ROYAL SWEDISH BALLET PERFORMS IN WASHINGTON.

WASHINGTON--The Royal Swedish Ballet will make its Kennedy Center debut June 8 to 13 with the American premiere of works from the 1920s avantgarde company Les Ballets Suedois (The Swedish Ballet). Originally choreographed in Paris by Jean Borlin, this collection of revivals includes the satirical Within the Quota (1923), set to music by Cole Porter; El Greco (1920), to a score of the same name by Desire-Emile Inghelbrecht; Dervishes (1920), with music by Alexander Glazunov; and Skating Rink (1922), in which the dancers imitate roller skaters wearing Fernand Leger's cubist costumes. The company will also perform John Neumeier's Mahler's Third Symphony. The experimental Swedish Ballet existed in Paris from 1920 to 1925, attracting many of the city's painters, composers, musicians, and poets.

The Kennedy Center selection was first performed by RSB last year at their 225th anniversary celebration in Stockholm's Royal Opera House. The festival honored RSB as one of the four oldest ballet companies in the world, along with those of Paris, Copenhagen, and St. Petersburg.

Royal Swedish Ballet was created in 1773 by King Gustav III. More of a theater lover than a dance enthusiast, the King responded surprisingly well to the company's first season. "The dancers are not disagreeable and perform accurately," he said. "They promise to become quite good in time." Although he was assassinated at a masked ball in 1792 (the true story behind Verdi's opera Un Ballo in Maschera), his influence is still notable in the company's highly theatrical, eclectic repertory.