Ballet
The Two Pigeons
This is Ashton at his most tender, a love story told partly through two real live pigeons onstage. A restless young artist strays toward a gypsy camp before learning where his heart actually belongs. Bring tissues, because the ending reunion is one of the most quietly moving things in ballet.
Fast facts
- Composer
- André Messager
- Choreographer
- Frederick Ashton (1961); an earlier version by Louis Mérante dates from 1886
- Premiere
- 1961, London (Ashton version)
- Structure
- Two acts
- Running time
- About 55 minutes
The story
A young painter grows bored of his sweetheart and is lured away by an alluring gypsy girl and her exotic camp. After being humiliated and rejected out in that world, he returns home chastened to his patient young love, and the two reconcile. The pigeons mirror the human couple, with the famous closing image of the birds settling together as the lovers reunite.
What The Two Pigeons is famous for
- Ashton's tender two-act storytelling
- Live pigeons onstage mirroring the lovers
- Messager's warm, melodic score
- The deeply moving final reconciliation
Companies that perform The Two Pigeons
The Two Pigeons is in the repertoire of companies including The Royal Ballet.
Good to know
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there really live pigeons?
Yes, two trained pigeons appear onstage and their behavior echoes the young couple, including the famous final moment when they nestle together.
Is it a full-length ballet?
It is a compact two-act work of roughly an hour, so it is shorter than the big evening-length classics but still tells a complete story.
Who wrote the music?
André Messager composed the score, originally for the 1886 version, and Ashton used an arrangement of it for his beloved 1961 staging.
Who composed The Two Pigeons?
The Two Pigeons was composed by André Messager.
How long is The Two Pigeons?
The Two Pigeons runs about 55 minutes.