The Royal Ballet’s new production of Balanchine’s Jewels was a double winner at last year’s Olivier Awards. The three one-act ballets, set to music by Fauré, Stravinsky and Tchaikovsky and inspired by romantic emeralds, dazzling rubies and sparkling diamonds, provide a striking showcase for the Company’s dancers.

Jewels was a sparkling new addition to the Royal Ballet repertory last Season, and now returns for its first revival. It was created by the great 20th-century choreographer George Balanchine, who was inspired by the colour and beauty of the gem stones he saw in the collection of Claude Arpels (of the internationally famous jewellers Van Cleef & Arpels).

Each of Jewels’s movement uses a different stone for its inspiration and a different composer for its sound. First is the rich warmth of emeralds for Fauré, next comes the fire of rubies for Stravinsky, energetic and vibrant, and last is the sparkle of diamonds for Tchaikovsky.

Jewels’s set designs by Jean-Marc Puissant also hint at the times and places of Balanchine’s life, from the grandeur of Imperial Russia to the 20th-century energy of New York.

Find out more about the rich variety of West End shows on offer in Theatreland.