Ballet
The Concert
This is quite possibly the funniest ballet ever made, and that is not an exaggeration. Robbins imagines the daydreams of a bunch of audience members at a piano recital, and it goes delightfully off the rails. Subtitled The Perils of Everybody, it is a straight-up comedy that gets huge laughs.
Fast facts
- Composer
- Frédéric Chopin (orchestrated)
- Choreographer
- Jerome Robbins (1956)
- Premiere
- 1956, New York
- Structure
- One act
- Running time
- About 30 minutes
The story
A pianist sits down to play Chopin while a motley group of concertgoers settles in, and we see their inner fantasies spill out onstage. Daydreams tumble over each other: a henpecked husband plots against his wife, dancers get hopelessly out of sync, and butterflies and umbrellas wander through. There is no real plot, just a series of inspired comic sketches poking fun at audiences, dancers, and romance itself.
What The Concert is famous for
- One of ballet's great comedies
- Chopin piano music as a straight man
- The chaotic out-of-sync corps gag
- The Mistake Waltz and umbrella bits
Companies that perform The Concert
The Concert is in the repertoire of companies including New York City Ballet, The Royal Ballet.
Good to know
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it really a comedy?
Completely. The Concert is built to make you laugh, parodying audiences, dancers, and daydreams, and it is famous for landing real belly laughs.
What is the Mistake Waltz?
It is the beloved section where the corps keeps getting the choreography hilariously wrong, bumping and falling out of line on purpose.
What music is it set to?
Chopin piano pieces, which Robbins plays completely straight so the visual comedy stands out against the lovely music.
Who composed The Concert?
The Concert was composed by Frédéric Chopin (orchestrated).
How long is The Concert?
The Concert runs about 30 minutes.