March, 21, 2014. Issue No. 258March 20-25th - the premiere series of performance Lady of the Camellias March 30 - the ballet "Marco Spada" will be broadcast in cinemas around the worldArmand - Edvin Revazov, the premier of the Hamburg Ballet. Photo: Elena FetisovaBolshoi Theatre UK Cinema Ticket Marguerite - Svetlana Zakharova. Photo: Elena Fetisova"Lady of the Camellias" at the Bolshoi TheatreNewsletter In Russia everyone has surely heard about it, but the only time the audience saw the ballet was at the celebrations marking the 300 anniversary of Saint Petersburg. Now this story about love and death is on the Bolshoi playbill. Neumeier made the whole company fall in love with his "Lady". Not a thing escapes his attention. He runs into Semyon Chudin and notices that his make-up is not exactly right. The choreographer is very precise with the details that create the atmosphere and the mood. However, he does not consider his ballets to be museum pieces. The choreographer says: "It is important for me that my productions are up to date. No antiquity. That is why I am trying to convince both the artists and the audience that this plot is modern. I consider that this story about the atonement of love could happen Anna Tikhomirova says: "During the performance my costume becomes older and older, it turns into rags, just like my hairdo and make-up. I have three costumes, which are the same, and they become worn-out". At the last rehearsal Neumeier did not hide his tears when he was talking about Marguerite. He astonished the Bolshoi artists with his sincerity and feeling. He first staged this story for Marcia Haydée, John Cranko's widow, and has not let go of Marguerite, even though almost forty years have passed. The Bolshoi Theatre soloist Kristina Kretova says: "He is the person staged this ballet so many years ago, and he still feels the same for the heroine; I was so touched that I could not help crying myself". The music by Chopin is another trump card of "Lady of the Camellias". Neumeier did not use the score by Verdi and Liszt which everyone is used to on purpose. It seems that the waltzes and sonatas by Chopin were composed for this particular story that the Bolshoi company has fallen in love with once and forever. Text: Olga Svistunova The Bolshoi Theatre presented the Russian premiere of the ballet "Lady of the Camellias" by John Neumeier This big plot-based ballet in three acts with a prologue is based on the novel by Alexander Dumas fils. "Lady of the Camellias" was danced on the Bolshoi Theatre Historic Stage for the first time. This was the Russian premiere of John Neumeier's most famous ballet; the choreographer staged this production in Moscow himself. John Neumeier told the journalists: 'I think that this production suits the Bolshoi Theatre Historic Stage very well, so I agreed to stage "Lady of the Camellias" here of all other ballets". He has worked at the Bolshoi Theatre only once; in 2004 he staged "A Midsummer Night's Dream" that stared the Bolshoi prima Svetlana Zakharova. She also performs the main role in "Lady of the Camellias". Neumeier continued: "When I started working on this production, I chose Svetlana March, 212014Newsletter This is a large plot-based ballet in three acts with a prologue; it is based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The production uses the music of Frederic Chopin. The set was created by Jürgen Rose, who has been the permanent co-author of production staged by John Cranko and later John Neumeier. All these factors ensured the phenomenal success of the production. During the 35 years of its existence it has become one of the most popular ballets in the world; it has been performed by the best dancers in many countries. The production is included in the repertoire of the American Ballet Theatre, the Paris Opera, the Bavarian State Opera, Teatro alla Scala Ballet and other leading companies of the world. Now "Lady of the Camellias", which has been recognized by international critics as a true masterpiece, is on the Bolshoi Theatre playbill as well. The famous choreographer John Neumeier staged "Lady of the Camellias" at the Bolshoi Theatre On March 20 the grand premiere took place at the Bolshoi Theatre. The audience was presented with the ballet "Lady of the Camellias", staged by John Neumeier, the world famous ballet master. This is not the first time that the American choreographer works with the main theatre of Russia; in 2004 he staged "A Midsummer Night's Dream", based on the play by Shakespeare, at the Bolshoi. Neumeier's "Lady of the Camellias" has been staged many times. This ballet was first presented in 1978. Since that time the choreographer has staged it at the biggest theatres in the world; each ballerina dreams of dancing the part of Marguerite Gautier. According to Neumeier himself, not a single production of "Lady of the Camellias" is