Nureyev & Fonteyn - Nureyev: Legend and Legacy

Watch excerpts from the Nureyev Legend and Legacy Gala celebrating the partnership of Rudolf Nureyev and Dame Margot Fonteyn.



The partnership between Nureyev and Fonteyn was legendary. She gave him respectability, he gave her longevity, and together they gave the world unforgettable performances.





Giselle, Act 2 Pas de deux

Dancers: Francesca Hayward and William Bracewell



Giselle is perhaps one of the most well-known romantic ballets. In his debut as Prince Albrecht, Nureyev proved that he was not just a fiery dancer but a deep and dramatic actor. Nureyev rejected the traditional interpretation that focused on the Prince’s social class and chose instead to portray him as a passionate but thoughtless youth swept up by love.



This dramatic Act 2 pas de deux marked the true beginning of his long partnership with Margot Fonteyn. Their first performance together had 23 curtain calls! Here, Francesca Hayward dances with featherlike grace alongside a grief-stricken and youthful William Bracewell.



Le Corsaire Pas de deux

Dancers: Yasmine Naghdi and Cesar Corrales



This pas de deux from le Corsaire became one of Nureyev’s signature roles. His explosivity and sensual intensity left audiences in awe. In 1962 he and Fonteyn performed the pas de deux for the first time, at Covent Garden, with dazzling virtuosity that proved their place on the London stage. Here Yasmine Nagdhi and Cesar Corrales display a similar thrilling intensity that left gala audiences gasping in awe.





The Nureyev Legend and Legacy Gala took place at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London in September 2022 and was produced in association with the Rudolf Nureyev Foundation.