Benjamin Britten's score was commissioned by the Royal Opera House for John Cranko's ballet of The Prince of the Pagodas first performed in 1957. The Royal Opera House and Kenneth MacMillan approached Britten in 1976 about the possibility of a new version of the ballet but Britten was reluctant to agree to any cuts to the score. MacMillan used the full score for his version of The Prince of the Pagodas in 1989, and musical cuts were agreed with the Britten-Pears Archive for subsequent revivals. The material in this file comprises:

1. Photocopy of a typed letter from Benjamin Britten to Kenneth MacMillan asking if there was any news about his plans, 21 Jan 1976. The letter is unsigned but there is a compliments slip from the Britten-Pears Library with a handwritten covering note to Jann Parry confirming the sender, 19 Jun 2006
2. Four pages of a photocopied two-page fax from Anthony Russell-Roberts to Donald Mitchell re agreed changes to the score, 25 Sep 1992

Kenneth MacMillan supplied Colin Thubron with a recording of Benjamin Britten's The Prince of the Pagodas and the Royal Opera House commissioned Thubron to work with MacMillan on a scenario for the ballet. Thubron sent MacMillan a detailed breakdown of the action, charting it against the version by John Cranko. Material in this file charts the development of the scenario and Kenneth MacMillan's responses to Thubron's suggestions. The material comprises:

1. Sleeve notes for the first recording of The Prince of the Pagodas, conducted by Benjamin Britten and with a black and white photograph of The Royal Ballet in the Cranko version, 1957
2. Photocopy of the sleeve notes above, together with a photocopy of the programme for the first night of John Cranko's production of The Prince of the Pagodas
3. Photocopy of the action of the ballet by Colin Thubron
4. Four typed copies and one photocopy of detailed plotting typed by Colin Thubron, giving the time from the score, the stage action in the Cranko version, the music detailing the instruments and style/emotion, and suggestions for or the stage action in the MacMillan version, with slight variations between some. Two with typed covering letters from Colin Thubron to Kenneth MacMillan, 21 Sep 1987 and 30 Jun 1988 and additional notes.
5. Three handwritten letters from Kenneth MacMillan to Colin Thubron, drafts and copy (?) of a final version, explaining that he doesn't need Thubron to fill every section of the music with an idea and how he works in the studio, with Thubron's handwritten reply, with envelope, 7 Jul 1988
6. One handwritten postcard from Colin Thubron to Kenneth MacMillan from China, 12 Sep 1988
7. Two page typed letter from Colin Thubron to Kenneth MacMillan with extra Pagodas thoughts, 8 Apr 1989
8. Two typed copies of the synopsis, with covering notes from Colin Thubron to Kenneth MacMillan, undated and 21 Jun 1989
9. One handwritten letter from Kenneth MacMillan to Colin Thubron thanking him for the new recording and suggesting some cuts and changes to the order of dances in Act III, with two handwritten lists of Proposed Change of Order Act III, a handwritten reply from Colin Thubron to Kenneth MacMillan responding to his suggestions and making alternative proposals, 8 Aug 1989, and a photocopy of a handwritten reply from MacMillan confirming the changes, 17 Sep 1989
10. One typed and one handwritten letter from Colin Thubron to Kenneth MacMillan suggesting some changes post-production, 9 Dec 1989 and 4 Jan 1990, and a photocopy of a handwritten reply from MacMillan expressing pleasure that Thubron liked Pagodas, 22 Jan 1990