It turned out that this evening they were giving a three-piece George Balanchine - not the best best material in order to inspect the state of affairs in the ballet troupe Bolshoi Theater.
IN lately from the reservation "Ballet Friends"
terrible rumors are heard for a variety of reasons and the main bone of contention turned out to be the artist Yangurazova, who, without their recommendation, broke into the Ballerinas. At this point, everyone got the nuts, right down to "Welcome maharhasanich"
. Can you imagine such disgrace when on the same forum, in order to get the “next title” you have to, like, from the cord go through all the stages, licking and buttering up / swearing and spitting, in order for the board of moderators to approve the candidacy.
And here?! - The impudence is simply unheard of!
What can save the theater in the opinion of true ballet connoisseurs is the clever move that the better half of the general director made by agreeing to come to the slaughter in Bakhra and communicate, most likely, at the same eternal theme
— as long as the Bolshoi Theater continues to work for speculators of all kinds, because the straps in the second thousand, put on a balletomane who showed up at 5 am, are unlikely to give him the right to visit the coveted “Nutcracker” on a budget with the not yet prima dancers Tikhomirova or Kretova.
Have a nice evening to them. I didn’t inspect Balanchine in green and I can’t tell you what happened there. Moreover, between us, ballet lovers, speaking, Emeralds are a mortal bore and no even super romantic étoile will ever enliven this action. It singing back-up.
H As for the Rubies, which not a single bow-legged ballerina in the world has passed by, I had to take a look at them.
And this is what we have to admit— There are shipwrecks floating in this naval borscht
Masks For some reason, the pleasure and deep and complete satisfaction on the faces of the performers did not inspire confidence...
For some reason, it was in this work that all the heaviness and unpleasantness of the work of ballet dancers was revealed. The need to lift your legs high, keep the tempo, take idiotic poses with an equally idiotic grin - who finds this easy?!ヅ
It’s also not easy to watch, you also need to have character and courage, which I haven't had for a long time. Well, yes, it’s interesting, of course, when a dancer has a leg size like Parienko’s... here you can think about the topic, what would happen to Aleksan Sergeich , if he saw such beauty..? No other way than mycardial infarctionヅ
✑ Everything is clear, any troupe, and especially the BT troupe, needs a change of generations.
It is clear that each next generation is worse than the previous one, but not to the same extent...
Actually, it’s time to finish talking about Rubies, especially if you take on delivering about performance style, about which, it seems, neither a dream / nor a spirit, nor performers / nor teachers, then the letters will end on Diamonds. Namely, it was in them that Vaganova School graduate Alena Kovaleva made her debut, ( was supposed to be paired with Kozlov, but he merged; Volchkov came on instead)
Alena Kovaleva - Alexander Volchkov
The fact that the corps de ballet dressed up in gloves, thereby (probably) emphasizing the imperial style of the most expensive stone in the ballet three-ruble crown, did not add any special brilliance or charm to the dancers. And all further actions of the corps de ballet and 4 soloists showed a rather indifferent attitude towards everything that Mr. B composed. The ballet has been going on for a long time, there are no particular people following it, apparently, and quite rightly the main interest was associated with the main soloist.
. If we compare this debut with the debut another one from St. Petersburg, at one time simply requested by the former artistic director for the capital’s stage—well, you can’t put them side by side.
In Kovaleva, of course, you can still feel graduate, but all the data there is many times more interesting than it was when with someone. Good shape, beautiful attractive face; from the first performance in such a ballet one can judge the musicality that undoubtedly exists, the dance cantilena, the purity of lines and the beauty of poses - everything that I don’t remember the last time debuted in a renowned troupe.
It is also likely that the performance was well chosen for the ballerina's first performance - the ballet is one-act, not very complex, and the data fits well with Balanchine's composition.
T h maharhasanich
He performed quite well administratively.
MOSCOW, July 3 – RIA Novosti, Anna Kocharova. Rehearsals all day long, joint pain, diets and going on stage in the evening. The life of ballerinas is sweat and blood. But despite this, they are all ready to devote themselves to what they love. RIA Novosti spent the whole day with Bolshoi Theater ballerina Alena Kovaleva.
