Introduction

Sergey Sergeyevich Prokofiev is well known to audiences as the composer of the popular Peter and the Wolf, Alexander Nevsky and Lt. Kizhe Suite as well as the ballets Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella. The value and significance of Prokofiev's western works in general and his seeming chastened return to Soviet Russia remain lively topics for discussion. Modern and traditional traits coexist in virtually all of Prokofiev's music. Prokofiev's ballets for Diaghilev do stand apart from the Soviet ones by their shorter duration and less rigorous approach to traditional forms and conventions. Awaiting Stravinsky's completion of Les Noces, Diaghilev wanted something as intensely Russian from Prokofiev—playing his exotic card always led to a favorable reception in Paris and London. Le Pas d'acier brought Prokofiev considerable success and a closer relationship with Diaghilev. Prokofiev's ballet style is not indebted to any person or school—it lived and died with the composer himself.