Blood, sweat and machine: one day in the life of a Bolshoi ballerina. Diana Vishneva’s teacher Lyudmila Kovaleva: “Those who do not get fat are taken to ballet You danced Masha - the leading role - in The Nutcracker
Face to face
On July 13, the ballerina DIANA VISHNEVA turned thirty years old. Today Vishneva is not just an international star, but (in my opinion) she has no equal in the world ballet, at least among the dancers of her generation. Now she has reached the age when the true flowering of a creative personality on stage begins.
Diana was born into a family that belonged to the scientific intelligentsia: her parents, Guzal and Viktor Vishnev, are chemists. The older sister Oksana is a translator and lives and works with her husband in Australia.
Mom wanted her daughter to dance. She brought Diana to the Leningrad Choreographic School (now the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet). The girl was not taken to school ... But Vishneva's fate was predetermined from above. On her way, she constantly met people endowed with a special look at art. First of all, this is Lyudmila Kovaleva, a school teacher (formerly a dancer of the Kirov Ballet), who did not agree with the decision of the selection committee, began to study with the girl privately, prepared her for a new entry to the school, where Diana continued to study in Kovaleva's class. Kovaleva became, as it were, her “godmother” in ballet, rehearsing roles with her even when Vishneva became a ballerina. Then three people who occupy a special place in Russian ballet art drew attention to the student: a unique Russian dancer, choreographer, Nikita Dolgushin staged a duet from Romeo and Juliet for a fifth grade student Vishneva and a student from Canada; the artistic director of the Academy, the late Igor Belsky (formerly an outstanding character dancer of the Kirov Theater and an innovative choreographer) not only composed a solo number for Diana, but also supported the little student and her teacher in all their creative endeavors. And, finally, Oleg Vinogradov is the artistic director of the ballet troupe of the Mariinsky Theatre. Vinogradov, like Belsky, had an unmistakable instinct: the ability to guess the talent in novice artists. He gave Diana to dance leading roles in the theater repertoire even before the girl graduated from school. Arriving in Canada for the festival as a seventeen-year-old aspiring dancer, Diana (by the will of the same fate) replaced the ill ballerina in a duet with Vladimir Malakhov, already then an international ballet star. It was a meeting of "two halves", two artists destined for each other on the ballet stage.
And, of course, her parents always supported her.
Vishneva's first international recognition came in 1994, when she was awarded the "Grand Prix" at a prestigious competition for students of ballet schools in Lausanne. Then she was accepted as an intern at the Mariinsky Ballet.
In 1996 she was awarded international award- "Divine" - as the best dancer in Russia. The award was established by the Russian-American theater agency Ardani Artist. Since then, agency chairman Sergey Danilyan has been working with Vishneva on various theater projects and is its American impresario.
International awards (for example, the “Best Ballerina of the Year” award from the European magazine “Dance Magazine”, “Grand Prix” at the Benois de la Danse competition), as well as Russian ones (“Golden Soffit”, “ golden mask”) followed one after the other. But this does not mean that the life of a ballerina is easy. For this, Vishneva is too bright, too creatively independent, too beautiful ... She has everything in abundance. She is always looking for her way, and it cannot be easy for such “lawless comets” in the complex theatrical world ... There are enough obstacles in her way. Fate helped Vishneva take this path, but she has to go on her own ... But today is her birthday, we will only talk about happy events in her life.
The ballerina dances in many theaters of the world. For the second year now, she has been performing in New York as an invited guest with the best American troupe - the American Ballet Theatre, winning more and more recognition and love not only from the audience, but also from critics of various persuasions.
Vishneva is a real ballerina of the 21st century, in her style of performance they found a harmonious combination of “the current century and the past century”. Vishneva is not only a brilliant dancer, but also has a rare acting talent, a deep and multifaceted, bright stage temperament, an equally rare gift for the finest nuances and a lively acting fantasy. Fantasy - this "perpetual motion machine" of the actress - leads her from role to role, not allowing her to repeat herself. “The last performance is dead, it is no more,” she says. Therefore, no matter how many times she dances the same part, each performance is a premiere. And in each role - complete self-immolation... Such a life in art cannot be easy...