I usually get up at 9 so that I can be at the theater by 11 am. For breakfast I eat oatmeal. The portion is probably the size of a fist. You need to eat well, because you need strength to withstand the entire load. For example, I really love sweets. And I don’t have a diet as such. But if I feel like I need to lose weight, I cut back on something, it allows me to get in shape. I regulate this myself. Of course, I weigh myself, but not every day.
I eat three times during the day, but sometimes I don’t have time because of rehearsals, and then I have to grab something on the go. Sometimes you run like this all day, and you’re ready to eat a sandwich or a pie. But with such a load, a lot of things burn out on their own. We can sometimes afford more than many people think.
At the theater, my day begins with class. It's like a lesson: we warm up, practice movements, get ready for the working day. Then rehearsals begin - solo, general, corps de ballet, stage rehearsals (this is when the performance is being prepared). Today, for example, I have a class and four rehearsals. And this is not the limit, there can be more.
The duration of each rehearsal is different: it can be 30 minutes or two hours. Today I have a solo rehearsal for two hours, then a stage rehearsal for another hour and a half. And then another one for 40 minutes.
We rehearse with the teachers. But in each hall there are cameras installed, through which the head of the ballet troupe watches the rehearsals (Makhar Vaziev - Ed.). He can call on a special internal telephone and give some recommendations to the teacher, or he can come to the hall.
Now I’m preparing the part of Odette-Odile for “Swan Lake” (I will have a performance in the fall), and he just came in during rehearsal.
In general, if I’m preparing a part, I can sometimes start humming something, dancing, or making some head movements right on the street. And sometimes you just want to warm up your back in transport and crunch your bones. People, of course, may think something wrong!
In my bag I always have two pairs of pointe shoes (main and spare), a bandage and a thin mesh that can be used to bandage a finger so that it does not wear off. We always come to rehearsal in warm-up clothes, socks, and gradually, when the muscles warm up, we take them off.
We select pointe shoes individually. There are many different brands and models, so you can choose. I dance on pointe shoes that have a plastic insole, which makes them durable and can even be washed. True, from time to time I feel the urge to experiment, and I start trying other models.
You need to sew the ribbons and elastic bands that hold your foot onto your pointe shoes yourself. You need to find the right place to make you feel comfortable. Some sheathe the heel, the tip of the pointe shoe, on which we stand during the dance. This is necessary so that it does not slip.
I spend two hours on each pair, which is quite a long time. On average I use one pair per month. This, of course, depends on the number of rehearsals.
This is my first season dancing at the Bolshoi Theater. I graduated from the Academy of Russian Ballet. A.Ya. Vaganova. In this educational institution combined general and vocational education. I went to preparatory class for three years, going to classes three times a week. I entered when I was 10 and studied there for 8 years. All classes are mixed, we spent whole days there. For example, after rehearsal there could be math. This is even good, there is some kind of change of activity, you come to rest.
© Photo courtesy of the Bolshoi Theater press service Ballet "Etudes"
© Photo courtesy of the Bolshoi Theater press service
As a child, my mother sent me to choreography so that I would have good posture and grace. From there they began to send me to the Vaganova Academy. I remember when we came to the screening before the preparatory class. There was a crowd of people there, a mad rush. They checked our physical data and looked at us. Those who entered were given coupons. And everyone ran out and began asking whether they had taken it or not? At that time I didn’t really understand where I had come, what it would all lead to. At first I told my mother that I wouldn’t go to study there because everyone there was crazy. But she persuaded me to try. And then every time I liked it more and more.
Sometimes, of course, it became difficult and I gave up. But ballet, it seems to me, is like a disease. This is life that has taken you and will never let you go. You put up with any difficulties, you are ready to endure everything for the sake of the future and to achieve your goal.
There is a performance at the theater this evening, but I am not dancing. I try to relax at home in the evening. I go to bed as best I can. If after rehearsals, then at 10 o’clock, if there is a performance, then at 11 pm. Of course, sometimes there is not enough time to rest.
We have one day off a week - Monday, when the theater is traditionally closed. If there are interesting premieres in other theaters or tours, then, of course, it’s interesting to go see it. But in general I try to rest on this day. I love to walk. Moscow is a new city for me, this is my first year living here and I don’t regret moving. Here is the theatre, which I love, there is work, there are many opportunities.
