1982 – Premiere of Michael Corder’s L’Invitation au Voyage by The Royal Ballet

Inspired by a recording of Henri Duparc’s music sung by Janet Baker, Michael Corder’s L’Invitation au Voyage could be said to follow the journey through the singer’s emotional life. First performed by The Royal Ballet in 1982, Corder used the artistry of two senior principals, Antoinette Sibley and Stephen Jefferies, set against the burgeoning talents of exciting younger company dancers, including Bryony Brind, Alessandra Ferri and Ashley Page, to illustrate with ardour the tone of the five orchestral songs Duparc set to poems by Baudelaire, Leconte de Lisle, Gautier and De Bonnières. The cast also included the mezzo-soprano Diana Montague, who moved amongst the dancers. The ballet was designed by Yolanda Sonnabend.