The composition of the ballet troupe of the Mariinsky Theater. Three of the best dancers of the Mariinsky Theater perform the role of Anna Karenina on the big stage. We are becoming a ballet province

What Russian girl hasn’t dreamed of ballet at least once in her life? It can be called our national art. We love ballet and know by name almost all the principal dancers of the Bolshoi and Mariinsky theaters.

On the eve of International Ballet Day - this year it is celebrated for the third time - we invite you to admire the best of the best, the goddesses of Russian ballet: Svetlana Zakharova, Diana Vishneva and Ulyana Lopatkina.

The embodiment of grace and elegance

And also an iron will and an indomitable spirit. This prima of the Bolshoi Theater and Milan's La Scala—Svetlana Zakharova. She made her debut at the Mariinsky Theater at the age of 17, and for twenty years there has not been a single misfire in her career. She successfully performs classical and modern dance.

“I have already danced all the roles you can dream of, in a variety of editions. For example, “Swan Lake” was performed in more than ten versions on different stages around the world. I want to experiment, to test the capabilities of my body in something different. Contemporary dance is a movement that gives freedom. Classics have boundaries and rules that cannot be crossed,”— Svetlana shared in an interview.

What does Zakharova like most about her profession? According to the ballerina, she is happy while preparing for the performance. Fittings, rehearsals. At this time, she sometimes does not sleep at night - music is playing in her head.

The premiere itself no longer causes so much joy. It even becomes a little sad, because what I was so prepared for has already happened.

By the way, Svetlana does not consider herself a star. "I'm just a person who plows every day"- she says.

Refined and at the same time fast

Prima of the Mariinsky Theater and American Ballet Theater Diana Vishneva this year celebrated its fortieth anniversary. But it used to be that the career of ballerinas was annoyingly short-lived. Diana not only constantly delights fans with premieres, but also acts as the organizer of the international Context festival.

She performs both classical and modern dances. In an interview, Vishneva admitted that combining different directions in choreography is like learning another language. Last year, Diana even made a film called Language - about the language of her own plasticity.

Vishneva speaks about herself first of all as a persistent person. She is sure: without perseverance and determination, there is no point in thinking about ballet. “How many sacrifices must be made every day! You need to tame your body and mind. Physically exhausting work is a prerequisite if you want to achieve something. “Hard labor” is not hyperbole. You need to be able to fly, soar, bring beauty, love... Art requires great emotional, moral and physical strength from you.”

Incredibly artistic

Tender and at the same time daring... Prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater, People's Artist of Russia Ulyana Lopatkina will celebrate his 43rd birthday in October. She is known all over the world, but she doesn’t like to talk about herself. Ulyana is very practical and prefers actions to words.

“This is not Hollywood, in ballet everything is closer to the point. In ballet, everything is proven by work. The work is very hard, physically, mentally, emotionally difficult, and there is something to respect for people who occupy a high position in ballet - they justify this place with their work,”- Lopatkina noted in one of her interviews.

Ulyana is called the “icon of Russian ballet.”

But the artist does not suffer from star fever at all and believes that each of us in some sense can be an “icon”.

We carry holiness within us. It manifests itself in varying degrees, but is potentially inherent in all of us. Maybe that's why people who are especially sensitive to art talk about the icon. This is how they formulate the feeling that they may have experienced during the performance.

The Mariinsky Theater brought the ballet "Anna Karenina" to Moscow. He will compete for the prestigious Golden Mask award. 40 years ago, Rodion Shchedrin wrote the music and presented the ballet to Maya Plisetskaya. She was the first to dance Karenina. Now the main role is performed by three stars. There is almost no scenery on the stage. The main thing is dance, bright and passionate.

She admits that she would dream of living in the 19th century, if only for the sake of such dresses and hats. In a huge bag, the rising star of the Mariinsky Theater Ekaterina Kondaurova has ballet shoes, 6 pairs, as many as she might need for this crazy-paced performance, and a worn volume of Tolstoy. Her Karenina is sensual and selfish.

Anna Karenina for Mariinsky Theater prima Diana Vishneva is a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

“She is tormented between her love for her family, her son and the Vronskys - this is a woman who is on the edge,” says prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater ballet troupe, People’s Artist of Russia Diana Vishneva.

Alone in the silence of the ballet class, Ulyana Lopatkina is concentrated and thoughtful. I’m sure strong women like her Karenina still live today, and although they wear jeans and drive cars, they still dream of true love.

Even at the premiere in St. Petersburg, her dance was admired by the one for whom this ballet was written by Shchedrin 40 years ago. The first Anna Karenina - Maya Plisetskaya.

Choreographer Alexei Ratmansky decided to dance Tolstoy's novel from the end. Anna is no longer alive. And Vronsky recalls their all-consuming passion, which began with a fatal meeting on the platform. There is a minimum of scenery on stage, and the world in which Anna and other characters exist is recreated with the help of video projections - the station, the Karenins' house, the hippodrome. And the events themselves rush by at great speed, accompanied by the sound of wheels.

A life-size railway carriage is a full-fledged character in the tragedy and one of the most impressive images. He will turn towards the audience with windows frosted with frost, or the cozy world of a first class compartment. And it’s like living your own life.

