La Nuit sur le Mont chauve [Night on Bald Mountain] (1924) Bronislava Nijinska

sokolova 1914

the ballet premiered in april, 1924, in monte carlo, principal dancers lydia sokolova , michel fedorov. nijinska s choreography set music of modest mussorgsky. designs ballet experimented costumes reconstructed body, transforming natural shape. night on bald mountain, nijinska s sketches show elongated, arc-like forms. costumes designed alexandra exter played shape , played gender .

exter depersonalized dancers, clothing them in identical gray costumes. yet architectural poses of nijinska s choreography gave costumes distinctive shape . nijinska emphasized ensemble rather individual dancer, i.e., inventive use of corps de ballet central figure rather soloist norm. total effect allowed movement of dancers blend... became sculpted entity capable of expressing whole ballet action.

for 1867 symphonic poem la nuit sur le mont chauve mussorgsky inspired witches sabbath told nikolai gogol in st. john s eve story. composer, however, repeatedly revised , incorporated music of symphonic poem act iii of unfinished opera, sorochintsy yarmarka [the fair @ sorochintsy]. labored on years prior death in 1881. mussorgsky himself wrote opera s libretto, based on gogol story of same name. ballet scenes contained night on bald mountain . music later orchestrated rimsky-korsakov.