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Of ballads and lithe movements
“... Sprites in white gowns with hems that are perpetually damp, fairies whose little satin feet mark the ceiling of the nuptial chamber, the snow-white Wilis who waltz pitilessly the whole night long, and wondrous apparitions encountered in the Hartz mountains and on the banks of the Ilse, glimpsed in a mist bathed by German moonlight ...”
These flowing words from Heinrich Heine’s book, De l’Allemagne, inspired Thiophile Gautier to create the romantic ballet Giselle. Conceived by the influential French poet, author, critic and possibly the greatest champion of romantic ballet, Giselle was impulsively penned to honour the ballerina Carlotta Grisi, whom Gautier not only admired for her dancing, but with whom he was in love.
A brief act from Giselle held the gathering’s rapt attention at the mixed performance of opera and ballet last week performed by a skilled Russian troupe on a brief visit to Karachi. Classical ballet technique which originally developed in France during the 1600s, evokes passionate sentiments in lovers of this dance form who are wont to immerse themselves in the pirouettes, spirals, skips and coils of the ballerina on stage. And with such expectations, hundreds converged at the DHA Golf Club last week where stars of the Russian opera and ballet were performing.
Comprising artists from various distinct dance group and theatre companies, namely the State Academic Bolshoi, Theatre of Russia, Stanislavskiy and Nemirovich-Danchenko, Moscow Academic Musical theatre, New Opera Theatre, Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatoire, Kremlin Ballet theatre and state Academic theatre of Classical Ballet, the two-part programme of the evening covered brief recitals of opera, interspersed by acts (also brief) from assorted ballets.
Including acts from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite and Swan Lake; Puccini’s Madam Butterfly and the famous Don Quixote, the performances were masterly and the grace of movement particular to ballet, combined with harmonious choreography to captivate the ballet buffs among the audience. The opera renditions including parts from Granada and Mozart’s Serenade of Don Juan were also beautifully sung by soprano performer Ms Osipov, whose voice range was magnificent.
The evening’s arrangements at the club as far as the beautiful marquis under which the seating was arranged was tastefully done, creating a mellow atmosphere just right for the promising evening ahead. But the crowd which sauntered in two hours past the appointed hour proved that they were present more to see and be seen rather than for the beauty of the promised performance. The handful seated punctually were perhaps the only ones who had been lured by the presence of the Bolshoi theatre recognized as much a part of Russian high culture as Tolstoy and beluga caviar.
The original Bolshoi theatre came into existence in the 1770s for the entertainment of Russia’s ruling class. Over the years, it became Moscow’s great bridge to the outside world. An interesting tale is that in 1850, when Austrian ballerina Fanny Essler performed a magnificent Esmerelda, 300 bouquets were hurled onto the stage and she was presented with bread and salt, a Russian symbol of respect. Inside the loaf she found a diamond bracelet decorated with jewels that spelled the word Moscow. Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake also made its debut with the Bolshoi in 1877, and was the first ballet score to be regarded as a musical masterpiece. For most of the 20th century, the Bolshoi has served as a proud symbol of the Soviet state. But what has eventually transpired over the years is that several troupes made up in part of former Bolshoi dancers now travel under the company’s name and though they are technically proficient, the original Bolshoi theatre feels that their performances are uninspiring.
Whether the present troupe was one such example cannot be said but what undermined the beauty of the performance was the constricted stage which appeared to curtail the dancers’ movements. For a grand ballet performance the choreographer, composer and the scenery and costume designer work together as a team. Theatres are particular that a designer should plan the scenery and costumes which allow the dancers space and freedom of movement. But whereas costumes for the troupe in Karachi were well designed, the stage lacked space as well as lustre. What was also unfortunate was the lack of sensitivity required for a sensitive and fine-tuned performance like ballet and opera. Besides starting two hours later than the mentioned time of seating, the performance was overshadowed by repeated interruptions. The organizers should have realized the refined nature of the show and accordingly outlined the evening’s programme. The elegance of the performance was jarred by the master of ceremonies who was perhaps directed to intersperse the flow of performance after every eight to ten minutes with an announcement of the donation collected throughout the evening.
However, since the evening was arranged for the benefit of a very worthy cause, the discrepancies should perhaps be overlooked. The beneficiary of all the proceeds that were collected through the show was the Zindagi Trust, Shehzad Roy’s charity organization working towards eliminating child labour from our society by providing education and health-care facilities to underprivileged children in Pakistan. Collaborating with Intermach of Russia and the Mercury Group of Companies of Pakistan the trust had partnered with the Volunteer Women’s Organization as event managers to make the show possible.
The funds were collected by donations announced by the representatives of banks and other large organizations present that evening, as well as through the tickets sold. For future events which involve performances like ballet, opera and even classical theatre, it would be judicious of event managers and organizers to keep the adaab-i-mehfil in mind which include continuity of the performance in question as well as punctuality.
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