In my long life as a theater spectator, I have had the good fortune to see really great dancers on stage and even to witness them. creative way from the very beginning. Among them is Diana Vishneva.
On July 10, Vishneva danced the last ballet in this New York season - Romeo and Juliet - and in the last days before leaving she managed to give me an interview especially for the readers of the Russian Bazaar.
N.A.: How did you get into Mariinskii Opera House? Who invited you?
D.V. It all started with a competition in Lausanne in 1994, when I was still studying at the Ballet Academy. Then my “baptism of fire” happened: Igor Dmitrievich Belsky staged the number “Carmen” for me for the competition. After the competition, Vinogradov took me as a trainee to the theater troupe, when I was still studying at the Academy. He believed that I would be a ballerina. And suddenly, when I was in the last grade of the Academy, Vinogradov said to me: “Prepare Kitri in Don Quixote.
N.A.: How old were you?
DV: Seventeen. It was so unexpected. There was a month and a half left before the performance. And every sane person in the school said: this is unrealistic! But Vinogradov said: "Try it!". And he said it like that, as if it goes without saying: everything will work out. And after the performance, he told me: “Well, you made a fuss!”
N.A.: That is, from the very beginning it was “not like everyone else”?
DV: It all started with this performance. But I did not dream of the role of Kitri. Actually, I had already seen Western cassettes and I wanted to dance something completely new.
N.A.: And in the repertoire of the theatre?
DV: I wanted to dance Aurora in Sleeping Beauty. Back in the fifth grade at school, Belsky suggested: “Take the four gentlemen, learn the adagio and the exit of Aurora.” The boys in this class have not yet been able to dance a duet. That is, I was always somehow led forward. And then I also saw a cassette: Sylvie Guillem dancing "Pas de deux" by Aubert. Gilem blew me away! I turned to Belsky for permission to dance this pas de deux, and he told me: “Well, you were completely stunned!” (This is a difficult pas de deux danced by world stars. - N.A.). But he allowed it. And I always wanted to dance what amazed me, and what was difficult.
N.A.: When did Vinogradov invite you to play the role of Cinderella in his ballet?
DW: I danced the premiere in Korea once, and then I was supposed to dance Cinderella on the MET theater tour in 1995. But before that, I passed state exams, graduated from the Academy. And it was a big load. My leg hurt. And I couldn't dance in America. But these tours were just a turning point in the theater. After them came a new leader, Mahar Vaziev. And I found myself in such a strange position ... everything seems to be fine, but nothing seems to have happened. I am still without a teacher. Vinogradov invited Kovaleva to the theater, but under the new director this invitation seemed to have never happened. And I myself approached Olga Chenchikova and asked her to rehearse with me.
N.A.: How did your relationship with Vaziev develop?
DV: Vaziev always treats me with understanding, he sees that I know what I want. I immediately began to prepare the leading repertoire. Naturally, she never stood in the corps de ballet. I danced what I wanted, what I was drawn to.
N.A.: Why did you first dance Swan Lake in other countries, and only last season at the Mariinsky Theatre?
D.V .: When I already began to go on private tours to Berlin, Volodya Malakhov invited me to perform with him in Swan Lake. I was even glad that I could first dance Odette / Odile in another theater, and then at the Mariinsky. Then I danced this ballet in other theaters, last season with the American Ballet Theatre. After that, Valery Gergiev invited me to perform at Swan Lake at the opening of the season at the Mariinsky.
NA: Was it easy to dance in your theater?
DV: No, it was difficult for me, but the troupe helped me, they treat me wonderfully. Because when a ballerina is on the stage, they themselves “turn on” from this, this raises the mood of the whole performance.
N.A.: But, they say, no one after " swan lake"Didn't come to congratulate you?
DV: Indeed, no one approached me except Ulyana Lopatkina. The corps de ballet was in shock, everyone was talking about it. Not everyone here knows what theatrical ethics is.
N.A.: Mariinsky Theatre! There, everything that goes beyond their standards does not exist for them.
