The Rite of Spring Rite of Spring", with the subtitle "Pictures of Pagan Russia". Stravinsky's sketchbooks show that after returning to his home at Ustilug in Ukraine in September 1911, he worked on two movements, the "Augurs of Spring" and the "Spring Rounds". In October he left Ustilug for Clarens in Switzerland, where in a tiny and sparsely-furnished room—an closet, with only a muted upright piano, a table and two chairs—he worked throughout the 1911–12 winter on the score. By March 1912, according to the sketchbook chronology, Stravinsky had completed Part I and had drafted much of Part II. He also prepared a two-hand
The Firebird leader. The lead role was fanced by Michel Denard. The Mariinsky Ballet performed the original choreography at Covent Garden in August 2011, as part of their Fokine retrospective. The National Ballet of Canada created a version of the "Firebird" for television, occasionally rebroadcast, in which special effects were used to make it appear that the Firebird is in flight. On 29 March 2012, the American Ballet Theatre premiered the ballet with choreography by Alexei Ratmansky at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California, starring Misty Copeland. The ballet centers on the journey of its hero, Prince Ivan.