Catherine Cariou, Heritage Director at Van Cleef & Arpels, shows Darcey Bussell and Patricia Neary the jewels that inspired George Balanchine. Find out more at: [ Ссылка ]

Balanchine used the motif of jewels to evoke emotions rather than to tell a story in this piece. The three acts draw on different jewels, and there is a strong connection between each gem stone and the atmosphere of each act. Emeralds are green, and spring-like, as is the choreography that accompanies music from Gabriel Fauré's Pelléas et Mélisande (1898) and Shylock (1889) in Act I. Rubies are associated with passion, power, and vitality, and the ballet in Act II mimics this with jazzy music (Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra (1929)) by Igor Stravinsky, and more modern costumes that remind us of the Hollywood era. Finally in Act III, Balanchine uses diamonds to refer to Russia before the revolution, which for him symbolised purity, and love, of course.

In many ways, the corps de ballet also reflects the jewels themselves, with strong patterns and central dancers that play the role of the centre-pieces.

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