DV: But I can’t be a standard ballerina, well, I can’t, I don’t have the right mindset, the wrong body, the wrong understanding, the wrong worldview, if everything turned out smoothly and well, I’m not interested. So it was in childhood and at school: everyone sits exactly in the classroom, and I - in a different way, everyone raises their hand exactly, and I pull. Otherwise I can't. And my teacher has always supported me in this. And dance for me is a certain life feeling and perception of life.
NA: How did you start working in the West?
DV: I went to gala concerts a lot. In Canada (organizers - Nadya Veselova and Solomon Tenser. - N.A.), where Vinogradov sent us, I met with Volodya Malakhov. We danced Vision of the Rose. And we immediately had an attraction on the stage, and we felt it, and the audience. I wanted to keep dancing together. But I never wanted to leave the theatre. In addition to the current repertoire, we began to appear a lot of Western productions, it was interesting to me. Here, everything has been seen for a long time, but for us the ballets of Balanchine, Roland Petou, MacMillan, Forsyth have become a discovery.
NA: Now you have danced "Swan Lake" in many countries of the world. It's hard to change editions like this?
DV: It is difficult, as soon as you begin to understand what needs to be done in this edition, what to pay more attention to, the performance is over, and you are going to dance the next edition. Each edition has a different style, you have to find it.
DV: Which edition of Swan Lake do you like to dance more?
DV: I am very comfortable in the ballets of Patrice Barthes and Yuri Nikolaevich Grigorovich. Especially the last act is important, where there is a beautiful adagio. At the Mariinsky Theatre, unfortunately, this is not the case. In our country, these parts are danced as a performance of certain poses, canons. In our performance, the integrity of the role does not work, there is not enough material for this. I think our editorial needs to be revised. Although the American version is very far from perfect, it is still more interesting to dance.
NA: You danced Giselle, Manon, Juliet in New York so emotionally. How do you prepare, how do you get into character?
DV: This has been going on for years. This does not mean that I do not specially prepare or tune in before this performance. But I have a certain computer in my head, everything is postponed there from performance to performance, from all “slightly”, from all editions, from the environment. I work with a huge number of people, and they all give me something.
N.A.: So when do you start to get into the role?
DV: I am gradually entering. Another thing is that I am always afraid, I always think: how will it be today? How do I get my role out of the huge baggage that I have today? The main thing is that it should be mine, my reality of unreality, so that I can convey both the time that is in the performance and the feeling of plasticity. I really like to watch others dance, while I see myself, pictures immediately appear before my eyes: here you have to stand like this ... here it’s different ... and when I’m on stage - I have a lot of impromptu, but he also arises as a result of what I have rehearsed, in a word, from a kaleidoscope. Sometimes one word from a tutor is enough for me, and it becomes clear to me what needs to be added, what needs to be removed.
N.A .: Returning again to that first Giselle that you danced with Malakhov ... So you went on stage, and does an impulse arise immediately ... Or is the performance going gradually?
DV: Gradually. Another thing is that during the performance it suddenly seems: something does not add up. Sometimes it's a delusional feeling, sometimes there's some little thing that throws you off. For example, this was the case before the beginning of the adagio of Odile and the Prince in Swan Lake. I usually go out more discreetly. And here I came out smiling, because there was such an incident. Before leaving, Jose Careno and I, as expected, wished each other good luck and kissed, I turn to him - and my red lips are imprinted on his entire cheek! And already the music, I have to go out, and I try to erase the lipstick and laugh, but I came out laughing. Anything can happen on stage. In our profession, you have to be strong and enduring, this is not fairy tale as many people think.
N.A.: So, when does the performance take shape?
DV: In the process of rehearsal. Much depends on the partner. It is very important to build contact with a partner, sometimes it is very difficult. It is very important for me what my partner does, I need to know his plasticity, how he reacts to some moments that are important to me. If it's not the way I'm used to, I myself need to change something.
NA: What partners do you like to dance with?
DV: Of course, first of all with Malakhov, at the Mariinsky Theater - with Andrian Fadeev, Andrei Merkuriev, Igor Kolb.
End on page 63
Start on page 60
N.A.: And how was the partnership with Ruzimatov?
