# Ballet at the Edinburgh International Festival: history and repertoire, 1957–1966

Ballet continued to be an important part of the Edinburgh International Festival during the second decade of the festival. As at the beginning, most performances took place at the Empire Theatre, later to be refurbished to become the Edinburgh Festival Theatre.
In addition to London's The Royal Ballet who came in 1960, there were a total of 16 visiting companies from abroad who came to the city, offering varied programmes for festival goers.

## List

| 1957 | Royal Swedish Ballet | Giselle, The Prodigal Son, Gaîté Parisienne, Cupid Out of His Humour, Sisyphus, Miss Julie | Empire Theatre | Birgit Akesson, Ivo Cramer, Birgit Cullberg, Albert Kozlovsky, Maria Skeaping | |
| 1957 | Les Ballets Africains de Keita Fodéba | | Empire Theatre | | Keita Fodéba |
| 1957 | Grand Ballet du Marquis de Cuevas (Le Grand Ballet de Monte Carlo) | Les Sylphides, La femme muette, La cygne noir, Petrouchka, Concerto Barocco, Song of Undying Sorrow, Spectre de la rose, La Tertulia | Empire Theatre | | |
| 1958 | Ballets Premières (The Edinburgh Festival Society in association with Michael Frostick) | Concerto for Dancers, Circle of Love, The Night and Silence, Les facheuses recontres, Secrets, Octet, Dreams, Midsummer's Vigil, The Great Peacock, La belle dame sans merci, The Seventh Sacrament, Changement de pieds | Empire Theatre | | |
| 1959 | Les Ballets Babilée | Suite en blanc, Variation, Orphée, Balances a trois, Balletino, Le jeune homme et la mort, La création, Fugue, La boucle, Adagio, Divertimento, Sable, L'emprise | Empire Theatre | | Jean Babilée, Claire Sombert, Gérard Ohn, Iovanka Biegovitch, Adolpho Andrade |
| 1959 | National Ballet of Finland | L'épreuve d'amour, Scaramouche, Don Quichotte, Circle of Roses, Valse Triste, Dance of the Spider, Three Harlequins, Black Swan: Pas de Deux, Giselle | Empire Theatre | | |
| 1959 | Jerome Robbins' Ballets: USA | N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz, Afternoon of a Faun, Moves (A Ballet in Silence), The Concert | Empire Theatre | Jerome Robbins | |
| 1960 | The Royal Ballet | Danses Concertantes, Baiser de la fée, Petrushka, Ballabile, La Péri, The Prince of the Pagodas (Act 3) | Empire Theatre | Frederick Ashton, John Cranko, Kenneth MacMillan | Margot Fonteyn, Nadia Nerina, Svetlana Beriosova |
| 1960 | Susana y José, Madrid | The Ballad of Carmen and Don José, Spanish Folk Dances | Empire Theatre | | |
| 1960 | Little Ballet Troupe, Bombay | Panchatantra, Ramayana | Empire Theatre | | |
| 1960 | Ballet Européen of Nervi | Schéhérazade, Choreartium, Le Beau Danube, Commedia Umana | Empire Theatre | Léonide Massine | |
| 1961 | 'Triple Bill' with the Western Theatre Ballet | Salade, Renard, The Seven Deadly Sins | Empire Theatre | Kenneth Macmillan, Alfredo Rodrigues, Peter Darrell, | |
| 1962 | Belgrade Opera Ballet | The Infanta's Birthday, The Miraculous Mandarin, Koštana | Kings Theatre | Dimitrije Parlić | |
| 1962 | Ballet du XXe Siècle, Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie | The Four Sons of Aymon | Murrayfield Ice Rink | Jeanine Charrat, Maurice Béjart | |
| 1963 | Budapest Opera and Ballet | The Wooden Prince and The Miraculous Mandarin together with the opera Prince Bluebeard's Castle, Divertissement from The Beggar Student, The Bride's Kerchief, Gayaneh (Act 3) | Empire Theatre | Gyula Harangozó | |
| 1963 | Martha Graham and Dance Company | Clytemnestra, Acrobats of God, Diversion of Angels, Embattled Garden, Legend of Judith, Night Journey, Phaedra, Secular Games, Seraphic Dialogue | Empire Theatre | Martha Graham | |
| 1963 | Stuttgart State Theatre Ballet | The Catalyst, Suite, Daphnis and Chloé, L'estro armonico, Variations, Musical Chairs | Empire Theatre | John Cranko | |
| 1964 | Les Ballets Africains, The National Company of Guinea | Bagatai, The Forest, Toutoudiarra, Midnight, Ferekoreka, Soundiata, Doudoumba, Tirankee | Royal Lyceum Theatre | Amadou Sissoko | |
| 1965 | No ballet performances | | | | |
| 1966 | Paul Taylor Dance Company | Junction, Three Epitaphs, Duet, Orbs, Aureole, From Sea to Shing Sea, Scudorama | Church Hill Theatre | Paul Taylor | Paul Taylor, Dan Wagoner, Bettie de Jong |