La Ronde

Ballet in one act with choreography by Tetley, music by Erich Korngold, and design by John Macfarlane. Premiered 6 Nov. 1987 at the O'Keefe Centre, Toronto, by the National Ballet of Canada with Ronda Nychka, Alleyne, Glasco, Harrington, Sabina Alleman, Peter Ottmann, Kim Lightheart, Owen Montague, Kain, and Augustyn. It is based on Schnitzler's play, Reigen (1896-7), which anatomizes the cynicism of fin de siècle morality by depicting a sexual merry-go-round in which various characters (each representing a different rank of Viennese society) seduce each other. Tetley's choreography is itself a series of interlocking pas de deux, graphic in their erotic content, which begin and end with a prostitute. It has been revived for several companies, including the Royal Ballet (1993).