 Premiered on 21 March 1971, the piece was created on Antoinette Sibley and Anthony Dowell of The Royal Ballet and performed at the Adelphi Theatre as part of a Gala Performance.The piece is not related to the plot of the opera, but resembles a vision scene, with Sibley resembling "a disembodied, weightless spirit", and features costumes by Dowell.It was so well received at its first performance that Ashton had to announce an immediate encore, and Marie Rambert considered it one of Ashton's three masterpieces (along with "Symphonic Variations" and "La fille mal gardée)".