D.V .: It was insanely hard to dance with Farukh, it was insanely hard to rehearse, everything is always under such stress ... but everything went well on stage. There was always contact, it was such a partnership, as if we were dancing at the last limit of spiritual tension ...
NA: And in New York, who would you like to dance with?
DV: I have many different partners here, but I have been dancing here for too long, there has not yet been such a duet for me to say: here it is!
N.A .: And how do you get out of the role after the performance, after such tension ...
DV: Well, then you can't sleep at night, of course, from excitement. And on the second or third day, especially when there is such a big load, not exactly devastation sets in, but you start to think that everything was so terrible, everything was not like that, you want to change everything that you did. You seem to have decided everything before the performance, and after the performance you begin to think: what an idiot you were, everything had to be done wrong ... And you want to quit everything altogether. In a word, after the performance comes disappointment.
NA: Then it goes away?
DV: It passes, especially if there is interesting work ahead.
N.A.: But there may be the same performance ahead ...
DV: Anyway, there is never the same performance, because the previous one has already died.
NA: Do you like the repertoire that you dance in ABT?
DV: I really like America in general. Of course, it is very difficult here, not to compare with any other theater the pace at which they work here. Here I can get a lot, which is not available anywhere else, you begin to appreciate it.
NA: And how does MacKenzie (artistic director of ABT) feel about you?
DV: He goes to all my performances, it is interesting to work with him, he always says sensible things. As soon as I arrived, he invited me into his office to talk about the next season, and I have not danced a single performance yet. And he said: “I would like, of course, that you were busy in all the performances”
N.A.: In Berlin, you danced Bejart's Ring Around the Ring... This is a completely different direction in ballet. Is it difficult for a classical ballerina to dance Bejart?
DV: Difficult. For the first time I danced barefoot, then on my fingers, then again barefoot ... I prepared two parts at the same time. I didn't sleep at night. Every half an hour I went under a cold shower to make my legs feel better. Then I got used to it. When I began to rehearse Bejart's ballet, it was a revelation for me. This work gave me such an impetus to understanding choreography, philosophy in a ballet performance...
NA: Do you travel so much when you have time for your personal life?
D.V .: In my personal life, I experienced strong love, such love when you love with all your heart ... But the person I loved betrayed me. Terribly hard, but my work helped me. Now everything is fine, but it will be even better, I'm sure of it. I have no regrets, I am free and full of life.
NA: In each country you study in a new class, the teaching system is different. It's difficult?
DV: No, it helps me a lot, especially in France and America. Our school is very good when you are young, you are 18 years old. Then it's enough. In France, great attention is paid to the feet, in America - to balance and rotation. When you learn something new, it is such happiness. I always strive to take today everything that life gives and use it to the maximum.
N.A.: And what about choreographers in Russia?
DV: The theater allows young choreographers to try their hand. In recent years, Alexei Ratmansky staged Cinderella on me, then Pierre Lacotte - his Ondine, but I didn’t dance this ballet: I fell ill before the premiere. But, of course, that's not enough...
NA: The fact that you weren't filmed on DVD in Don Quixote and Jewels, but as some young girl, is a crime.
D.V. (laughs): So you will keep everything in memory.
Author's photo
Alena, can you introduce yourself in a few words?
My name is Alena Kovaleva. I'm 17 years old. I am from Saint Petersburg, Russia. Last year I became a student at the Vaganov Academy, after finishing seven classes. (Alena explains the education system, which has recently been changed. Previously, they studied for nine years: seven years - complete secondary professional education and two years - higher. Now getting higher education takes three years, of which one year is training, after which students can go to work in theaters, completing their studies for two years on a free schedule).
Who do you study with at the Academy?
My teacher at the Academy is Yulia Kasenkova. But I came to Lausanne with Irina Sitnikova, a professor at the Academy who teaches with another participant in the competition (Laura Fernandez-Gromova).
The academy has advised you to take part inprixdeLausanneor was it your own desire?
In fact, I already submitted an application last year, but due to certain circumstances, I could not take part in the competition. Therefore, this year I spoke with my teachers and the rector, and they gave me their consent. Of course, everyone comes to Lausanne with the hope of winning the competition, or at least to show off, but for me the most important thing is to gain experience and work with new teachers. The teachers here are different than in our Academy.