similar to another one. He always tries to base his production on the artists that he works with, because the same ballet roles look different when performed by different people and convey different emotions. "Lady of the Camellias" has three casts. Svetlana Zakharova performed the main female role at the opening night performance. The ballet is based on the novel "Lady of the Camellias" by Dumas fils (1878). It uses the music of the great Chopin. The ballet "Lady of the Camellias" by John Neumeier premiered at the Bolshoi Theatre The ballet "Lady of the Camellias", based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas and choreographed by John Neumeier to the music by Frederick Chopin, premiered on the Bolshoi Theatre Historic Stage on Thursday. Before the premiere the creators and participants of the famous production talked to journalists about bringing this ballet to the Russian stage. The world premiere of "Lady of the Camellias" took place in 1978 in Stuttgart. In 1981 Neumeier created the new version of the ballet for the Hamburg Ballet. Since that time the production has never disappeared from playbills in Hamburg and was shown on many stages around the world. The choreographer created the renewed version for the Bolshoi Theatre and came to Moscow to work with the Bolshoi artists. The choreographer said: "I hope very much that the production looked different on the opening night. This is how I treat the art of ballet and my own productions: I always try to make them look fresh. It is obvious that we should not regard it as a museum piece; we should perceive it here and now, as it is being performed by the Bolshoi Theatre artists". Neumeier also said that the Bolshoi Ballet artistic director Sergei Filin was the one who had the idea to stage "Lady of the Camellias". He mentioned: "I think that this production suits the Historic Stage very much. The main thing for me was to convince the artists, that this plot can exist today as well, and this story about the atonement of love could happen today as well Svetlana Zakharova performed the main female role on the opening night. Neumeier stressed that from the very beginning he thought that she should perform the part of Marguerite Gautier. He said: "The working process was rather long. Svetlana came to Hamburg three times, and we worked on this role in detail. I am very happy to see the results that she has achieved and to see how easily she can express her emotions in this role". Zakharova admitted that she was happy to cooperate with the outstanding choreographer. The ballerina said: "Those six months that we were working together were unforgettable. It is not the first time I have worked with John, and I am always amazed at his internal state, I mean, the way he lives and understands art. He put so much tenderness and feeling into this production! Everything is pure, tender, touching, and the smallest details have been paid attention to. I hope very much that the audience can feel it the way we do". The opening night performance starred the Hamburg Ballet premier Edvin Revazov as Zakharova's partner. Other roles were performed by the Bolshoi Theatre soloists Anna Tikhomirova, Semyon Chudin and others. The premiere performances of "Lady of the Camellias" will take place from March 20 to March 23, and also on March 25 The Bolshoi Theatre captivates the audience with "Lady of the Camellias" On March 20 the grand premiere took place at the Bolshoi Theatre; the audience was presented the ballet "Lady of the Camellias", staged by the great ballet master John Neumeier. The famous ballet that is performed at the best theatres in the world, the equally famous ballet master and the music by the great Chopin - it looks like there are all the components for a tremendous success. This is the second production brought by Neumeier to the Bolshoi: in 2004 he staged "A Midsummer Night's Dream", based on the play by Shakespeare. "Lady of the Camellias" is based on the same-name novel, composed by Dumas fils in 1848. Many ballerinas in the world dream of dancing the role of the Paris courtesan Marguerite Gautier, who is dying from tuberculosis. There are three casts at the Bolshoi Theatre. Svetlana Zakharova danced the main female role on the opening night. "Vechernaya Moskva" talked to the ballerina about the details of the preparation process. - Svetlana, is this ballet difficult in terms of choreography? - Yes, it is. There are many complicated lifts in this difficult three-act ballet; we also need to have pinpoint accuracy in pas de deux! Of course, this role is also difficult in terms of dramaturgy, but it is very interesting at the same time as well. - How long have you been rehearsing? - We started learning the choreography last December; as for the rehearsal process, there were some intervals. John Neumeier and his assistants came to the Bolshoi. I