Frederick Ashton's Scène d'amour: A look back in time

Sir Frederick Ashton’s Scène d'amour pas de deux is the subject of our 2026 masterclass – Ashton Rediscovered: Scène d'amour – in partnership with The Frederick Ashton Foundation. 

Originally created for Margot Fonteyn and Michael Somes in 1959, the pas de deux uses music from the score of Raymonda. At the time, Ashton was considering creating his own full-length version of Raymonda, but in the end this project didn't come to fruition.

In honour of the event, we are sharing some exclusive photos of Fonteyn and Somes when they performed it in 1959.

Our masterclass at Birmingham Hippodrome's Patrick Studio features dancers Yaoqian Shang and Riku Ito, alongside Samara Downs and dance historian Jane Pritchard, who will discuss the re-creation and history of the piece.