Did you have the opportunity to talk about the competition with last year's candidates - Elena Solomyanko and Dmitry Zadorozhny?
Yes! Elena now works in the theater (MAMT in Moscow), but we talked about the competition. It was a positive experience for her and she gave me some advice.
What variations do you play? And why were they chosen?
In classical dance I perform Gamzatti's variation from La Bayadère, and in contemporary dance I perform a variation from Richard Verloc's The Rite of Spring. The choice of variations was a compromise between my teachers, but the initiative still came from me. I think technically the Gamzatti variation suits me. I am very interested in creating the image of this proud princess. The variation contains quite complex elements but she is very effective on stage. As for the modern variation, the first for me was the music of Stravinsky, which is very close to me. This music is very close to the Russian soul! I was also interested in immersing myself in this wild world, the world before civilization. It's also a bit like the creepy dance of the Chosen One. A dance where you always have to be on the alert, because there is danger behind it, and death awaits. It is very interesting to create such a world on stage.
Alena Kovaleva, Gamzatti's variation from the ballet "La Bayadère" (selection round).
Alena Kovaleva, variation from the ballet "The Rite of Spring" (selection round).
How did you prepare for these variations? And for the competition as a whole?
This year is very busy for me, because this is my Last year year of graduation from the Academy. Traditionally, we always have a series of performances at The Nutcracker before the New Year. Therefore, we started preparations after the New Year. We didn't have time to rehearse before. I prepared for two weeks leading up to the contest. And during this time I was completely immersed in the preparation for the competition.
Did you dance Masha - the lead role - in The Nutcracker?
I'm very tall and we haven't found a partner for me (laughs). This is not a problem at the Mariinsky Theatre, but at school - yes! I danced solo in the oriental dance and was in the four in the waltz. And also played a leading role in "The Doll Fairy" - it was the premiere of the Academy.
Are the classical lessons in Lausanne different from what you are used to at the Academy?
Yes. Of course, the basics are the same here. But the ligaments, the sequence of movements that are imprinted in the body - all this is different. It's interesting because later in the theater we will have to work with different choreography. This is also good, because it makes you work with your brains, makes you think quickly.
What is your past? How did you get introduced to dance?
There are no dancers in my family. My mother thought - it's good that I dance - for the body, for the back, to learn how to be graceful. I started taking classes at a private school. Then I was offered to go to preparatory courses at the Vaganova Academy. I was six, and when I arrived, I saw people crying, it all shocked me a little. I was scared, but in the end I was accepted. I took courses and gradually began to enjoy dancing. These preparatory courses lasted three years, and then at the age of ten I entered the Academy, where I continue to study.
What do you dream about after school? Do you want to join the Mariinsky Theatre?
I do not know yet. Of course, the Mariinsky is dear to my heart. I have known this stage since childhood, and now we are dancing on it. But I would like to find a theater that would be interested in me, in my personality. I want someone to find something special in me that would allow me to grow further.
Are you not afraid to get lost in the corps de ballet?
No I'm not afraid. But I want people to really want to work with me in the theatre, where I go.
Are there ballets or roles that you dream of?
In classical ballet - of course, "Swan Lake", I would also like to dance in the ballet "Young Man and Death".
Are there any ballerinas you like that inspire you the most?
Ulyana Lopatkina!
Source and original interview in French: dansomanie.net February 5, 2016
Photo: Gregory Batardon and sophia (dansomanie.net)
Rehearsals all day long, joint pain, diets and an evening appearance on stage. The life of ballerinas is sweat and blood. But despite this, they are all ready to devote themselves to their favorite work. RIA Novosti spent the whole day with the ballerina Bolshoi Theater Alena Kovaleva.
I usually get up at 9 in order to be at the theater by 11 in the morning. 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 love sweets. And I don't have a diet. But if I feel that I need to lose weight, then I cut something, it allows me to get in shape. I manage it myself. Of course, I weigh myself, but not every day.
