Les Etés de la Danse 2010

It was interesting to attend the last performance with The Novosibirsk Ballet at Theatre du Chatelet at Paris, July 24th. Choreography by Marius Petipa, revised by Igor Zelensky. Music Ludwig Minkus.

Ballet de Novosibirsk is a good company. Specially the wimens in their many corps des ballet parts, the white act with 32+3 good female dancers in white was great. The entre of each dancer, could in the scenography has been marked better.

The small scene before the white act was made too short. There are some good choreography and music, in this part which could have been used, the same in the first presentation betweeen Gamzati and the Prince, where I was missing some of the dances for the boys presenting the Prince. And I still don´t understand why La Bayadere shall dance on the wedding.

The scenography by David Monavadisachvili is very good, in the traditional style. The costumes by Alexander Vasiliev are colourful, marking every group very good and clearing out the solists in each of the parts well
. As mr. Vasiliev has desided to use long underwear, as “Harem” pants for many of the costumes, and then the skirts, outside the pants, for the girls not are well cut, some of the colourful costumes was not having enough graciosity and were looking a bit clumpsy. And for the boys the tights were clumpsy. And didn´t let their legs look good. A few costumes were good as for La Bayadere, I liked scecially when mr. Vasiliev has tt

let some of the Tutu´s upper parts being partly covered by maaterial from the top, it gave a good effect, and the white costumes were brilliant.

Igor Zelensky, Soloist, and Artistic director of the Ballet Novosibirsk

Igor Zelensky in the leading male role is wonderful, he has power, is good looking, all his details in the solos were wonderful, and he has the power so he can lift his partner so it looks like she has no weight. Very good.

Diana Vishneva in the titelrole is a brilliant dancer, it was a great pleasue to enjoy her many variations, and from her entree at the wedding party the performance started to be amazing, as she has the littele extra to lift it all to another level.

To let the golden boy, Semyon Velichko be assisted by 8-10 dencers spoiled some of his performance, Gamzatti, danced by Anna Odintsova was not perfect all the time, and loosing her balances, before she came back in one of the solos in the whote act, where she was brilliant. The other two soloists in the third act are Elena Lytkina and Kristina Sinitsyna, very good. Oleg Bondarchuk did a good job as the Fakir.

The Orchestra National d´Ile de France played very well, as it did at the Opening Galla. The orchestra has some outstanding soloists, which played the many demanding soloparts very well.In La Bayadere conducted by Andrei Danilov.

From La Bayadere 3rd Act, costumes Alexander Vasiliev.

I liked Igor Zelenskys modesty during the whole performance, when he should take applause, but during the applause in the very ending he completely forgot about the orchestra and the conductor, who had done an outstanding job. Zelensky took all the applause for him self and for Diana Vishneva. In fact without the orchestra and the wonderful Ludwig Minkus music, the performance has not been such a success. The behavior was not polight to the conductor and the orchestra. Too many curtain calls

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The production won the Golden Mask in 2008.

I still remember the Galla evevning with many outstanding internationally soloists, together with the stars from Novosibirsk, and where I specially enjoyd Chopiniana/Les Sylphides with a brilliant corps des ballet and soloists.