'Mayerling' review — this ballet masterpiece is a passionate mix of violence, lust, love and madness

Read our review of Kenneth Macmillan's Mayerling, now in performances at the Royal Opera House to 18 May.

Summary

• Kenneth Macmillan's ballet Mayerling returns to the Royal Opera House
• The story follows the doom-laden Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria
• Matthew Ball is utterly mesmerising as Rudolf
• The excellent company also features Melissa Hamilton

Mayerling’s Rudolf is not your run-of-the-mill ballet prince. Yes, he’s part of the royal world, with all the glamour you’d imagine, but this heir to the Austro-Hungarian empire – with his fondness for morphine and his deep-set mummy issues – is hardly the type you’d dream of marrying. Kenneth MacMillan’s ballet shook things up when it premiered in 1978, pushing the form into darker, more scandalous and sensual territory. Even in 2026, its ferocious choreography still packs a punch.

Based on the true story of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria’s death pact with his young mistress, Baroness Mary Vetsera, the doom of the ballet is clear from the start. Opening in the grounds of a cemetery at Heiligenkreuz, death hangs over all that follows, and it’s not long before Rudolf begins waving a revolver around at every opportunity. MacMillan’s Mayerling is a riveting mix of violence, lust, love and madness, with the path to destruction clearly laid out.

It also presents a royal family in crisis, and while today’s royals face slightly different circumstances, that dynamic still chimes with the present. As ever, Matthew Ball is a vision; on opening night, he makes the role of Rudolf utterly mesmerising, moving in tormented circles as he spirals further and further into frenzy. Drawn in by hedonism – in the brothel, a grin spreads across Ball’s face – but also consumed by his own mortality, he is so devoid of care for anyone but himself that he remains utterly irredeemable.

Ball gets this all down to a tee, and the night is very much his triumph. But one of Mayerling’s strengths is that it is also an ensemble piece, and there is much to admire across the cast. Meaghan Grace Hinkis’s Princess Stephanie is heartbreakingly helpless at the close of Act I; you want to look away as Rudolf forces himself upon her and pins her down on their wedding night. Meanwhile, Mariko Sasaki relishes the high-kicking flirtation of his mistress, Mitzi Caspar.

Certainly, there are moments where the choreography shows its age: Act I’s ball now feels somewhat stale, while Act II’s brothel scene could trade its spiked elbows for more sultry curves. Nor is it without structural flaws – there are a few unnecessary scenes, and a character or two too many. Yet the final pas de deux remains one of ballet’s masterpieces. Rudolf and Melissa Hamilton’s Mary – who evolves from a naïve girl into an alluring powerhouse – coil around each other in hungry desperation. She may be his victim, but together they are breathlessly passionate.

Nicholas Georgiadis’s design has a rich, sinister edge, while Liszt’s score is thrillingly decadent. Even with the slight gripes, it is not hard to see why this is MacMillan’s most defining and enduring work.

Mayerling is at the Royal Opera House to 18 May. Book Mayerling tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk

Photo credit: Mayerling (Photos by Tristram Kenton)