Matthew Bourne The Red Shoes
- 120 minutes
- Sadlers Wells
- 5/5 based on 4 reviews
Matthew Bourne The Red Shoes photos
- Booking details
- Booking from: Tuesday, 2 December 2025 Booking until: Sunday, 18 January 2026
- Running time: 120 minutes
- Age restrictions
- Important information - Please read
Matthew Bourne The Red Shoes description
Matthew Bourne's The Red Shoes is back in the capital, a delicious award-winning festive treat for everyone who loves ballet. Passionate, beautiful and tragic, this story comes with a dark side that'll keep you on the edge of your seat.
An instant classic
It took this ballet no time at all to become a classic. Back in London for the first time since the pandemic closed its 2020 run early, this is the result of a twenty year ambition to bring the famous 1948 Powell and Pressburger movie to the stage. As you can imagine it always gets a great reaction from audiences.
This is the 23rd year in a row that Bourne's New Adventures has delighted audiences at Christmas with a superb ballet. Winner of an LA Critics Award for its choreography, set and costume design, it also won two Oliviers in 2017, one for Best Theatre Choreographer and the other for Best Entertainment. Expect perfection and you won't be disappointed.
Victoria's story
Victoria Page was born to dance, determined to become the world's greatest ballet dancer. She is spotted by ballet guru Boris Lermontov, who asks composer Julian Craster to write a special ballet based on the old Hans Christian Andersen story. Victoria falls for Craster, then becomes trapped between two worlds: her lover and her career. Unable to decide, running to and from both men, she's run over by a train while trying to escape from Lermontov.
Set in mid-19th century London, Monte Carlo and Villefranche-sur-Mer, the production explores themes of determination, ambition, obsession and possession. Heartbreak is what happens when they clash.
Matthew Bourne's The Red Shoes cast and creatives
The score is orchestrated by Terry Davies, with original music by the Hollywood composer Bernard Herrmann. Lez Brotherston is responsible for the set and costumes, Paule Constable for the lighting, and Paul Groothuis for the sound.
