Part one of our Frederick Ashton double-bill is THE DREAM, an airy, romantic work created to celebrate the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s birth, and a homage to his play A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Set in an enchanted wood, Ashton’s ballet captures the play's themes of love and magic, exploring a poetic space of imagination away from the ‘everyday world.’ Set to Mendelssohn’s tender score, The Dream features vivid characters and a storyline transporting audiences to a realm where the human meets the supernatural. Created for, and made famous by, the legendary partnership of Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev in 1963, MARGUERITE AND ARMAND brings the passion of a tragic affair between the doomed courtesan Marguerite and her lover Armand, framed through a series of flashbacks. Frederick Ashton created these roles from the passion that Fonteyn and Nureyev embodied when dancing together. In an Australian premiere, this work will equally serve as a vehicle for the artists of this company. Franz Liszt’s music pulses through each scene, including his famous Piano Sonata in B minor, enhancing the emotional intensity of this unforgettable ballet.