{"id":246266,"date":"2026-05-28T12:29:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T12:29:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/246266\/"},"modified":"2026-05-28T12:29:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T12:29:16","slug":"scottish-ballets-mary-queen-of-scots-tours-to-the-u-s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/246266\/","title":{"rendered":"Scottish Ballet\u2019s Mary, Queen of Scots Tours to the U.S."},"content":{"rendered":"

When Scottish Ballet premiered Mary, Queen of Scots<\/a> last summer in the U.K., the ballet was an instant hit. Now, the company is bringing the full-length production, which has been nominated for three National Dance Awards, to the U.S. for two engagements. It will have its North American premiere at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, from May 28\u201330<\/a>. Then, the company heads to New York City\u2019s David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center for five performances (June 4\u20137<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\"RosannaLeney and Harvey Littlefield, as Younger Elizabeth. Photo by Andy Ross, courtesy Scottish Ballet.<\/p>\n

Co-created by Scottish Ballet choreographer in residence Sophie Laplane and director James Bonas, the two-act production takes on the complicated relationship between Mary, Queen of Scots, and her cousin and rival, England\u2019s Queen Elizabeth I. These powerful women, who never met in person but often corresponded by letter, navigated constant political and religious intrigue. In the end, Elizabeth would order Mary\u2019s nearly 20-year imprisonment and beheading, securing her claim to the English throne.<\/p>\n

The ballet looks at Mary\u2019s life through the memories of a dying Elizabeth, portrayed by guest artist Charlotta \u00d6fverholm<\/a> for select performances. Flashbacks depict both monarchs as young women, including Mary\u2019s marriages (and the mysterious death of her husband, Lord Darley), the birth of her son (the future King James), and Elizabeth\u2019s efforts to assert her authority and spy on her Scottish cousin. The younger Elizabeth\u2019s role, danced by soloists Harvey Littlefield<\/a> and Gina Scott<\/a> in different casts, is nonbinary to symbolize her experience in a male-dominated society.<\/p>\n

\"ACharlotta O\u0308fverholm, as Older Elizabeth, framed by Littlefield as Younger Elizabeth. Photo by Andy Ross, courtesy Scottish Ballet.<\/p>\n

While the historical events took place in the 16th century, the production is decidedly modern, with an original score by Mikael Karlsson and Michael P. Atkinson and sets and costumes by Soutra Gilmour. Mary, for example, wears a corseted top and short skirt, and a short black wig with shocks of red hair. \u201cShe\u2019s quite punk rock,\u201d Scottish Ballet principal Rosanna Leney<\/a> told Pointe in an interview<\/a> last summer.<\/p>\n

\"ThomasThomas Edwards as Walsingham. Photo by Andy Ross, courtesy Scottish Ballet.<\/p>\n

Leney, who is splitting the title role with fellow principal Marlen Fuerte Castro<\/a> during the U.S. tour, added that she aims to portray Mary\u2019s resilience above all. \u201cMary had a very tumultuous life, full of twists and turns, heartbreak, and sinister back-plotting,\u201d said Leney. \u201cThe journey she goes on is quite draining. But it\u2019s an absolute honor to dance such an epic role.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Scottish Ballet premiered Mary, Queen of Scots last summer in the U.K., the ballet was an instant…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":246267,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[88430,96194,65177,9,24,63,122,124,123,96195,96196,96197,96198],"class_list":["post-246266","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-david-h-koch-theater","tag-harvey-littlefield","tag-mary-queen-of-scots","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-roseanna-leney","tag-scottish-ballet","tag-sophie-laplane","tag-spoleto-festival-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246266","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=246266"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246266\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/246267"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=246266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=246266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=246266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}