Diaghilev and Prokofiev: Return to Emotion

  • Details
  • Text
  • Audio
  • Downloads
  • Extra Reading

Diaghilev would often look at past art and then do the opposite. He playfully abandoned plot, elaborate costumes, emotional expression, and even meaning, but reinstating them whenever he felt like it – this was his undogmatic approach to modernism. 

In this final lecture, we will focus on one of the best-preserved Diaghilev productions, The Prodigal Son, a strikingly beautiful ballet by Prokofiev/Balanchine/Rouault. It could have been a new beginning, but it became Diaghilev’s final word when he died in the summer of 1929.

Click here for further information on all Gresham lectures during the COVID-19 pandemic

Download Text

This event was on Tue, 12 May 2020

Marina Frolova-Walker Emeritus Professor of Music at Gresham College.

Professor Marina Frolova-Walker

Professor of Music

Gresham Emerita Professor of Music

Find out more

Support Gresham

Gresham College has offered an outstanding education to the public free of charge for over 400 years. Today, Gresham plays an important role in fostering a love of learning and a greater understanding of ourselves and the world around us. Your donation will help to widen our reach and to broaden our audience, allowing more people to benefit from a high-quality education from some of the brightest minds.