhile the farmers return from the fields and start a joyful dance Alain isn’t exactly a stud!! 9. The girls join in and Lise forgets her troubles 10. Colas detects the marriage plan and struts his stuff to impress Lise

11. 12. Lise responds to him and the dancing reveals their love 13. But Alain is clumsy and can’t keep his attentions focused Alain tries to compete with Colas for Lise’s heart 15. 14. Lise wants to remind her mother of her own youth and encourage her to have fun and produces a pair of wooden clogs The Act ends in a May Pole dance – even though its in Autumn. It ends with a thunder storm

An Outline of the Story – Act II 16. 17. The scene begins with Simone trying to settle her daughter with domestic housework, to keep her out of mischief 19. 18. Thomas and Alain arrive with a clerk to complete the marriage contract The contract is signed and Alain is given the key to Lise’s room The harvesters arrive to ask for their pay with a stick dance 20. But Lise is not alone!!!

21. 22. After some pleading and some more dancing Simone relents and gives her consent to the marriage of Lise and Colas And, as expected, they live happily ever after!!

Ashton Chronology Titles of works by Ashton are given in bold; titles of works in which he choreographed sections or individual numbers (ballets by other choreographers, films, revues, etc) are enclosed in square brackets. Abbreviations: M Music by S Scenery by C Costumes by D Danced by FP First performance NP New production R Reproduced by ST Staging (indicates that the ballet was produced in substantially its original form) • 1926 [Riverside Nights] A Tragedy of Fashion; or, The Scarlet Scissors • 1927 [The Fairy Queen] Pas de deux Suite de danses (Galanteries) Argentine Dance • 1928 Nymphs and Shepherds Leda • 1929 [Jew Süss] • 1930 Capriol Suite Saudade do Brésil Mazurka des Hussars [Marriage à la Mode] Pomona 'Follow Your Saint': The Passionate Pavane Excerpts from Comus, a Masque by John Milton Dances on a Scotch Theme A Florentine Picture

• • • 1931 La Péri The Dance of the Hours [Cabaret français] [Excerpts from Faust] Façade Mercury [Dance Pretty Lady] Regatta The Lady of Shalott A Day in a Southern Port The Lord of Burleigh 1932 Pompette [The Cat and the Fiddle] [Magic Nights] High Yellow Foyer de danse [A Kiss in Spring] [Ballyhool] 1933 Rondo Les Masques; ou, Changement de dames [How D'You Do? ] Pavane pour un infante défunte [After Dark [Gay Hussar] [Nursery Murmurs] Les Rendezvous • 1934 Four Saints in Three Acts Mephisto Valse Pas de deux classique [Love Is The Best Doctor] [Jill Darling!] [Escape Me Never] • 1935 Valentine's Eve In a Venetian Theatre [The Flying Trapeze] Perpetuum mobile [Round About Regent Street] Le Baiser de la fée [Follow the Sun] • 1936 Siesta Apparitions [The Town Talks] [Die Fledermaus] Nocturne [Home and Beauty]

• • 1937 Perpetuum mobile Harlequin in the Street Les Patineurs First Arabesque Berceuse A Wedding Bouquet 1938 Horoscope The Judgment of Paris [Running Riot] [Tannhäuser] Harlequin in the Street 1939 Pas de deux Cupid and Psyche Devil's Holiday (Le Diable s'amuse) 1940 Dante Sonata The Wise Virgins 1941 The Wanderer 1943 The Quest 1945 [A Midsummer Night's Dream] • 1946 [The Sleeping Beauty] Symphonic Variations Les Sirènes The Fairy Queen • 1947 Manon Albert Herring Valses nobles et sentimentales • 1948 Scènes de ballet [La Traviata] Don Juan Cinderella • 1949 Le Rêve de Léonor • 1950 Illuminations • 1951 Daphnis and Chloë [The Tales of Hoffmann] Tiresias Casse Noisette

• • 1952 [The Story of Three Loves] Picnic at Tintagel Vision of Marguerite Sylvia [Le Lac des cygnes] 1953 Orpheus Homage to the Queen 1954 Entrada de Madame Butterfly (Entry of Madame Butterfly) Trepak [A Midsummer Night's Dream] 1955 Rinaldo and Armida Variations on a Theme by Purcell Madame Chrysanthème Romeo og Julie (Romeo and Juliet) 1956 La Péri Birthday Offering The Beloved 1957 Solo Seal Variations 1958 La Valse [Orfeo ed Euridice] Ondine 1959 Scène d'amour from Raymonda • 1960 La Fille mal gardée [Giselle] • 1961 Les deux pigeons Poème tragique Persephone • 1962 Pas de deux, Variations, and Coda from Raymonda • 1963 Marguerite and Armand • 1964 The Dream • 1965 Monotones • 1966 Monotones I and II • 1967 Sinfonietta • 1968 Jazz Calendar Enigma Variations (My Friends Pictured Within)

• • 1970 Lament of the Waves Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus (The Creatures of Prometheus) Tales of Beatrix Potter 1971 Meditation from Thaïs* [c. 1830] 1972 Siesta The Walk to the Paradise Garden 1973 [Death in Venice] [World of Harlequin] [Tonight at 8: 30] 1974 Fashion Show 1975 Scène dansante Brahms Waltz [Floresta Amazónica] 1976 A Month in the Country Five Brahms Waltzes in the manner of Isadora Duncan Etude [The Turning Point] • 1977 Hamlet Prelude Tweedledum and Tweedledee [Die Fledermaus] • 1978 Orpheus and Eurydice: Dance in the Elysian Fields • 1979 Salut d'amour [Stories from a Flying Trunk] • 1980 Rhapsody Soupirs • 1981 Le Rossignol • 1983 Varii capricci • 1984 Acte de présence • 1985 Die verwandelte Katze • 1986 Nursery Suite

Useful Web Links • http: //www. ballet. co. uk/contexts/la_fille_mal_gardee. ht m • http: //entertainment. timesonline. co. uk/article/0, , 149361452321, 00. html • http: //www. danceviewtimes. com/2005/Winter/04/fille. ht m • http: //rutt. smugmug. com/gallery/1261785 • http: //www. ballet. co. uk/ashton • http: //www. rambert. org. uk/about/people/detail_a. asp? a rt=1217 • http: //www. ashtonarchive. com/ • Vaughan, David. "Frederick Ashton and His Ballets" Alfred E. Knopf, 1976; 2 nd ed. , London: Dance Books, 1999