"There's an old, slightly cynical, adage in the theatre that says, when you're out of ideas, produce a Shakespearean work."This is how the ballet's choreographer, László Seregi, put it at the time of the premiere. However, Romeo and Juliet would thoroughly debunk the self-irony in this quip and go on to become one of Hungary's most famous ballet classics. Seregi's spectacular and colourful piece, which made no secret of taking inspiration from Zeffirelli, fundamentally reformed traditional storytelling in ballet by conceiving a full-blooded Renaissance tale for the stage whose living and human subject matter and acute attention to tiny movements, coupled with its superbly crafted situations and picturesque scenery, won over viewers both in Hungary and abroad. The work's lustre has not faded since: its popularity and success have remained unbroken for decades.

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