Choreographing grace

The world's next great choreographer has materialised, and his name is Christopher Wheeldon. An Englishman who was briefly a member of the Royal Ballet - until he emigrated for the more stimulating territory of the New York City Ballet - Wheeldon's prolific talent has been acclaimed in the US.

When New York City Ballet came to the 2003 Edinburgh Festival, they brought an all-Wheeldon programme.

Ten years since his departure, the Royal Ballet has been making attempts to coax him back - if not permanently, then for a collaboration or two.

Polyphonia, first made for NYCB in 2001, is the latest of several Wheeldon pieces to enter the company's repertoire and opens this new triple bill (conducted by the Royal Opera House's music director Antonio Pappano), designed to sort the real dance fans from the dilettantes.

If you only like story ballets and melody, then Polyphonia (to a piano score by Ligeti) joined with Balanchine's masterpiece The Four Temperaments (to Hindemith) and Jiri Kylian's Sinfonietta (to Janacek) is not for you. Otherwise, you will find much to celebrate.

Polyphonia is sublime ballet for the 21st century, a series of movement cameos scattered and refracted like a prism. The shapes create a startlingly new and vivid classicism that mirrors Ligeti's astringent music and is superbly performed by its Royal Ballet cast.

The Royal Ballet: Triple Bill Programme (Polyphonia/New Mrozewski Ballet/Requiem)