Awards
In 2018, she was awarded the Soul of Dance prize established by Ballet magazine (Rising Star nomination).
Biography
Born in St. Petersburg. Graduated with honors in 2016 St. Petersburg Academy Russian ballet named after. A.Ya. Vaganova (teacher Yulia Kasenkova) and was accepted into the ballet troupe of the Bolshoi Theater. The artist’s teacher-tutor is Olga Chenchikova.Repertoire includes solo in Oriental dance, Waltz in the ballet “The Nutcracker” by P. Tchaikovsky (choreography by V. Vainonen), Japanese Doll and the title role in the ballet “Fairy of Dolls” by I. Bayer (choreography by N. and S. Legat, revised by N. Tsiskaridze), soloist in the film “ The Magic Gardens of Naina" from the opera "Ruslan and Lyudmila" by M. Glinka (choreography by M. Fokin, edition by N. Tsiskaridze), etc.
Repertoire
2016three dryads(“Don Quixote” by L. Minkus, choreography by M. Petipa, A. Gorsky in the second edition by A. Fadeechev)
leading role in "Diamonds"(III part of the ballet “Jewels”) to the music of P. Tchaikovsky (choreography by J. Balanchine)
big classical dance (“La Bayadère” by L. Minkus, choreography by M. Petipa, revised by Yu. Grigorovich)
Armida's friends(“Flames of Paris” by B. Asafiev, staged by A. Ratmansky using choreography by V. Vainonen)
three swans (« Swan Lake» P. Tchaikovsky in the second edition by Yu. Grigorovich, fragments of choreography by M. Petipa, L. Ivanov, A. Gorsky were used)
second variation in the painting “Raymonda’s Dreams”(“Raymonda” by A. Glazunov, choreography by M. Petipa, revised by Yu. Grigorovich)
final waltz and apotheosis(“The Nutcracker” by P. Tchaikovsky, choreography by Yu. Grigorovich)
2017
Ballerina(“Etudes” to music by K. Czerny, choreography by H. Lander)
Myrta(“Giselle” by A. Adam, choreography by J. Coralli, J. Perrot, M. Petipa, revised by Yu. Grigorovich) – the debut took place during the theater's tour in Japan
Odette-Odile("Swan Lake")
"Parisian Waltz", "Paparazzi"(“Nureev” by I. Demutsky, choreography by Y. Posokhov, director K. Serebrennikov) – participant in the world premiere of the ballet
Mireille de Poitiers("Flames of Paris")
Queen of the Dryads("Don Quixote")
2018
maids of honor, Lilac Fairy(“Sleeping Beauty” by P. Tchaikovsky, choreography by M. Petipa, revised by Yu. Grigorovich)
Princess Sorokina, ballerinas(“Anna Karenina” to music by P. Tchaikovsky, A. Schnittke, Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam, choreography by J. Neumeier)
Nikiya("La Bayadère")
Raymonda("Raymonda")
2019
Fisherman's wife(“The Pharaoh’s Daughter” by C. Pugni, staged by P. Lacotte after M. Petipa)
Ballerina(“Parisian Fun” to music by J. Offenbach / M. Rosenthal, choreography by M. Bejart) – first performer at the Bolshoi Theater
soloist of part II(“Symphony in C” by J. Bizet, choreography by J. Balanchine)
Myrta(“Giselle” revised by A. Ratmansky)
Concert ballet
On April 1, Diana Vishneva presented the most luxurious gift to her teacher Lyudmila Valentinovna Kovaleva - an evening in her honor. OLGA FEDORCHENKO visited the Mariinsky Theater.
