The St Petersburg Ballet Theatre Company, which arrives in
South Africa in seven weeks, is winning rave reviews at its sold-out
performances in Paris.
The Company travels from France to South Africa to stage a
festival of ballet in Johannesburg – where it will perform the world’s
most-loved ballet, Swan Lake, as well
as Giselle and Don Quixote. They will also visit Cape Town for the first-time in
eight years to perform Swan Lake
Already extra shows have been added to the South African run
at the Teatro at Montecasino and at Artscape in Cape Town.
Renowned dance critic and arts feature writer Jeffrey
Taylor, himself once a ballet dancer, reviewed Swan Lake in Paris.
“The Company Shines. Swan
Lake sweeps you away into a world of passion. It’s a rare phenomenon,”
Taylor wrote in Britain’s Express newspapers. Taylor, who performed at the
London Palladium himself and once described himself as “the real Billy Elliot”,
is a well-respected ballet writer.
Turning to Prima Ballerina Irina Kolesnikova, Taylor said:
“Kolesnikova not only performs each basic step with astonishing correctness but
fills the auditorium with the danger of her vulnerability … It is … (a) very
deeply personal reality that this remarkable Russian born and trained dancer so
powerfully brings to life. The steps of the 1895 work by Court choreographer
Petipa to Tchaikovsky’s commissioned score are of classroom simplicity and
amazingly this is where Kolesnikova triumphs. Her first duet with Siegfried is
recognised as a supremely perfect combination of movement and music.
“Taken breathlessly slowly, Kolesnikova not only performs
each basic step with astonishing correctness but fills the auditorium with the
danger of her vulnerability and yearning for help. No quivering lips or
melodrama, just letting the steps and her total immersion in her character’s
message move us.
“And boy, does it do the trick. Tchaikovsky’s well known
melodies seem no longer to emanate from the orchestra pit but to pour through
her. What she is saying to us came first, not the music. A rare phenomenon.”
Executive Producer Andrew Guild said: “This global review
gives South African audiences an indication of the treat that is in store for
them. The St Petersburg Ballet Theatre offers Johannesburg audiences three
sumptuous, full-length ballets, with full orchestra, performed to global
standards. And, of course Cape Town audiences get their first chance in eight
years to see Swan Lake with its amazing sets and costumes.
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