chiapuris Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 Sleeping Beauty Bolshoi 6/24/05 Aurora Anna Antonicheva Prince Desire Nikolai Tsiskaridze Lilac Fairy Maria Allash Carabosse Gennadiy Yanin Princess Florine Nina Kaptsova Bluebird Vyatcheslav Lopatin Fairies: Tenderness Nelli Kobakhidze Light-Heartedness Victoria Osipova Generosity Anna Rebetskaya Playfulness Daria Gurevich Courage Elena Andrienko Jewels: Diamond Anastasia Yatsenko Sapphire Irina Semirechenskaya Gold Olga Stebletsova Silver Alesya Boyko After I left the performance of Sleeping Beauty (6-24-05) I thought, “What a sunny production!”. Then I had to figure out what I meant. My thoughts on this is that it was 'sunny' because the performances of the leading parts cohered into visual tableaus that told the story effectively. Maria Allash as the Lilac Fairy embodied all the best human qualities as a fairy-tale being. She presided over the birth ceremonies with assurance and calm, expressed through her clean, focused style of moving. The variations of the Fairies seemed to me all outstanding. I can't single out one or two as better than any of the others. All deserve praise. In the coming-of-age party, Anna Antonicheva, as the sixteen year-old Aurora, used only the pure, unforced technical brilliance of her dancing to indicate the exuberance of a teenager at her birthday celebration. Gennadiy Yanin, as Carabosse- who embodies all the worse human qualities as an evil fairy, gave a fine, nuanced performance. I haven't enjoyed a Carabosse as much as when I lucked out last year when I saw the debut of Nikolay Tsiskaridze in the part. The concentrated menace and the lack of flamboyance in Yanin's interpretation gave it real theatrical power. I found his departure to the netherworld by descent through a trapdoor particularly effective. The appearance of Nikolay Tsiskaridze as the Prince in the hunting scene, I think, set the tone for the whole performance and made it a 'sunny' production. As he entered the stage he greeted the various personages on it, and was particularly courteous and solicitous to the lady he escorted. Then he did something I have never seen (or perhaps never noted) before. He walked, from downstage right to downstage left, acknowledging and greeting the audience in a charismatic gesture of inclusion. I found it a very effective and brilliant touch. He was like a good host. The wedding celebrations gave us the sparkling Diamond Fairy of Anastasia Yatsenko, and the brilliant trio of Semirechenskaya, Stebletsova and Boyko, brilliant both in the controlled grand jetes and the fast-as-light variation. Nina Kaptsova as Princess Florine, with her delicate line and her clean pirouettes complemented the Bluebird of buoyant Vyatcheslav Lopatin. The Grand Pas de Deux showed Tsiskaridze as an attentive partner and Antonicheva as an elegant bride. The Apotheosis ended a really joyous evening. Link to comment
Natalia Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 Thanks for this lovely report, chiapuris. Link to comment
dachnitsa Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 dachnitsa:I finally posted my impressions of the 6-24-05 performance in a new post. Hope it's helpful to you. It is - thank you so much !!! dachnitsa Link to comment
Recommended Posts