Maestro Valery Gergiev is at the conductor's stand. After all, it was his idea to stage the modern “Anna Karenina” on the stage of the Mariinsky Theater - a ballet that instantly became a hit throughout Europe.

“It seems to me that for theatrical Moscow this is also, to some extent, an interesting journey through three performances, if someone is lucky enough to see all three,” said People’s Artist of Russia, artistic director of the Mariinsky Theater Valery Gergiev. “Maybe it will be for fans ballet is an interesting and, perhaps, in some ways even a fascinating journey through the same performance three times."

Three Annas. Impulsive - Diana Vishneva, passionate - Ekaterina Kandaurova, majestic - Ulyana Lopatkina - on the stage of the Stanislavsky Theater for three evenings in a row, the love story of one woman will be told by three Marinka primas - brilliant and absolutely different.

The State Academic Mariinsky Theater has existed for more than two centuries. His repertoire includes classical and modern operas and ballets.

History of the Mariinsky Opera and Ballet Theater

The Mariinsky State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater was opened in 1783. Over the years, such great artists as Fyodor Chaliapin, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Vaslav Nijinsky, Nikolai Figner, Matilda Kshesinskaya, Ivan Ershov, Rudolf Nureyev, Anna Pavlova and many others served here. The repertoire included not only ballets, operas and concerts, but also dramatic performances.

The theater building was built according to the design of the architect Antonio Rinaldi. In the 19th century it underwent reconstruction. The major reconstruction of the Mariinsky Theater was carried out by the architect and draftsman Thomas de Thomon. In 1818, the theater was seriously damaged by fire and underwent a new reconstruction.

Three troupes performed on its stage at that time: Russian, Italian and French.

In 1936, the auditorium was rebuilt to achieve better acoustics and visibility. In 1859, the building burned down, and a new one was built in its place, where the academic Mariinsky Theater is still located. It was designed by Alberto Cavos. The theater received its name in honor of Empress Maria, the wife of Alexander II.

In 1869, the ballet troupe was headed by the great Marius Petipa.

In 1885, the theater had to undergo another reconstruction. A three-story extension was made to the left wing of the building, which housed workshops, rehearsal rooms, a boiler room and a power plant. Another 10 years later, the foyer was expanded and the main façade was rebuilt.

In 1917, the Mariinsky Theater received state status, in 1920 - academic, and in 1935 it was named after S. M. Kirov.

In those years, in addition to classical works, the repertoire included operas and ballets by Soviet composers.

In the post-war years, the theater presented the audience with such productions: “The Legend of Love”, “Spartacus”, “Stone Flower”, “The Twelve”, “Leningrad Symphony”. In addition to G. Verdi, P.I. Tchaikovsky, J. Bizet, M. Mussorgsky, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov's repertoire included works by such composers as Dmitry Shostakovich, Sergei Prokofiev, Tikhon Khrennikov and so on.

In 1968–1970, the theater was again reconstructed. The project for the updated building was developed by architect Salome Gelfer. After this reconstruction, the theater became what we see it now.

In the 80s, a new generation of opera artists came to the Mariinsky. They clearly expressed themselves in the productions of “The Queen of Spades” and “Eugene Onegin”. The director of these performances was Yuri Temirkanov.

In 1988, Valery Gergiev was appointed to the position of chief conductor, who soon became artistic director. Thanks to his efforts, in 1992 the theater again became known as the Mariinsky.

Several years ago, Mariinsky-2 was opened. The technical equipment of its stage makes it possible to create modern innovative productions that could only be dreamed of before. This unique complex will allow you to implement the most daring projects. The Mariinsky-2 hall is designed for 2000 spectators. The total area of ​​the building is almost 80 thousand square meters.

Opera repertoire

The Academic Mariinsky Theater offers its audience the following opera productions:

• "Idomeneo, King of Crete";
• "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk";
• "Christmas Eve";
• "Pelleas and Mélisande";
• "Mermaid";
• "Sister Angelica";
• "Khovanshchina";
• "Spanish Hour";
• "Flying Dutchman";
• "Betrothal in a monastery";
• "Turn the screw";
• "The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh";
• "Tristan and Isolde";
• "Lohengrin";
• "The Enchanted Wanderer";
• "Journey to Reims";
• "Trojans";
• "Electra".

And others.

Ballet repertoire

The Academic Mariinsky Theater included the following ballet performances in its repertoire:

• "Apollo";
• "In the jungle";
• "Jewelry";
• "The Little Humpbacked Horse";
• "Magic Nut"
• "Leningrad Symphony";
• "Five Tangos";
• "The Young Lady and the Hooligan";
• "La Sylphide";
• "Infra";
• "Shurale";
• "Margarita and Arman";
• "Where the golden cherries hang";
• "Flora's Awakening";
• "Adagio Hammerklavier";
• "Clay";
• "Romeo and Juliet";
• "Symphony in three movements."

And others.

Mariinsky Theater Troupe

The Academic Mariinsky Theater brought together wonderful opera soloists, ballet dancers, choirs, and musicians on its stage. A huge team works here.

