Le Corsaire ballet. Story: Anna-Marie Holmes version of the libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Joseph Mazilier, based on The Corsair oem by Lord Byron. Choreography and staging: Anna-Marie Holmes after Marius Petipa and Konstantin Sergeyev. Music composed by Adolphe Adam, Cesare Pugni, Léo Delibes, Riccardo Drigo, Prince Pyotr van Oldenburg, Ludwig Minkus, Yuly Gerber, Baron Boris Fitinhof-Schnell, and Albert Zabel, all edited by Lars Payne and Gavin Sutherland. Recorded 2014 as performed by the English National Ballet. Stars Alina Cojocaru (Medora), Vadim Muntagirov (Conrad), Erina Takahashi (Gulnare), Dimitri Gruzdyev (Lankendem), Junor Souza (Ali), Yonah Acosta (Birbanto), Michael Coleman (Pasha), Juan Rodriguez (Pasha Assistant), and Nancy Osbaldeston (Lead Villager). Odalisques danced by Shiori Kase, Alison McWhinney, and Laurretta Summerscales. Lead Roses danced by Nancy Osbaldeston, Ksenia Ovsyanick, Adela Ramírez, and Laurretta Summerscales. Lead Flowers danced by Jem Ghoi, Senri Kou, Jenna Lee, and Jia Zhang. Numerous minor roles are danced by artists of the English National Ballet, students of the English National Ballet School, and pupils of the Tring Park School. Gavin Sutherland directs the Orchestra of English National Ballet. Sets and costumes by Bob Ringwood; lighting by Neil Austin; directed for the screen by Chris Blaine with his brother Ben Blain as Producer for Charlie Productions. Stereo recorded with 48kHz/24-bit sound sampling and 5.1 dts recorded with 48kHz/16-bit sound sampling. Released 2014, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound output. Grade: B

Le Corsaire ballet. Libretto (after Lord Byron's poem The Corsair), choreography, and stage direction by Kader Belarbi. Assistant Choreographer was Laure Muret. Performed 2013 at the Théâtre National du Capitole de Toulouse. Original music composed by Adolphe Adam, with additional music by Anton Arensky, David Coleman, Édouard Lalo, Jules Massenet, and and Jean Sibelius. Stars Maria Gutierrez (Slave-Girl), Davit Galstyan (Corsaire), Takafumi Watanabe (Sultan), Juliette Thélin (Sultan's Favorite Concubine), Demian Vargas (Corsair's Companion), Juliana Bastos and Julie Loria (Two Slaves), Henrik Victorin (Slave Trader), Cédric Pons (Guard) and Joël Sitbon (Guard). In addition, Ballet du Capitole Supernumeraries playing the roles of Concubines, Dervishes, Peris, Corsairs, City Folk, etc. include Nuria Arteaga, Virginie Baïet-Dartigalongue, Taisha Barton-Rowledge, Juliana Bastos, Isabelle Brusson, Olivia Hartzell, Lauren Kennedy, Ina Lesnakowski, Julia Loria, Maki Matsuoka, Solène Monnereau, Gwenaëlle Poline, Pascale Saurel, Vanessa Spiteri, Alexander Akulov, Matthew Astley, Petros Chrkhoyan, Kamill-Ariston Chudoba, Adrien Delépine, Pierre Devaux, Jean-Gabriel Evrard, Julian Ims, Shizen Kazama, Jérémy Leydier, Nicolas Rombout, Henrik Victorin, Yannick Valentian, and Stéphane Motard. David Coleman directs the Orchestre National du Capitole. Sets by Sylvie Olivé; costumes by Olivier Bériot; lighting by Marian Hewlett; Camille Ansquer assisted in designing sets; artistic advice by Martine Kahame; music advice by Elena Rassadkina Bonnay.   Directed for screen by Luc Riolon; produced by Fabienne Servan Schreiber and Laurence Miller. Released 2014, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: C+

Jewels ballet. Choreography by George Balanchine. Music by Gabriel Fauré, Igor Stravinsky, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Performed 2005 by Paris Opera Ballet. Stars solo dancers Aurélie Dupont, Marie-Angès Gillot, Angès Lestestu, Clairemarie Osta, Laëtitia Pujol, Eleonora Abbagnato, Isabelle Ciaravola, Emilie Cozette, Jean-Guillaume Bart, Kader Belarbi, Mathieu Ganio, Alessio Carbone, Nolwenn Daniel, and Emmanuel Thibault. Corps de ballet: Nathalie Aubin, Bertrand Belem, Aurelia Bellet, Sébastien Bertraud, Audric Bezard, Bruno Bouché, Marie-Solène Boulet, Alexandra Cardinale, Cyril Chokroun, Lucie Clément, Aurore Cordellier, Julien Cozette, Leïla Dilhac, Noëmie Djiniadhis, Grégory Dominiak, Christophe Duquenne, Fanny Fiat, Mathilde Froustey, Grégory Gaillard, Mallory Gaudion, Muriel Hallé, Laura Hecquet, Mathias Heymann, Josua Hoffalt, Axel Ibot, Laurence Laffon, Vanessa Legassy, Laurène Lévy, Florian Magnenet, Sabrina Mallem, Sandrine Marache, Julie Martel, Juliane Mathis, Julien Meyzindi, Cyril Mitilian, Myriam Ould-Braham, Ludmilla Pagliero, Céline Palacio, Sofia Parcen, Nathalie Quernet, Fabien Révillion, Alexis Saramite, Cécile Sciaux, Simon Valastro, and Karine Villagrassa. Paul Connelly directs the Orchestra of the Opéra national de Paris. Set and costume design by Christian Lacroix; lighting by Jennifer Tipton; directed for TV by Pierre Cavassilas. Released 2008, has 5.0 PCM sound. Grade: B