Moscow Festival Ballet Returns to the MAC with “Cinderella”
“In my view, the composer, just as the poet, the sculptor or the painter, is in duty bound to serve Man, the people. He must beautify life and defend it. He must be a citizen first and foremost, so that his art might consciously extol human life and lead man to a radiant future,” said famous Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev. His enthusiasm and inner strength reflect in his compositions that are popular for their vivid demonstration of human feelings and emotions. McAninch Arts Center is happy to announce the triumphal return of Moscow Festival Ballet with one of Prokofiev’s most popular masterpieces, the ballet “Cinderella”. The world’s most beloved story will be presented at the spectacular Belushi Performance Hall at 2 p.m. and at 6 p.m. on Sunday, January 14.
The Moscow Festival Ballet’s production of “Cinderella” is being brought to the MAC by popular demand. The Chicago metropolitan area citizens who saw Moscow Festival Ballet perform this beautiful production at the MAC in January, 2016 want to see it again. Also, those who were not lucky enough and couldn’t get their tickets two years ago want to see famous Russian ballet dancers perform “Cinderella” this time.
The “Cinderella” performance is part of Moscow Festival Ballet’s American tour that starts in January and ends in May, 2018. The first tour took place in 1997 and since then it has become a good tradition for these great ballet dancers to come to the USA and share with the American public their brilliant dance skills, talents and techniques. Russian dancers have always been greeted with great respect and appreciation and love American audiences.
More than fifty highly skilled dancers from Russia will swirl on the waves of Prokofiev’s lavish, highly entertaining full-length ballet. One more time, the members of Moscow Festival Ballet will demonstrate to an American audience all the uniqueness and beauty of Russian ballet, which is considered to be the best in the world. With the touching music by Sergei Prokofiev, beautiful libretto by Nicolai Volkov after motifs from the fairytale by Charles Perrault, sharp choreography by Rostislav Zakharov and under the talented direction of Sergei Radchenko, this beautiful fairytale about Cinderella once again will be performed on a high professional level.
There is no need to repeat the touching story of “Cinderella” as every little child knows it. However, there is a need to remind ourselves of this great fairy tale as it teaches us to be patient, strong and hopeful and to believe in love and miracles. All of us need that sometimes, just as the heroine of this tale – young and sincere Cinderella.
This fairy tale is popular not only for its wisdom, but also for the fact that this great story is a perfect basis for ballet productions. Librettist Nikolai Volkov, who in 1940 came up with the idea to use the “Cinderella” story for a ballet, said: “Russian ballet should not forget Cinderella because, in working on this subject, we are able to connect with the traditions of Russian classical choreography, which were identified and established in the great Tchaikovsky’s works, such as Sleeping Beauty.”
Moscow Festival Ballet is happy to use the original 1945 choreography of “Cinderella” by Rostislav Zakharov as the base for its production. This production offers an abundance of lively, entertaining dance mixed with majestic and sophisticated touches of traditional pantomime performed against a lush and colorful setting. Interestingly, besides Cinderella’s cruel stepmother and stepsisters, a fairy godmother and a handsome prince, the Moscow Festival Ballet’s production also introduces some new characters including four fairies, which change the seasons as they dance to help the Cinderella’s fairy godmother change rags into a formal gown.
Moscow Festival Ballet has a long history. It was founded in 1989 by legendary ballet dancer Sergei Radchenko. Radchenko was a leading ballet dancer of Bolshoi Ballet and danced with another world-known ballet dancer Maya Plisetskaya. They performed together in "Carmen Suite", Rodion Shchedrin's ballet based on George Bizet's operatic music. By creating Moscow Festival Ballet, Radchenko combined “the highest classical elements of the great Bolshoi and Kirov Ballet companies in an independent new company within the framework of Russian classic ballet”. He put all his knowledge, soul and experience in this company and hired the most brilliant ballet dancers. Since then, Moscow Festival Ballet has shared the rich traditions of the Russian classical ballet school with the ballet lovers of many countries around the world.
These ballet dancers are happy to impress American audiences with their touching and sincere moves, brilliant techniques and an outstanding presentation of Prokofiev’s masterpiece. “Cinderella” is a beautiful fairy tale where light prevails over darkness and good defeats evil. Every waltz and adagio in this ballet is a great example of elegance, grace and passion, and Moscow Festival Ballet dancers know exactly how to demonstrate all the complexity of human nature to their audiences.
“I am a man beyond and outside the limits of Time and Space,” said Prokofiev once. Russian ballet is just the same – it is beyond and outside any limits, including the limits of Time and Space.
For tickets and information, please visit http://www.atthemac.org/events/cinderella/ or call 630-942-4000. Tickets are $49 for youth and $59 for adults. Prior to the evening performance, there will be a free MAC chat at 5 p.m. Enjoy as Moscow Festival Ballet dancers perform the best of all fairy tales in the world – “Cinderella”!
Natalia Dagenhart
Photo: Courtesy of Alexander Daev