also went to Hamburg, because my partner Edvin Revazov lives there. I learned my part there, then Edvin came to Moscow. John has long been rehearsing with everyone, with corps de ballets and the main characters. It seems that he is at the March, 212014FlashNord The main characters of the fairy tales are ballet shoes, lighting equipment, stage mechanisms that fight with theatre cats, and even buns that ballerinas treat themselves to. As the author said during the presentation, her daughter Nadia inspired her for this debut and came up with the name for one of the characters, the mouse Shu-Shu. Nadia's favorite fairy tale is the one about Frog the Ballerina, who lived in the fountain and then got to the Bolshoi Theatre. Ilze Liepa also talked about the large-scale project "The Nutcracher" that she decided to carry out together with her brother Andris Liepa. They plan to stage this magnificent choreographic fairy tale at the Manezh shopping center in Moscow during winter vacation. The designer Pavel Kaplevich is working on the set. The Mikhailovsky Theatre premier Ivan Vasiliev will dance in several performances. The idea is make this production an overture for the Year of Pyotr I. Tchaikovsky. Ilze Liepa said: "For us this "Nutcracker" is similar to the famous project "The Three Tenors", when tens of thousands of people all over the world became opera fans after they listened to Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras". Ilze Liepa presented her book of fairy tales in Saint Petersburg presented her book of fairy tales and talked about her gala The anniversary gala of Ilze Liepa, a People's Artist of Russia, will take place on April 4 at the Grand Concert Hall Oktyabrsky. It will mark the 30 anniversary of her creative career. Andris Liepa, Nikolai Tsiskaridze, Andrei Batalov, Ekaterina Shipulina, Egor Druzhinin and many others will come onstage together with Ilze Liepa The program of the concert includes: pas de deux from ballets "Sleeping Beauty", "The Nutcracker", "Spartacus", "Swan Lake" and "Giselle". The audience will also be presented the one-act ballet "Prélude Г l'après-midi d'un faune".Newsletter obvious (smiles). There is only one thing I can say for sure: this is a very interesting period. This is a real intense working process. I guess, we have not had such time at the Bolshoi Theatre for a long time. For reference: John Neumeier, the European choreographer of American origin, has staged more than a hundred ballets all over the world. The first time he staged "Lady of the Camellias" was for Stuttgart Ballet in 1978; this was a way to pay the tribute to the memory of the Stuttgart Ballet artistic director John Cranko, who suddenly died at the age of 45. Later the ballet "travelled" all over the world: it was staged at the Paris Opera, the Royal Danish Ballet, the Bavarian State Ballet, Teatro alla Scala Ballet, the American Ballet Theatre… it is hard to count, how many interpretations of "Lady of the Camellias" there have been. The Minister of Culture congratulated the Bolshoi theatre General Director on his birthday The Ministry of Culture website reports that the Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky congratulated the Bolshoi Theatre General Director Vladimir Urin, who turned 67 on Wednesday, on his birthday. The telegram of congratulations says: "Not only are you the custodian of the Russian culture, but the creator of our new history as well. Possessing great knowledge and invaluable experience, you rule the Bolshoi Theatre, this tower of strength of Russian cultural traditions, successfully. I wish you creative discoveries and further success with all your initiatives!" Vladimir Urin was born on March 19 1947. He is an Honored Art Worker of the Russian Federation. He started his career in 1973 when he was appointed Director of the Theatre for Youth in Kirov (Vyatka). In 1981 he moved to Moscow where he was appointed Head of the Youth and Puppet Theatres Department of the All-Union Theater Society (now the Theater Union of Russia). Mr. Urin developed and put into life the idea of establishing the national professional theatre award "The Golden Mask". In 1995 Mr. Urin was appointed General Director of the Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theater. In July of 2013 he was appointed the Bolshoi Theatre General Director. Ilze Liepa presented her book "Theatre Fairy Tales" in Saint Petersburg The Saint Petersburg audience has first seen the Bolshoi Theatre soloist and a People's Artist of Russia Ilze Liepa as a fairy tale writer. The presentation of her first literary work, the book "Theatre Fairy Tales", illustrated by Anastasia Orlova, was organized in Saint Petersburg. This book is a kind of invitation to the world of theatre. Mass media about the Theatre March, 212014Newsletter Digest has been compiled by The Bolshoi Theatre Press Office Photos: Damir