Les Gentilhommes

What it contains

• Classical Ballet · Throughout the ballet, per Martins's own description of its aims — Choreographer's stated vocabulary includes beats (batterie) and double air turns, classical academic ballet technique, deployed across ensemble, trio and solo sections Source: "showing beats and double air turns, but showing how elegantly and beautifully men can move"

What is danced

The ballet is built as a suite: ensemble sections for the full cast of nine men open and close the work, framing three trios, each described as having a distinct mood, with a solo as the final statement. This architecture mirrors the Baroque concerto grosso form of the score itself, alternating full-group (ripieno) writing with smaller featured groupings, translated into stage terms as corps sections versus trios.

Martins is quoted describing his intent directly: he wanted the piece to move past sheer technical display -- "beats and double air turns" -- toward an emphasis on how men can move "elegantly and beautifully." That single sentence is the clearest technical evidence the article gives: the vocabulary is squarely classical (batterie, grands tours en l'air), but the choreographic aim was to subordinate bravura display to musicality and line, an unusual brief for an all-male ballet in this idiom.

Beyond the trio/ensemble/solo scheme and the stated aesthetic aim, the article gives no further detail on floor patterns, partnering, or specific step sequences for each section.

Context

The mid-1980s were the period in which Peter Martins, having succeeded George Balanchine as NYCB's leader, was establishing his own choreographic voice within the company's Balanchine-shaped repertory of plotless, score-driven ballets. An all-male ensemble work set to Baroque orchestral music, built on musical architecture rather than narrative, sits squarely in that neoclassical lineage even as it makes a point of foregrounding restraint over the bravura vocabulary (multiple beats, big turns) that male display pieces of the era often leaned on.

Staging history

The article gives no staging history beyond the 1987 premiere at the New York State Theater; it lists an original cast but the cast list itself was not preserved in the excerpt.

How to watch it

Watch for the shift in register between the full-ensemble passages and the three trios: the article frames each trio as having its own distinct mood, so listen for how the Handel concerto grosso's alternation between full orchestra and smaller solo groups is mapped onto stage groupings. Pay attention to whether the dancing in the trios and closing solo favors clean line and musical phrasing over the beaten steps and air turns Martins says he deliberately avoided foregrounding.

Structure

1. Opening ensemble
   The full company of nine men dances together to open the ballet.
2. First trio
   One of three trios, each with its own distinct mood, danced by three of the nine men.
3. Second trio
   A second trio of contrasting mood.
4. Third trio
   A third trio of contrasting mood.
5. Closing ensemble
   The full ensemble returns after the trios.
6. Concluding solo
   The ballet ends with a solo for one dancer.

Structure read from an encyclopaedia article, not from a libretto or score we hold. Confirm against a programme before treating the numbering as authoritative.

Credits

• composer: George Frideric Handel

Questions