Mariinsky Theater Company:

• Irina Gordey;
• Maria Maksakova;
• Mikhail Vekua;
• Vasily Gerello;
• Diana Vishneva;
• Anton Korsakov;
• Alexandra Iosifidi;
• Elena Bazhenova;
• Ilya Zhivoy;
• Anna Netrebko;
• Irina Bogacheva;
• Dmitry Voropaev;
• Evgeny Ulanov;
• Ildar Abdrazakov;
• Vladimir Felyauer;
• Ulyana Lopatkina;
• Irina Golub;
• Maxim Zyuzin;
• Andrey Yakovlev;
• Victoria Krasnokutskaya;
• Danila Korsuntsev.

When planning material about ballerinas for the May holidays, we did not know that such sad news would come from Germany... Today, when the whole world mourns the legend of Russian ballet Maya Plisetskaya, we honor her memory and remember modern soloists who will never replace the prima of the Bolshoi Theater, but they will worthily continue the history of Russian ballet.

The Bolshoi Theater showered ballerina Maria Alexandrova with attention from the first meeting. The first prize won in 1997 at the International Ballet Competition in Moscow became a ticket for the then student of the Moscow State Academy of Arts to the main troupe of the country. In the very first season of work at the Bolshoi, without long languor, the ballerina, still with the rank of corps de ballet dancer, received her first solo part. And the repertoire grew and expanded. Interesting fact: in 2010, the ballerina became the first woman in the history of ballet to perform the title role in Stravinsky’s Petrushka. Today Maria Alexandrova is a prima ballerina of the Bolshoi.

The turning point in the fate of the aspiring ballerina Svetlana Zakharova was the receipt of second prize in the Vaganova-Prix competition for young dancers and the subsequent offer to become a graduate student at the Academy of Russian Ballet. Vaganova. And the Mariinsky Theater became a reality in the ballerina’s life. After graduating from the academy, the ballerina joined the Mariinsky Theater troupe, after working for a season, she received an offer to become a soloist. The history of Zakharova’s relationship with the Bolshoi began in 2003 with the solo part in “Giselle” (edited by V. Vasiliev). In 2009, Zakharova surprised the audience with the premiere of E. Palmieri’s unusual ballet “Zakharova. Super game". The Bolshoi did not plan it, but Zakharova organized it, and the theater supported the experiment. By the way, there has already been a similar experience of staging a ballet at the Bolshoi for a single ballerina, but only once: in 1967, Maya Plisetskaya shone in Carmen Suite.

What can I say, those who are taking their first steps in ballet from Zakharova’s repertoire are dizzy and envy appears. To date, her track record includes all solo parts of the main ballets - “Giselle”, “Swan Lake”, “La Bayadère”, “Carmen Suite”, “Diamonds”...

The beginning of Ulyana Lopatkina's ballet career was the role of Odette in Swan Lake, of course, at the Mariinsky Theater. The performance was so skillful that the ballerina soon received the Golden Sofit award for the best debut on the St. Petersburg stage. Since 1995, Lopatkina has been a prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater. The repertoire again includes familiar titles - “Giselle”, “Corsair”, “La Bayadère”, “Sleeping Beauty”, “Raymonda”, “Diamonds”, etc. But geography is not limited to work on one stage. Lopatkina conquered the main stages of the world: from the Bolshoi Theater to NHK in Tokyo. At the end of May on the stage of the Musical Theater. Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Lopatkina will perform in collaboration with the “Stars of Russian Ballet” in honor of Tchaikovsky’s anniversary.

At the end of March, the name of Diana Vishneva, prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater since 1996, was on everyone’s lips. The Bolshoi hosted the premiere of the play “Grani,” nominated for the Golden Mask award. The event is vibrant and discussed. The ballerina gave interviews, joked in response to questions about her close acquaintance with Abramovich and pointed to her husband accompanying her everywhere. But the performance ended, and a course was set for London, where on April 10, Vishneva and Vodianova held a charity evening for the Naked Heart Foundation. Vishneva actively performs on the best stages of Europe and does not refuse experimental, unexpected offers.

Balanchine’s “Diamonds” was mentioned above. Ekaterina Shipulina, a graduate of the Moscow State Academy of Arts, shines in “Emeralds” and “Rubies.” And not only, of course. The ballerina's repertoire includes leading roles in such ballets as Swan Lake, Notre Dame de Paris, Lost Illusions, Cinderella, Giselle, and collaborations with the best choreographers - Grigorovich, Eifman, Ratmansky, Neumeier, Roland Petit ...

Evgenia Obraztsova, graduate of the Academy of Russian Ballet named after. Vaganova, first became a prima ballerina at the Mariinsky Theater, where she performed La Sylphide, Giselle, La Bayadère, Princess Aurora, Flora, Cinderella, Ondine... In 2005, the ballerina gained cinematic experience by playing in Cedric Klapisch’s film “Beauties”. In 2012, she joined the Bolshoi troupe, where, as a prima ballerina, she performed solo roles in the productions “Don Quixote,” “The Sleeping Beauty,” “La Sylphide,” “Giselle,” “Eugene Onegin,” and “Emeralds.”