To listen simply press on 
the audio player below
(you can also download the file –
click on the three dots on the right):
Gounod: this is the part of the ballroom scene I talked about; if you’d like to watch the whole opera – it is worth it! – you can see it here.
Prokofiev: The Nureyev/Paris Opera production; again definitely worth looking at and listening to, but if you just want to visit the moments I mentioned, just use the links below:
Ballroom Scene ● Balcony Scene
Bernstein: West Side Story, the film is, as I understand it, still under copyright, but here’s the balcony/fire-escape scene:
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The Art of Listening 
Thanks, Chris. It’s interesting to hear how different composers have reacted differently to the same theatrical story and its leading characters. Bernstein sticks out like a sore thumb, although to be fair, he was trying to transpose the story to a different location. None of the others were doing likewise, were they, be it St Petersburg, Paris, Grenoble or the Ukraine?
Thanks, Chris, another fascinating session. I spent most of the time watching the Prokoviev – very stylish production, with marvellous sets and costumes, and it was good to hear the whole ballet score, rather than just the famous bits. It confirms how popular Shakespeare was (and still is) in Russia – with everyone except Stalin,
apparently.