Lyudmila Kovaleva in 1994 instantly became a famous teacher. But the deceptive simplicity and speed of victory were the result of a long and outwardly seemingly inconspicuous path. For 22 years she was a soloist of the Kirov Theater, her technically impeccable dance in variations and solo parts set off the brilliance of ballerinas Irina Kolpakova, Gabriela Komleva, Alla Osipenko, Ninel Kurgapkina, Olga Moiseeva. A teaching career after performing was logical and natural: the few films with the participation of dancing Kovaleva should be shown as educational methodological manual. However, the leadership of the Leningrad Choreographic School (and then the Academy of Russian Ballet) was in no hurry to give her graduating classes, on the contrary, she worked in the most difficult section of the middle classes in order, after doing a huge amount of grunt work, to transfer the well-educated girls into the hands of the graduating masters, who received the teaching glory. But one day, for the first time, Kovaleva was allowed to bring the students she nurtured, whom she took from the 2nd grade, to graduation! And a year later there was a sensation. First, small - at graduation performances in 1993, when Diana Vishneva, a 6th grade student, surpassed other graduating girls in the pas de deux from Le Corsair. A year later, she won the Grand Prix in Lausanne and, without waiting for graduation, conquered theatrical Olympus"Don Quixote".
Diana Vishneva’s loyalty to her teacher is from the category of filial ones. And the evening dedicated to the teacher, despite the official status and the crowded theater, seemed like a family event, if we mean the family clan. A tightly knit community of not the largest numbers (Kovalyova still prefers to take classes at “middle” ages, so the gap between her graduations is four to five years), but exceptional devotion to the boss. The concert program, which proportionally combined classics (academic and Soviet), modern dance and the obligatory comic number seemed to convey a secret message to initiates in encrypted form with a key known only to them.
The youngest graduate, Lyudmila Kovaleva, was entrusted with opening the concert. Nika Tskhvitaria (graduated in 2015) serenely sailed on the pink sea of hopes in the adagio from “The Nutcracker.” A variation with numerous stutters pulled her out of the intoxicating darkness of her cantilena dance, but the festive beginning was made. In a lordly and imposing manner, Ekaterina Borchenko (graduated in 2000) performed the classic pas de deux from Le Corsaire, savoring the fouette like olives in a cocktail. Olga Smirnova, in the grand pas from Don Quixote, dealt with the choreography like an elite sniper - an amazing mastery of space: in the smallest pas de bourrée, she flew almost half the stage in a few bars; excellently high tempo of variation, without “spectacular” slowdowns in the relevé in the second movement; elastic precision in stops after rotations. The plastic masterpieces of Leonid Yakobson (duets of Aegina and Harmodius, Phrygia and Spartacus) with the participation of Zlata Yalinich (graduated in 2008) and Sofia Gumerova (graduated in 1995) seemed overly affected and deliberately pathetic. But what kind of tribute is there to an adored teacher without deliberately exaggerated expressions of feelings that come exclusively from great love? Olga Esina (graduated in 2004), representing Vienna state opera, captivated by the sweetly beautiful dance meditation “Fool`s Paradise” choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon. And Alisa Petrenko (graduated in 1995), in the role of toastmaster in tandem with Igor Kolb, had a great time in Radu Poklitaru’s number “Rain”, discovering in the recently lily classical dancer a rare gift of ballet grotesque.
Diana Vishneva herself came out in two one-act ballets— “The Old Man and I” and “Live”, choreography by Hans van Manen. These are not ballets of summing up, although it would be a great temptation to interpret them as confessional or personal, but, undoubtedly, they contain parallels and intersections with the creative fate of Mrs. Vishneva herself. The coquette woman tries on various masks (seductive, playful, naive), trying to provoke the Old Man (Vladimir Malakhov, shrill in his plastic “silence”) to dialogue. And suddenly he finds himself in a black space-time hole, where, in fact, there is nothing and no one to ask, when no masks are needed, because a duet with the Old Man is a duet with one’s Death. The second ballet "Live", which tells about the biographical moments of its first performer Colleen Davis, makes all spectators unwitting voyeurs, spying on the ballerina through the lens of a video camera that projects the image onto the screen. In a bright scarlet leotard with a short skirt, so similar to the Carmen costume in which Diana Vishneva shot in 1994, the ballerina “remembers” her story, and the camera mercilessly circles nearby, broadcasting to the outside world what she might want to hide inside. The choreographer is merciless: bitterness, disappointment, demands, betrayal and deceit are concentrated in van Manen’s minimalist choreography. And any attempt to escape is impossible. You can only cover the camera with your hand, but then memories from the depths of the heroine’s memory will be broadcast on the screen - her backstory... The only way to make your life inviolable is to put on your coat, wrap your scarf and leave the theater. Exit to Theater Square, surprising late passers-by, and disappearing into the darkness.
