Silvia Azzoni

"Rejoice, exult" - John Neumeier turns Buch's Christmas Oratorio into an experience that confronts us all with the most basic questions of trust, hope, faith, doubt and self-sacrifice. "My choreography is not a religious undertaking. We perform to Bach's music, for a few hours unifying individuals of many different cultural and religious backgrounds, For me, the basic human values expressed through the choreography are always the most important thing. Therefore, in my ballet, Mary is known simply as 'The mother' and Joseph as 'Her husband'." "Once again it is impossible not to be impressed by the flawless technique of the ensemble ... When at the end Lloyd Riggins tap-dances his way across the stage like Fred Astaire, the Christmas oratorio is complete" (Sueddeutsche Zeitung).

In this narrative ballet, John Neumeier links the myth of the swan prince Siegfried with the tragic life story of Ludwig II, King of Bavaria, who fell into madness, and contrasts his own creations with the old original choreography by Ivanov and Petipa from 1895. Recorded at the Hamburg State Opera in May 2001.