Yusupov and Mikhail Logvinov Design layout: Vladimir AndrusenkoAll materials used in the digest are the public domain of information agencies, mass media, civil society organizations and government At the press-conference the ballerina talked about her plans and declared her love of Saint Petersburg, as she announced that this production had to be shown in this particular city, because "it has a different audience, an educated one". The Bolshoi Theatre soloist also promised that the gala would not be limited to ballet performances. Even though the Grand Concert Hall Oktyabrsky is big, the gala is supposed to be private and family-like. According to Ilze, if what is happening onstage can help create the necessary atmosphere in the audience, one should not be afraid of this space. Ilze Liepa also presented the book for children that she wrote; it is entitled "Theatre Fairy Tales", has great pictures by Boris Diodorov and was published this January. The ballerina wrote almost all the fairy tales when she was expecting her daughter Nadia; the little girl also asked her mother to write one particular fairy tale about Frog the Ballerina that lived in the theatre fountain and then got to the Bolshoi Theatre. The action of all the fairy tales is connected with the Theatre; one of them answers the question that many are so interested in - do the ballerinas eat pastry, or not? Ilze read to the journalists the fairy tale "Buns", which is the shortest in the book. It turned out that even though ballerinas are not allowed to eat pastry, tasty buns with icing disappear from the theatre canteen quickly - opera singers eat them quickly. After the ballerina finished reading, someone from the audience suggested to her to record an audio version of her book - clearly, she would do it wonderfully. It was also announced for the first time that the People's Artist was going to bring the ballet "The Nutcracker" to Saint Petersburg as part of the project "Culture for Children". The ballet will premiere on the New Year's Eve; the year of 2015 will become the year of Tchaikovsky. It is planned that about 4 thousand children will be able to attend the performance. The organizers have the goal of making art accessible for children. Analysis of articles published March 19 2014 Ismene Brown the Arts Desk Critics writes in her blog based on Russian media reports about the new labour agreement that is being prepared at the Bolshoi Theatre. Londondance.com writes about ballet on the big screen and says the filming of the Bolshoi Ballet's performances is outstanding. The report says that The Sleeping Beauty beamed live from the stage of the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and stars Svetlana Zakharova and David Hallberg, two of the greatest dancers of this generation. The article written by Graham Watts says that the Bolshoi Ballet's Marco Spada will be transmitted live on 30 March in cinemas. The report says that the films of the Royal Ballet have changed their format- probably because they want to be more similar to "the resounding success that the Bolshoi's multi-lingual Head of Press, Katerina Novikova, has had in keeping the Pathé Live broadcasts flowing through the intervals with a succession of interviews… by the elegant Novikova, effortlessly rattling through three languages. Her interviews with the Bolshoi's artistic director, Sergei Filin, in the first Jewels intermission and with both Hallberg and Lost Illusions composer Leonid Desyatnikov during that ballet were fascinating." The report also likes it that the cameras show the dancers back stage or people walking around in the front of the theatre saying it is very interesting. The report says that the Pathe broadcasts are much better for the parts during the intervals between the acts of the ballet both in terms of the presenter Novikova and the materials that are presented. Nizhny Novgorod mass media: The Bolshoi Theatre soloist Roman Muravitsky will perform the part of Vodemon in the opera "Iolanta" by Tchaikovsky at the Nizhny Novgorod Opera and Ballet Theatre for the first time. The laureate of "Nizhny Novgorod Pearl" award Uliana Starkova will perform the part of Iolanta. "Iolanta" is Tchaikovsky's last opera. It is based on Heinrich Hertz's dramatic poem "Koenig Renes Tochter". Nizhny Novgorod opera fans gave a massive ovation to Roman Muravitsky after the great performance of the part of German in "The Queen of Spades". He conquered the audience with his skill and posture, having performed the part of Jose in "Carmen" and Pinkerton in "Madame Butterfly". The audience also remembered his Radames in the premiere performance of Verdi's "Aida", when the singer demonstrated impeccable professionalism and dramatic acting. In brief |
Main Stage
1 Teatralnaya ploschad (1 Theatre Square), Moscow, Russia
New Stage
Bol'shaya Dmitrovka Street, 4/2, Moscow, Russia