Chout

The most commonly used title for the work is based on the French transliteration of the Russian word for "jester", shut.

Instead, Diaghilev asked Prokofiev to write a ballet based on a folk tale recorded by Alexander Afanasyev.

The principal buffoon is forced to disguise himself as a woman and is chosen for marriage by a wealthy merchant.

He wrote the piano reduction while travelling by ship to the United States and finished the full score in early 1921 after his return to France.

Over 40 per cent of the original score was either deleted or rewritten, and the required additional entr'actes were composed.

[3] It was fairly well received, however the London premiere on 9 June was bitterly attacked by audiences and critics alike.

The music had to be reconstructed from the symphonic suite, minus the entr'actes, resulting in prolonged pauses.