Polyphonia

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Ballet by Christopher Wheeldon

title: "Polyphonia" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2001-ballets", "ballets-by-christopher-wheeldon", "ballets-designed-by-holly-hynes", "new-york-city-ballet-repertory"] description: "Ballet by Christopher Wheeldon" topic_path: "general/2001-ballets" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphonia" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Ballet by Christopher Wheeldon ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox ballet"]

FieldValue
namePolyphonia
italic titleyes
choreographerChristopher Wheeldon
composerGyörgy Ligeti
premiere
placeNew York State Theater
ballet_companyNew York City Ballet
designerHolly Hynes
url
::

| name = Polyphonia | italic title = yes | image = | image_size = | alt = | caption = | choreographer = Christopher Wheeldon | composer = György Ligeti | premiere = | place = New York State Theater | ballet_company = New York City Ballet | designer = Holly Hynes | created_for = | genre = | type = | url = Polyphonia is a one-act ballet choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon to music by György Ligeti, costumes designed by Holly Hynes, and was created for the New York City Ballet. It premiered on January 4, 2001 at the New York State Theater. It is regarded as Wheeldon's breakthrough, and won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production in 2003.

Production

Performed by the New York City Ballet, Polyphonia premiered on January 4, 2001 at the New York State Theater. It was the first premiere of the company's winter season.

Polyphonia is the first ballet Wheeldon created after he became artist-in-residence with the New York City Ballet and retired from dancing. It is plotless. Wheeldon described it as "romantic with comic twists", The title is a reference to micropolyphony, a kind of polyphonic musical texture developed by György Ligeti, whose music is used in this ballet.

The cast includes four men and four women, including Wendy Whelan, who went on to create 12 more roles for Wheeldon, and became his most frequent collaborator until she retired from NYCB in 2014. She later credited working with Wheeldon on Polyphonia for helping her "began to find herself as a dancer", and Wheeldon said Whelan "launched me as a choreographer".

Other companies and revivals

| float = right | video1 = PNB's Polyphonia excerpts, YouTube video In 2002, Polyphonia premiered in London, danced by Benjamin Millepied's group Danses Concertantes which consisted of NYCB dancers, at Sadler's Wells Theatre. In the 2003 Laurence Olivier Awards, the production won Best New Dance Production, and Wheeldon was also nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Dance for choreographing Polyphonia and Tryst. The Royal Ballet, where Wheeldon had also danced, and San Francisco Ballet both debuted Polyphonia in 2003. Wheeldon's own troupe, the Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company, had also danced Polyphonia, with a cast consisted of NYCB dancers, except 15-year-old Beatriz Stix-Brunell, later a Royal Ballet first soloist. In 2015, Polyphonia became Wheeldon's first work performed by the Paris Opera Ballet, as part of a mixed bill honoring the 90th birthday of Pierre Boulez, a conductor and composer who knew Ligeti. Other companies that had danced it include Boston Ballet, The Washington Ballet and Miami City Ballet.

Music

Polyphonia is set to György Ligeti's music, including:

Casts

Videography

In 2020, in response to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on the performing arts, the New York City Ballet will extracts from a performance filmed earlier that year online, including a pas de deux between Lauren Lovette and Andrew Veyette, and another section with Lovette, Veyette, Megan Fairchild, Alston Macgill, Sara Mearns, Jovani Furlan, Roman Mejia and Silas Farley. Apart from Mearns, all the dancers were making their debut when the performance was filmed.

References

References

  1. (November 20, 2003). "Polyphonia/The Four Temperaments/Sinfonietta, Royal Opera House, London". The Independent.
  2. (19 August 2010). "The Oxford Dictionary of Dance". OUP Oxford.
  3. Anderson, Zoë. (2015). "The Ballet Lover's Companion". Yale University Press.
  4. Scherr, Apollinaire. (January 27, 2011). "Polyphonia, Lincoln Center, New York". Financial Times.
  5. Dunning, Jennifer. (October 1, 2005). "A Choreographer and a Composer, Both Confounding Expectations". The New York Times.
  6. Kisselgoff, Anna. (January 16, 2001). "Dance Review; The Breath of Balanchine Wafts Over a New Work". The New York Times.
  7. Sulcas, Roslyn. (October 3, 2014). "Muse Steps Away". The New York Times.
  8. (October 1, 2002). "Danses Concertantes, Sadler's Wells, London". The Independent.
  9. "Olivier Winners 2003".
  10. Roca, Octavio. (February 15, 2003). "S.F. Ballet's peak performance / Dancers do justice to masterpieces by Wheeldon, Balanchine". San Francisco Chronicles.
  11. Sulcas, Roslyn. (October 8, 2008). "In Company's Second Season: Chaos, Order and 'What Happens Next?'".
  12. Jennings, Luke. (December 6, 2015). "Wheeldon/ McGregor/ Bausch review – a happy birthday bash for Boulez". The Guardian.
  13. Helms, Alan. (February 14, 2012). "Boston Ballet – Simply Sublime triple bill – Boston".
  14. Khadarina, Oksana. (November 2, 2014). "Washington Ballet – Petite Mort, 5 Tangos, Polyphonia – Washington".
  15. Harss, Marina. (February 13, 2017). "Miami City Ballet – The Fairy's Kiss, Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Polyphonia – Miami".
  16. "Polyphonia".
  17. "Polyphonia - 15 November 2003 Matinee 2.00pm".
  18. "Wheeldon / McGregor / Bausch".
  19. (October 14, 2020). "Digital Fall Season: October 19 – 24".

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2001-balletsballets-by-christopher-wheeldonballets-designed-by-holly-hynesnew-york-city-ballet-repertory