Man of the Hour

One hundred strong and packing 25 tons of scenery, Britain's Royal Ballet moved into Manhattan's Metropolitan Opera House last week to begin its long-awaited three-month tour of the U.S. For the occasion a new 56-ft. by 46-ft. stage of pliant plywood was constructed over the Met's pitted and creaking timbers. On opening night virtually every square foot of the new stage was covered with dancers as the company unveiled Choreographer Kenneth MacMillan's lavish new version of Romeo and Juliet. For many in the celebrity-studded audience, headed by Vice President Hubert Humphrey and U.N. Ambassador Adlai Stevenson, the sole attraction was Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn in the lead roles. If they came hoping to see the classic couple in a round of flashy virtuosity, they left disappointed.

Dart & Dash. Choreographer MacMillan, striving to project the psychological motivation of the star-crossed lovers, leans more on drama than dance. Beyond a lovely pas de deux in the first act, Nureyev and Fonteyn had little chance to display their glittering technique, so involved were they in acting out the complexities of the plot. Nureyev, despite a wig that looked like a wet dishrag, was a compelling and thoroughly convincing hero. Free of exaggeration, he masterfully portrayed Romeo as a roustabout turned rapt lover. The evening, however, belonged to Fonteyn. Though 45, she was every inch the teenage Juliet, brimming with the dart and dash of adolescence. She began by cavorting kittenishly with a rag doll, then movingly matured into a woman in the throes of first love. Backed by sumptuous sets and costumes and an excellent supporting cast, most notably David Blair as Mercutio, Nureyev and Fonteyn were awarded 35 minutes of curtain calls.

Nureyev will be afforded better opportunities to display his virtuosity in La Bayadere and Swan Lake, though to bolster box-office sales the Royal Ballet refuses to announce which nights he will perform. The crush for tickets has been so great that every performance was virtually sold out before the company arrived. Scalpers are having a field day, and box-office lines along the tour route stretch from Baltimore to Seattle.

Panting Hostesses. In Manhattan, Nureyev was the man of the hour, and he relished every minute of it. At a post-performance party, he exuberantly danced the watusi and the frug with Fonteyn, soundly bussed one of the pretty girls from the corps de ballet. Hostesses panted for his presence. Because of rehearsal commitments, he had to turn down a dinner invitation from Jackie Kennedy (see MODERN LIVING).

The press trailed him wherever he went, and his favorite restaurant--the Russian Tea Room--was packed as never before with fans hoping to catch a glimpse of him in his turtleneck sweater and low-cut boots. But amid all the adulation, Nureyev remained coolly realistic. In his dressing room last week, he commented: "Next year it will be somebody else. Tonight it is me--but next year?"

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