Darcey Bussell's Grand Finale

In her final performance with the company, Darcey Bussell, Britain's most famous ballerina, presents a triple bill celebrating the work of three of the Royal Ballet's greatest creative figures. Ninette de Valois' fantasy, Checkmate, uses the chessboard to act out a battle between Love and Death. Frederick Ashton's Symphonic Variations is a study of pure ballet technique, and Kenneth MacMillan's Song of the Earth uses the music of Mahler's song cycle to evoke the journey of life itself.