Tiler Peck, a principal dancer with New York City Ballet and an emerging choreographer, premiered her new ballet “Grandes Etudes” with Northern Ballet at the Linbury Theatre in London’s Royal Opera House on Tuesday night. The performance marked the London debut of Peck’s work, which is set to Franz Liszt’s demanding piano composition “Grandes Etudes de Paganini” (1851).

“Grandes Etudes” is Peck’s second piece created for Northern Ballet, following her earlier work “Intimate Pages,” which was set to Janacek’s Second String Quartet. The ballet was presented as part of a program that also featured Hans van Manen’s “5 Tangos” and Mthuthuzeli November’s “Fools,” a reinterpretation of “Romeo and Juliet” set in a South African township.

Peck, recently appointed as choreographic associate at New York City Ballet—the first woman to hold this post—demonstrated her signature blend of speed, virtuosity, and musicality in the choreography. The ballet showcased the technical complexity of Liszt’s score, which translates the virtuosity of Paganini’s violin pieces into intricate piano passages requiring rapid finger work, wide leaps, and delicate arpeggios. Pianist Rose McLachlan accompanied the dancers, capturing the piece’s challenging demands.

The ballet opens with a female quartet dressed in pastel chiffons arranged in a circle, evoking classical imagery. As the music intensifies, male dancers join in brief pas de deux before Kawika Takahashi and Miguel Teixeira take center stage in a lyrical duet marked by high lifts and supported adagio movements symbolizing romantic yearning. Throughout the work, various vignettes unfold, often pairing dancers in fleeting interactions that suggest emotion but occasionally lack a cohesive narrative arc.

Costumes by Carly Marsh further enhanced the visual palette, with distinctive pastel shades differentiating the dancers. Peck’s choreography includes sudden changes in mood and ensemble groupings, at times recalling the style of Jerome Robbins’s “Dances at a Gathering,” particularly in its social, often flirtatious, exchanges among couples. The final étude gathers the full company in intersecting formations to a lively A minor passage, culminating in women being lifted in high arabesques as the ensemble closes the work.

Critical observations note that while “Grandes Etudes” displays technical precision and fluidity, its structure and emotional themes feel somewhat imposed rather than organically derived from Liszt’s music. The ballet offers a series of charming but loosely connected moments that showcase the dancers’ versatility but stop short of creating a fully immersive world.

The gala evening featured additional highlights, including three pas de deux combining principal dancers from Northern Ballet and the Royal Ballet, and a standout performance by Royal Ballet principal Cesar Corrales in “5 Tangos.” Peck’s continued work as a dancer and choreographer positions her as a notable presence in contemporary ballet, particularly as she navigates her dual roles and expands her choreographic voice.