Night and Day (La Nuit et le Jour or The Night and the Day) is a fantastic ballet in 1 act/3 scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa and music by Ludwig Minkus.[1]
This ballet was produced for the festivities held at the Moscow Imperial Bolshoi Theatre in honor of the coronation of Tsar Alexander III and Empress Maria Feodorovna, who were crowned at the Uspensky Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin three days prior to the ballet's premiere. The Tsar was so impressed by the work (being an avid balletomane) that he ordered the work be performed a second time two days later for a performance attended only by his immediate family. A March from the work was among the Tsar's favorite pieces, and he often requested that his orchestra play it during Imperial Balls and other social events for the St. Petersburg royalty and nobility.[2]
The ballet was premièred on May 18/30 (Julian/Gregorian calendar dates), 1883, at the Moscow Imperial Bolshoi Theatre by the Imperial Ballet.