Don Quixote – an audience favorite of prestigious companies worldwide – is a dazzling display of high spirits, virtuosity and Spanish temperament. The flamboyant leaps, dizzying pirouettes and crisp pointe work that are standard features of the production give the performers every opportunity to show off their technical prowess. But at the same time, the comic story based on Cervantes’ masterpiece makes strong demands on the dancers’ acting abilities.

Leading choreographer Alexei Ratmansky has drawn inspiration for his production from the libretto of the first version of Don Quichot by Marius Petipa, created in 1869, and has also added his own new elements and choreography to the ballet. The modern designs for the ballet, by the renowned French designer Jérôme Kaplan, refer to the times of Cervantes.

Synopsis and related credits courtesy of Stage Access. Film image courtesy of Angela Sterling/Dutch National Ballet courtesy of Stage Access.