“Jewels” on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater
It has been running at the Bolshoi Theater since March new manager ballet troupe.
Even if you knew nothing about it, you can read it from the poster: new names have begun to appear regularly in the ballets of the current repertoire.
Last season, the classics found new performers, and this season, the first performance with mass debuts was the October block of Balanchine’s “Jewels”: five new performers only in the leading roles, and together with solos – more than a dozen.
On last performance The block featured two of the most intriguing debuts: the popular theater premier Vladislav Lantratov danced the leading male role in “Rubies,” and the debutant of the Bolshoi troupe, Alena Kovaleva, appeared in her first big role, in “Diamonds.”
One of the most popular ballets by the main neoclassicist of the 20th century, George Balanchine, “Jewels” is a plotless choreographic reflection on the properties of precious stones - the mysterious light of emeralds, the fiery shine of rubies and the solemn radiance of diamonds.
Despite the fact that Balanchine himself commented rather controversially on the concept of his ballet, the opinion has become established that this three-part ballet is associated with three original ballet schools– French, American and Russian. The first part - "Emeralds" - to the soft romantic music of Gabriel Fauré - is dedicated to ballet France (the choreographer himself spoke about this), the motor "Rubies" to Igor Stravinsky's "Capriccio" permeated with jazz intonations - to the ballet of America (the choreographer himself denied this, but it seems a little disingenuous), and the solemnly majestic final ballet - “Diamonds” - to the music of Tchaikovsky’s third symphony - to the Imperial Ballet of Russia.
“Jewels,” which first appeared on stage almost fifty years ago, has become a 20th-century classic and is performed all over the world. In Russia there are stage history not great - at the beginning of the 2000s he staged the ballet Mariinsky Theater, in 2010 the Bolshoi danced “Rubies” for the first time, and in 2012 acquired a complete set of Balanchine’s “Jewels”.
But also in short Russian history This ballet featured real performing gems: in “Diamonds” - Lopatkina, Zakharova, Zelensky and Tsiskaridze, in “Rubies” - Vishneva, Osipova, Sarafanov, in “Emeralds” - Ayupova. Naturally, Russian dancers feel most comfortable - in their native, diamond part. But this turned out to be not Lantratov’s case.
Starting from the premiere of this ballet at the Bolshoi, in the first part - “Emeralds” - Vladislav Lantratov appeared, his elegant style of dancing was extremely suitable for “Emeralds”, and now four years later, very important for the development of this dancer, he danced the most striking male the part of this ballet is in “Rubies”.
Why not “Diamonds”? Maybe because “Diamonds” is the realm of the ballerina, while “Rubies” maintains gender balance? Or maybe because “Diamonds” in the male part does not go beyond the classics and the image of a noble gentleman, while the more modern “Rubies” are a challenge for a classical dancer?
Perhaps someday the dancer will get to the third part of “Jewels” (Tsiskaridze at one time danced both “Rubies” and “Diamonds”), but now he was attracted by the more democratic “Rubies”.
During the shocking four years since the premiere of “Jewels,” Vladislav Lantratov danced a whole kaleidoscope of different, often polar, roles - Ivan the Terrible, Crassus, Ferkhad, Hamlet, Pechorin, Arman in “The Lady of the Camellia,” Petruchio in “The Taming of the Shrew,” Yellow in “Russian Seasons”, performed as a soloist with fashionable choreographers Lightfoot and Leon, became one of the recognized Basiles and de Briennes of the Bolshoi... and felt absolute freedom on stage. And freedom on the verge of detachment is exactly what is in demand in “Rubies”. In “The Taming of the Shrew” by Mayo, the dancer tasted the delights of ballet humor and was finally ready to perform “Rubies”.