During the day I eat three times, but sometimes because of the rehearsals I don’t have time, and then I have to intercept something on the go. Sometimes you run like this all day, you are already ready to eat both a sandwich and a pie. But with such a load, a lot of things burn out on their own. We can sometimes afford more than most people think.
In the theater, my day starts with class. It's like a lesson: we warm up, work out the movements, get ready for the working day. Then rehearsals begin - solo, general, corps de ballet, staged (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 are 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 staged - another hour and a half. And then another one for 40 minutes.
We rehearse with teachers. But cameras are installed in each hall, through which the head of the ballet troupe (Mahar Vaziev. - Ed.) is watching the rehearsals. He can call a special internal phone and give some recommendations to the teacher or he can come to the hall.
There is a performance in the theater tonight, but I am not dancing. In the evening I try to relax at home. I go to sleep, as it turns out. 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 for rest.
We have one day off a week - this is Monday, when the theater is traditionally closed. If there are interesting premieres in other theaters or tours, then, of course, it is interesting to go and see. But in general I try to rest on this day. I love to walk. Moscow is a new city for me, I have been living here for the first year and I do not regret that I moved. Here is the theater that I love, work, many opportunities.
MOSCOW, July 3 - RIA Novosti, Anna Kocharova. Rehearsals all day long, joint pains, diets and an evening appearance on the stage. The life of ballerinas is sweat and blood. But despite this, they are all ready to devote themselves to their favorite work. RIA Novosti spent the whole day with the ballerina of the Bolshoi Theater Alena Kovaleva.
I usually get up at 9 in order to be at the theater by 11 in the morning. 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 love sweets. And I don't have a diet. But if I feel that I need to lose weight, then I cut something, it allows me to get in shape. I manage it myself. Of course, I weigh myself, but not every day.
During the day I eat three times, but sometimes because of the rehearsals I don’t have time, and then I have to intercept something on the go. Sometimes you run like this all day, you are already ready to eat both a sandwich and a pie. But with such a load, a lot of things burn out on their own. We can sometimes afford more than most people think.
In the theater, my day starts with class. It's like a lesson: we warm up, work out the movements, get ready for the working day. Then rehearsals begin - solo, general, corps de ballet, staged (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 are 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 staged - another hour and a half. And then another one for 40 minutes.
We rehearse with teachers. But cameras are installed in each hall, through which the head of the ballet troupe (Mahar Vaziev. - Ed.) is watching the rehearsals. He can call a special internal phone and give some recommendations to the teacher or he can come to the hall.
Now I am preparing the part of Odette-Odile for "Swan Lake" (I will have a performance in the fall), and he just came in during the rehearsal.
In general, if I am preparing some part, I can sometimes start singing something, dancing, making some head movements right on the street. And sometimes you just want to warm up your back in transport, crunch with bones. People, of course, can think something wrong!
I always have two pairs of pointe shoes in my bag (main and spare), a band-aid and a thin mesh that you can bandage your finger so that it does not wear off. We always come to the rehearsal in warm-up clothes, in socks, and gradually, when the muscles are warmed up, we take it off.
Pointe shoes are selected individually. There are many different brands and models to choose from. I dance on pointe shoes, in which there is a plastic insole, due to this they are durable, they can even be washed. True, from time to time I am drawn to experiment, and I begin to try other models.
On pointe shoes, you need to sew on ribbons and elastic bands that hold the foot. You need to find the right place for you to be comfortable. Some sheathe a patch, the tip of a 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. I use one pair per month on average. This, of course, depends on the number of rehearsals.
I dance at the Bolshoi Theater for the first season. I graduated from the Academy of Russian Ballet. AND I. Vaganova. In that educational institution combined general and vocational education. For three years I went to preparatory class, went 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 the rehearsal there could be math. It's even good, there is some kind of change of activity, you come to relax.
© Photo provided by the press service of the Bolshoi Theater Ballet "Etudes"
© Photo provided by the press service of the Bolshoi Theater
As a child, my mother gave me to choreography, so that there was a good posture, grace. From there they began to be sent to the Vaganova Academy. I remember when we came to the pre-prep screening. There was a crowd of people, frenzied excitement. They checked our physical data, looked at us. Those who entered were given coupons. And everyone ran out, began to ask, did they take it or not? At that time I did not really understand where I came to, what it would lead to. At first I told my mother that I would not go there to study, 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, hands dropped. But ballet, it seems to me, is like a disease. This is the life that took 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 for the sake of achieving the goal.
