On 20 April the Mariinsky Ballet Company will perform for the first time at the Erik Sapaev Mari State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre in Yoshkar-Ola. This landmark appearance will serve as the official opening of the All-Russian Competition for Ballet Artists and Choreographers. Audiences will be treated to an evening of celebrated one-act ballets by Michel Fokine: Chopiniana, Le Spectre de la rose, The Dying Swan and Scheherazade, performed by leading soloists of the Mariinsky Theatre.
Chopiniana, set to the music of Frédéric Chopin, is an homage to the Romantic era of ballet – a celebration of the ethereal dance tradition inspired by antique engravings of the first sylph, the legendary Marie Taglioni. The ballet, originally a plotless vignette choreographed by Fokine, premiered at the Mariinsky Theatre on 8 March 1908. Revived by Agrippina Vaganova in 1931, it continues to captivate St Petersburg audiences to this day. The principal roles in Yoshkar-Ola will be danced by Oxana Skorik, Timur Askerov, Camilla Mazzi and Bíborka Lendvai.
The idea for Le Spectre de la rose, choreographed to music by Carl Maria von Weber, came to Fokine after reading a Romantic poem by Théophile Gautier. Created in 1911 for the Ballets Russes, the ballet – a vision of fleeting beauty – became one of the most iconic works of the Diaghilev company.
In the upcoming performance Camilla Mazzi and Ramanbek Beishenaliev will appear in the leading roles.
The briefest of the evening’s works – lasting just four minutes – yet also its most iconic, The Dying Swan became a symbol of modern Russian ballet. Fokine called it “proof that dance should not merely please the eye but touch the soul”.
Created in collaboration with Anna Pavlova to music by Camille Saint-Saëns, the miniature united technical perfection with emotional depth, giving life to the lyrical and tragic image of the white swan. First performed on 22 December 1907 at the Mariinsky Theatre, it continues to mesmerise audiences today.
The role will be performed by Kristina Shapran.
Scheherazade premiered to sensational acclaim during the 1910 Ballets Russes season in Paris. The lush symphonic palette of Rimsky-Korsakov’s music, the rich imagery of The Arabian Nights, the vivid Orientalist designs by Léon Bakst and Fokine’s unprecedented movement vocabulary turned the ballet into an instant phenomenon and a cornerstone of modern ballet history.
At the Mariinsky Theatre today Scheherazade is presented in Andris Liepa’s 1994 reconstruction.
The leading roles in Yoshkar-Ola will be danced by Nadezhda Batoeva, Konstantin Zverev and Soslan Kulaev.
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