Jump to content
This Site Uses Cookies. If You Want to Disable Cookies, Please See Your Browser Documentation. ×

Recommended Posts

In Makarova's version of Bayadere there is only one short ramp for the Shades.

In Paris same thing although the ramp is a lot longer.

At the Mariinsky there are two ramps even in the reconstruction, which, I assume, means that there were originally only 2 ramps although the reconstruction shows some rocky formations so they pass behind them at times (coming down from the Himalayas, I believe).

The Bolshoi has 3 ramps!!!!!

The Bolshoi version really blows you away. At one point there are 3 ramps of Shades descending along with the ones that have reached the ground floor, so it creates 4 rows of Shades descending. So magical!!!

I suspect more ramps makes it more difficult. Am I correct? Balancing on ramps must be harder than the regular stage.

What do you all prefer???? How many ramps do you want in this scene? LOL

Link to comment

The Petipa archives include a note suggesting a look at Gustave Dore's illustrations for Dante's DIVINE COMEDY with reference to the ballet master's Shades scene for MLADA with respect to those Shades' entrance.

MLADA followed the premiere of BAYADERE by 2 years but Petipa's 1896 revival of MLADA predated Petipa's his 1900 final revisions of BAYADERE by 4.

to be sure Dore's Illustrations of Dante's DIVINE COMEDY are many, and a good number include the entrance of souls into Paradise, below is but one, with an ascending zig-zag.

f.y.i.

Mlada : Chor: Marius Petipa; mus: Ludwig Minkus; lib: Petipa after Stepan Gedeonov; scen: Matvei Shishkov, Mikhail Bocharov, Heinrich Wagner, Fëdor Egorov and Aleksei Lupanov. First perf: St. Petersburg, Bolshoi Theater, Dec 2, 1879 (O.S.).//Revived: St. Petersburg, Maryinsky Theater, Sept 25, 1896 (O.S.); scen: Mikhail Bocharov and Ivan Andreev.

post-848-0-60911000-1342814662_thumb.jpg

Link to comment

Overall, I actually love the Makarova version. I wish she would have kept 32 shades instead of cutting them down to 24 though, and I would have loved if she had 3 ramps for the Shades instead of one short one. But I understand that sometimes you have to take into account your corps. You also take into account the rules for a particular theatre's stage hands, I imagine. There are probably a lot of things that a simple audience member doesn't think about or know about when it comes to putting a ballet on the stage.

Link to comment

Overall, I actually love the Makarova version. I wish she would have kept 32 shades instead of cutting them down to 24 though, and I would have loved if she had 3 ramps for the Shades instead of one short one. But I understand that sometimes you have to take into account your corps. You also take into account the rules for a particular theatre's stage hands, I imagine. There are probably a lot of things that a simple audience member doesn't think about or know about when it comes to putting a ballet on the stage.

I can't find a source just now, but I thought one reason she cut back from 32 to 24 was the size of the stages they would be using on tour, such as Kennedy Center and Dorothy Chandler. Does anyone know for sure about that?

Link to comment

Overall, I actually love the Makarova version. I wish she would have kept 32 shades instead of cutting them down to 24 though, and I would have loved if she had 3 ramps for the Shades instead of one short one. But I understand that sometimes you have to take into account your corps. You also take into account the rules for a particular theatre's stage hands, I imagine. There are probably a lot of things that a simple audience member doesn't think about or know about when it comes to putting a ballet on the stage.

I can't find a source just now, but I thought one reason she cut back from 32 to 24 was the size of the stages they would be using on tour, such as Kennedy Center and Dorothy Chandler. Does anyone know for sure about that?

Yes, I think Wikipedia states (or used to say) that she had to cut them back b/c the Met's stage was too small, but other Ballet Talkers said the Met's stage was not too small for 32 (when POB toured with Bayadere, for example), and they thought it was b/c of the size of the State Theater maybe if she rehearsed it there at some point. But you could be right about making it easier to tour and put it on at different theaters. That would make a lot of sense.

I just have my dream Bayadere in my head, and it would be the Makarova version with some modifications. Bring back 32, add more ramps to the Shades scene, use pointe work in the confrontation scene between Nikiya and Gamzatti like the Bolshoi version......

I think the thing the Makarova version gets right (for my own personal tastes) is the atmosphere.....sort of dark but almost violet or blue hues and that has to do with sets and lighting, so it is not just her doing. But she did make it a more serious work by getting rid of most of the character dances that do not really add to the story. I do enjoy the character dances when I see them on the POB video and the Mariinsky and Bolshoi versions, but overall, I like the arc of Makarova's version and absolutely love the final moment when she comes out with the scarf and goes up the steps into Heaven with Solor holding the other end of the scarf and following her/kneeling. I find that a magical moment and wonderful end to the story. Even the Mariinsky's reconstruction does not have that final, "Ah......" moment for me.

Link to comment

Last month Makarova staged her version at the National Opera of Ukraine. I believe it was the first instance of her production being staged in the former USSR. The stage at the opera house in Kiev is not enormous, certainly smaller than the Met, but from these photographs, you can see that this time she used two ramps and 32 shades.

http://www.opera.com...13_IMG_9501.jpg

https://www.facebook...0000.1364063580

So my guess is that this is primarily a question of company size. The National Ballet of Ukraine lists 147 dancers and 12 apprentices on its roster, a big corps from which to draw.

http://www.opera.com...solisti-baletu/

http://www.opera.com...artisti-baletu/

Les Grands Ballets Canadiens has just announced that this Bayadere will be coming to Montreal next February, which would give people on the east coast a chance to see what Makarova's production looks like with the full 32 shades (assuming they all come on tour).

http://www.grandsbal...nce/la-bayadere

Link to comment
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...