A welcome opportunity to see The Royal Ballet in a ballet which has established itself as one of the great 20th century narrative works.  The Phoenix Picturehouse will be showing a live transmission of  Kenneth MacMillan‘s Manon from the Royal Opera House on Thursday 16th October.

Manon Lescaut is a beautiful young woman who falls prey to the moral corruption of 18th century Paris.  Set to music by Jules Massenet, MacMillan’s ballet brings Manon’s story vividly to life, evoking the brutality and decadence described in the Abbé Prévost’s infamous novel, as well as the feckless character of Manon herself – torn between love for the poet Des Grieux and her desire for money and attention. The cast of complex characters includes the callous Monsieur GM, the swaggering Jailer, Manon’s roguish brother Lescaut and his coquettish Mistress; but at the ballet’s heart are the duets MacMillan created for Manon and Des Grieux, which are among the most emotionally intense and erotically charged ever choreographed.

Performance: Thursday 16th October 2014, 7.15pm

Phoenix Picturehouse, 57 Walton Street, Oxford OX2 6AE

Duration:  155 minutes

Conductor:  Martin Yates
Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Manon:  Marianela Nuñez
Des Grieux:  Federico Bonelli
Lescaut:  Ricardo Cervera
Monsieur GM:  Christopher Saunders
Lescaut’s Mistress:  Laura Morera
Gaoler:  Gary Avis
Choreography:Kenneth MacMillan
Music:  Jules Massenet
Orchestration:  Martin Yates
Designs:  Nicholas Georgiadis
Lighting design:  John B. Read

Book online by selecting a time or call the Box Office:
0871 902 5736 (10p a minute from a landline)

http://www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema/Phoenix_Picturehouse/film/Roh_Live_Manon/show/oq967m/