Royal Moscow Ballet leaves audience mesmerized
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Tuesday March 21, 2017 18:00
The event paid tribute to great Russian composers Sergei Rachmaninov, Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Aleksander Borodin.
This time, Royal Moscow Ballet brought a wallet programme celebrating some of the most celebrated Russian composers who wrote for both ballet and opera. Royal Moscow Ballet treated the audience to beautiful acts such as Paganini (a one act ballet) scored by Rachmaninov.
Paganini is a love story that Rachmaninov used to resurrect the legend Paganini, who, for perfection in his art and for a woman, sold his soul to an evil spirit. All the variations, which have the theme of Dies Irae, represent the evil spirit. The variations included love episodes.
Paganini himself appears in the ‘theme’ (his first appearance) and again, for the last time, but conquered. The first 12 measures after all the variations to the end of the composition represent the triumph of the conquerors.
However, the evil spirit appears for the first time in variation seven, later on one had dialogue with Paganini about his own theme and the one of Dies Irae. Other variations portray the development of the evil spirit, which later is a turning point into the domain of love.
The Menuet, portrays the first appearance of the woman. In this act, there is the first conversation between the woman and Paganini.
The crew also treated the audience with scenes from ballets scored by Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker.
Swan Lake is the story that begins with a hunting journey by Prince Siegfriend, when he comes across a swan. Before he was able to shoot, the swan turned into a beautiful woman named Odette.
She revealed that she was under a spell by the evil Von Rothbart, and could only be saved by a virgin prince who swears eternal fidelity to her.
The Sleeping Beauty is a ballet in a prologue and three acts. In the palace of King Florestan XIV the wedding of his daughter, Princess Aurora, is being celebrated. Master of Ceremonies Catalabutte is checking the invitation list.
The Lilac Fairy and Good Fairies appear among the courtiers and the guests coming to congratulate the Princess. They bring the newborn infant gifts, endowing her with the finest human attributes. Suddenly, a great noise is heard.
The evil and powerful Carabosse Fairy drove into the ballroom with her repulsive suite. They forgot to invite her to the wedding.
An irate Carabosse predicts that Aurora will die young from pricking her finger with a knitting spindle. But the Lilac Fairy intervenes: she predicts that the forces of good will neutralise the sinister spell. With a peremptory gesture, she forces Carabosse to leave the palace.
The Royal Moscow ballets and ballerinas ballon technique, bravura and pirouette were superb. Ballon technique means that ballet dancer appears lightfooted while jumping and looks lightweight like defying gravity.
Bravura is the showy style of ballet dance that consists of a lot of elaborate steps while pirouette is a non-travelling turn on one leg and consists of one or more rotations.
The ballerinas looked exceptionally beautiful in their tutus and beautiful shiny hairpins. The crew also treated the audience to a special act that was showcasing different European countries and cultural dances such as the Chinese, Mexicans, French, Russians and others.
It for the first time collaborated with the local ballet.
This year, the Royal Moscow Ballet is celebrating its 15th anniversary. The company has created more than 20 modern and 15 classical ballets.
They were created and choreographed by its founders Anatoly Emelianov and Anna Aleksidze.