A new short ballet inspired by Mick Jagger has had its world premiere in Russia. Porte Rouge makes use of both Jagger’s dance style and his music, and was choreographed by his partner Melanie Hamrick.
Staged at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg, Porte Rouge saw dancers from New York City Ballet (including Hamrick) recreating Jagger’s distinctive jerky movements. The eight-minute piece featured Rolling Stones tracks Paint it Black, Sympathy for the Devil and She’s a Rainbow, which Jagger himself edited together.
“She chose the songs to be honest,” said Jagger in an interview with Town and County. “My job is to make sure that they all run together smoothly, do the links and the edits so they work together.”
The piece was part of a night of works by young choreographers, with works by Vladimir Shklyarov, Yuri Smekalov and Ilya Zhivoi also featured. Daniel Ulbricht, Erica Pereira, Igor Kolb and Roman Malyshev completed Hamrick’s cast.
Hamrick posted on Instagram: “Thank you to my Incredible cast and team for helping me to create this piece with some very special music.”
Porte Rouge will next appear at the Lincoln Centre in New York City on 18 April as part of the Youth America Grand Prix.