There is a performance in the theater tonight, but I am not dancing. In the evening I try to relax at home. I go to sleep, as it turns out. 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 for rest.
We have one day off a week - this is Monday, when the theater is traditionally closed. If there are interesting premieres in other theaters or tours, then, of course, it is interesting to go and see. But in general I try to rest on this day. I love to walk. Moscow is a new city for me, I have been living here for the first year and I do not regret that I moved. Here is the theater that I love, work, many opportunities.
M enya walked to the ballet, for pleasant communication ヅIt turned out that this evening they were giving a triad of George Balanchine - not the best material for inspecting the state of affairs in the Bolshoi Ballet Company.
Lately off the reservation "friends of the ballet"
terrible rumors are heard on a variety of occasions, and the main bone of contention turned out to be the artist Yangurazova, who, without their recommendation, broke into the Ballerinas. Here everyone got nuts, right up to "welcome maharhasanych"
. Is it possible to imagine such bezorbraziya when on the same forum, in order to get the "next title" you need, like, from cord go through all the stages, licking and oiling / swearing and spitting, in order for the council of moderators to approve the candidacy.
And here?! - The impudence is simply unheard of!
The theater can be saved in the opinion of true connoisseurs of ballet by a clever move made by the better half of the general director, who agreed to come to the slaughter in Bahra and talk, most likely, to all the same eternal theme
- as long as the Bolshoi Theater will work for speculators of all skill, since the straps in the second thousand, put on a balletomaniac who has appeared by 5 in the morning, are unlikely to give him the right to visit the coveted "Nutcracker" on a budget with Tikhomirova or Kretova not yet prima.
Have a nice evening for them. Balanchine in green was not inspected by me and I can’t tell what happened there. Moreover, between us, ballet lovers, saying, Emeralds are mortal boredom and no even super romantic étoile will ever enliven this action. It singing along.
H As for the Rubies, by whom not a single bow-legged ballerina of the world has passed, I had to take a look.
And here's what needs to be said - shipwreck floating in this naval borscht
masks pleasure and deep and complete satisfaction on the faces of the performers for some reason did not inspire confidence ...
For some reason, it was in this work that the whole burden and unpleasantness of the work of ballet dancers was revealed. The need to lift your legs high, keep the pace, take idiotic poses with an equally idiotic grin - who is it easy?!ヅ
It’s also not easy to watch, you still need to have character and courage, which I don't have for a long time. Well, yes, it’s interesting, of course, when a dancer has such a leg size as Parienko’s ... here you can think about the topic, but what would happen to AleksanSergeich if he saw such beauty..? Not otherwise than mycardial infarctionヅ
✑ Everything is clear, any troupe, and even more so the BT troupe, needs a generational change.
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 about Rubies, if you take it to deliver about performance style, about which, it seems, neither in sleep / nor in spirit, nor performers / nor teachers, then the letters will end on Diamonds. Namely, a graduate of the Vaganov School Alyona Kovaleva made her debut in them, ( was supposed to be paired with Kozlov, but he merged; Volchkov came out 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 crown of the ballet treshka, did not add any special brilliance and charm to the artists. And all further actions of the corps de ballet and 4 soloists were a rather indifferent attitude to everything that Mister B composed. The ballet has been going on for a long time, there is no one who especially follows it, apparently, and quite rightly the main interest was connected 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 still feel graduate, but there all the data is much more interesting than it was when with someone. Good shape, beautiful attractive face; by the first performance in such a ballet, one can judge the musicality that is undoubtedly there, the dance cantilena, the purity of the lines and the beauty of the poses - all that I don’t remember when last time debuted in an illustrious company.
It is also likely that the performance for the first ballerina's performance was successfully chosen - the ballet is one-act, not very complicated, and the data fit well with Balanchine's composition.
T h maharhasanych
administratively performed quite well.