Don Quixote

Don Quixote, our legacy of the golden age of classical ballet, is a poignant example of how Spain is portrayed in ballets with its whirlwind ensemble dancing, castanets, fans, polka dot skirts, roses and decorative combs in  women’s hairdos.
Despite its name, the ballet is not an adaptation of Miguel de Cervantes’ novel. Only one episode of the ingenious hidalgo’s many adventures serves as the basis for the story and the dancing scenes. It is a story about the failed wedding of the wealthy Camacho (Gamache in the ballet) to the fair Quiteria (Kitri in the ballet), who is also the object of affections of the villager Basil (Basilio). However, Don Quixote is in no way the lead character in the story by the ballet standards. His role is mostly that of a pantomime artist or a stage walker, while all the dancing feats are accomplished by other characters.
This festive, hot-tempered and virtuoso ballet was staged in 1900 (and transferred from the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow to the Mariinsky Theatre in 1902) by Alexander Gorsky after the eponymous ballet of Marius Petipa, which had graced the St Petersburg stage from 1871. The young and passionate choreographer Gorsky was heavily influenced by Stanislavski (who had just opened the Moscow Art Theatre) at the beginning of the 20^th century. To make the ballet more ‘lifelike and truthful’ he turned the symmetrical corps de ballets, so common in his renowned colleague Petipa’s works, into a playful, lively, and cheerful crowd. The first spectators recalled, ‘the lively and passionate crowd in the square makes you believe up to a point of delusion in the sun, which makes you fall in love so keenly, tease each other, chase after the running beauty, who hides behind her fan…’
Gorsky kept the contours of the libretto, the music written by Minkus for Petipa, and many of the choreographic pieces for his production. However, Gorsky rearranged some of the scenes of the existing production.
The modern Don Quixote arguably features the most diverse dances from among the ballet repertory: one can still see the echoes of Marius Petipa, Alexander Gorsky, Fyodor Lopukhov, who created the ‘folkloresque’ Spanish fandango in 1923, and Nina Anisimova, who added her version of the gypsy dance in 1946. Moreover, many of those dancers who performed the role of Basilio can be considered co-choreographers for the main character. On many occasions did their tricks and  ideas aimed at showcasing the artist himself in full glory make their way into the variations. For soloists, Don Quixote is not just a measure of virtuosity, but also an opportunity to be in the midst of a game, where even the smallest of roles might blossom into a colourful humoristic touch. For spectators, this production, featuring in equal measure genre and everyday scenes, character choreography and pure classical elements, is pure charm due to its generous serving of dancing and the atmosphere of carefree festivity. Olga Makarova