George Balanchine’s Jewels is a technical showcase and calling card for any company that tackles it, including the Bolshoi Ballet which performed it in Brisbane in 2019. Unison and symmetry are paramount to its success, and The Australian Ballet has both in spades.

Perhaps more surprising, however, is the fact that the dancers have managed to take this non-narrative ballet and make it romantic, funny and even sexy. No mean feat, especially considering this is the first-ever presentation of the work by our national company. It also proves that under Artistic Director David Hallberg, the AB is very much at home with the neoclassical repertoire.

Maxim Zenin and Imogen Chapman in The Australian Ballet’s Jewels. Photo © Rainee Lantry

A particular highlight of this staging is the recreation of both Karinska’s legendary costumes and Peter Harvey’s original 1967 set design. Its Turkish curtains frame the stage while a constellation of jewels floats above the dancers, turning emerald green, ruby red and diamond white with each act.

This luxurious environment is far more conducive to Balanchine’s ballet than some of the more austere variants over the years. No wonder Harvey has been...