Prokofiev: Romeo And Juliet

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ACT ONE

Scene One

1. No. 1 Introduction
2. No. 2 Romeo
3. No. 3 The street awakens
4. No. 4 Morning Dance
5. No. 5 The Quarrel
6. No. 6 The Fight
7. No. 7 The Prince gives his order
8. No. 8 Interlude

Scene Two

1. No. 9 Preparing for the Ball (Juliet and the Nurse)
2. No. 10 Juliet as a young girl
3. No. 11 Arrival of the guests (Minuet)
4. No. 12 Masks
5. No. 13 Dance of the Knights
6. No. 14 Juliet’s Variation
7. No. 15 Mercutio
8. No. 16 Madrigal
9. No. 17 Tybalt recognises Romeo
10. No. 18 Departure of the guests (Gavotte)

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1. No. 19 Balcony Scene
2. No. 20 Romeo’s Variation
3. No. 21 Love Dance

ACT TWO

Scene One

1. No. 22 Folk Dance
2. No. 23 Romeo and Mercutio
3. No. 24 Dance of the five couples
4. No. 25 Dance with the mandolins
5. No. 26 The Nurse
6. No. 27 The Nurse gives Romeo the note from Juliet

Scene Two

1. No. 28 Romeo with Friar Laurence
2. No. 29 Juliet with Friar Laurence

Scene Three

1. No. 30 The people continue to make merry
2. No. 31 Folk Dance
3. No. 32 Tybalt meets Mercutio
4. No. 33 Tybalt and Mercutio fight
5. No. 34 Mercutio dies
6. No. 35 Romeo decides to avenge Mercutio’s death
7. No. 36 Finale

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ACT THREE

Scene One

1. No. 37 Introduction
2. No. 38 Romeo and Juliet (Juliet’s bedroom)
3. No. 39 The last farewell
4. No. 40 The Nurse
5. No. 41 Juliet refuses to marry Paris
6. No. 42 Juliet alone
7. No. 43 Interlude

Scene Two

1. No. 44 At Friar Laurence’s
2. No. 45 Interlude

Scene Three

1. No. 46 Juliet’s bedroom
2. No. 47 Juliet alone
3. No. 48 Morning Serenade
4. No. 49 Dance of the girls with the lilies
5. No. 50 At Juliet’s bedside

EPILOGUE

1. No. 51 Juliet’s funeral
2. No. 52 Death of Juliet

The violent feud between the Montagues and Capulets is evoked by the swaggering Dance of the Knights, but Prokofiev’s score brims with bittersweet lyricism in its depiction of the young lovers, proving him Russian ballet’s heir to Tchaikovsky. First performed in 1938, Romeo and Juliet has become the supreme full-length ballet of the 20th century. Its many facets are captured in this classic recording by the London Symphony Orchestra under André Previn.