- Title: Carnival
- Summary: Carnival is set to Camille Saint-Saens much loved Carnival of the Animals (1886). Originally choreographed for Second Stride in 1982, it was televised in 1983 for Channel 4, directed by Geoff Dunlop. In 2008 Rambert Dance Company remade the work using the full title of Carnival of the Animals.
- Work: 1982
- Choreographer: Siobhan Davies
- Choreographer Comments: Created for Second Stride.
Second Stride was formed by bringing together the companies of Ian Spink, Siobhan Davies and Richard Alston in order to tour the United States of America. It continued as a company on its return. - Dancer: Paul Clayden, Siobhan Davies, Ann Dickie, Juliet Fisher, Philippe Giraudeau, Jeremy Nelson, Catherine Burge, Maedee Dupres, Betsy Gregory, Matthew Hawkins, Michele Smith, Ian Spink
- Music: Camille Saint-Saens
- Sound Score: Carnival of the Animals (1886)
- Designer: David Buckland
- Lighting Design: Peter Mumford
- Costume Designer: Antony McDonald
- Costume Maker: Sasha Keir, Pat McNamara
- Painter: Sue Robson
- Analysis: Carnival was included in Second Stride’s tour to America in 1982.
‘Under the guise of an ''Alice in Wonderland'' type of work, Miss Davies offered ''Carnival,'' whose charm should not conceal the complexities of some of the choreography. Like ''Alice,'' the work can appeal to children and adults on different levels, and it features animals with short tempers who act like humans. Saint-Saens's ''Carnival of Animals'' is the pretext, but each section offers rather abstract animals. The conceit is to have the dancers in white tails at a 1920's house party. They are people acting like animals who act like people. Occasionally, they put on sporting caps, swing invisible golf clubs and in the beautiful ''aquarium'' section, put on powder-blue gloves and become both surf and swimmers. Philippe Giraudeau has a touch of gold as a dancer. In ''The Swan'' he is a Cubist angular fowl, his hands steepled behind his back - the antithesis of Anna Pavlova's famous solo to the same music. In the ''Cuckoo'' section, he is touching as the admirer Miss Fisher rejects. He brings hand to heart at each cuckoo sound; she covers her ears each time’ (Anna Kisselgoff, New York Times, July 19 1982). - Production Date Original: 1982
- Tour: Great Britain
United States of America
13/05/82 - Arts Centre, University of Warwick
(Premiere, Second Stride)
Rambert Dance Company
20/05/08 - 24/05/08 - Sadler's Wells, London (Revival premiere)