In the slyly sensual manner of Lantrat’s Rubin, one can certainly feel the experience acquired by the dancer from Mayo: “Rubies” is a plotless ballet, but in its center one can discern the love, with a touch of eroticism, play of the leading couple: mutual seduction - taming, rivalry and attraction of the male and female. Although this is not a choreographer’s prescription, and in the performing history of “Rubies” there are different interpretations – sometimes the emphasis is not on flirtation or eroticism, but on constructivist vocabulary, echoing Stravinsky’s springy music.
But not this time - the duet with Yanina Parienko (debut as a soloist) was very sensual, but not lyrical, it was rather ironic: the active eroticism of “Rubies” softens the humor. Lantratov showed that he masters this instrument as masterly as the technical side of the part, and the latter is very difficult: sweatshop tempos, syncopated music, Jesuit technique of parterre support, which requires great coherence of the pair, especially since Lantratov got not the easiest partner - large, not very flexible and not very dexterous.
Large partners are not the specialty of the athlete Lantratov, so he coped. The second soloist of “Rubies”, Elvina Ibraimova, was also non-standard (she danced as a soloist for the second time). Usually in this part, ballerinas exploit the image of a vamp woman, but Ibraimova was more like an athlete and a Komsomol member, the smile never left her lips for a second, and the men who were supposed to worship the soloist treated her like a sports equipment. Naturally, the dancer dominated the stage.
“Rubies” were choreographed for a small, nimble dancer with fine movements. Lantratov – dancer modern type: tall, well stretched, with a big jump and a wide range of movements, and Rubin’s part in his performance, while maintaining the same energy, sparkled in a new way, acquiring, in addition to stage freedom, also scope.
Vladislav Lantratov danced and played in “Rubies” infectiously and playfully. The debut took place on the eve of his twenty-eighth birthday, and this is symptomatic - the dancer entered the period of maturity in the full flowering of his universal talent.
Unlike Lantratov, the other debutant of “Jewelry” that excited everyone this evening is at the very beginning of her career. In “Diamonds,” her first ballerina role was performed by this year’s Vaganova School graduate, Alena Kovaleva, who had just joined the Bolshoi troupe.
Before “Diamonds,” she appeared on the Bolshoi stage in a small solo part, and immediately “Diamonds” is the most prestigious part of “Jewels” in Russia. The famous “diamonds” of the Bolshoi troupe, Svetlana Zakharova and Olga Smirnova, dance on the same stage. Alena admires Ulyana Lopatkina, but this was not noticeable from Kovaleva’s own performance: it was without a shadow of epigonism, without any references to those who had already danced “Diamonds” before her.
Apart from an occasional appearance on the theater stage, this evening Alena Kovaleva was actually presented to the general Moscow public for the first time as a Bolshoi ballerina, and it turned out to be a breathtaking spectacle. Very tall, almost as tall as her partner, but with a graceful physique, the young ballerina has such rare beauty that one could simply walk across the stage and it would still bring great pleasure.
But she danced with almost no discounts on her status and age. For a debutante, she was quite confident, musically sensitive, perhaps, but the interaction with her partner was not entirely seamless, which is excusable for a recent graduate of a ballet school. She was given the most experienced Alexander Volchkov as her partner, with whom Zakharova usually dances this ballet. Volchkov reliably and delicately looked after the ballerina, there were no chemicals, but also no emergency situations.
According to Moscow tradition, this role, which is status-bearing for ballerinas, is danced mainly by graduates of the Vaganova School, led by Svetlana Zakharova, the only exception is Ekaterina Krysanova, a ballerina with Moscow training, but in “Rubies” she looks more organic.
Zakharova has not danced this ballet for a long time, and the most notable Diamond is Olga Smirnova, a graduate of the ARB five years ago, from the last season of the Bolshoi prima. But, despite the same school, there is a gulf between Smirnov’s and Kovalev’s performances: Olga in “Diamonds,” the queen, is proud and unapproachable, expressive and baroque, every pose is fixed and brought to the absolute, and Alena is a young princess who looks like someone who has not yet blossomed a bud of a beautiful flower, surrounded by a mystery that promises a lot, a young girl on the verge of blossoming, her style was soft and feminine.
The show of the new ballerina went very well, of course, this is still a sketch, we will wait for the bud to bloom and turn into beautiful flower. Femininity is in short supply in the theater.
