06.02.2017

Mischevious hooliganism at the Kennedy Center – the Mariinsky Ballet has competed its tour to Washington

On 5 February in Washington (USA), the Mariinsky Ballet's annual tour has come to a close amid great acclaim. This year the programme consisted of seven performances of Rodion Shchedrin's ballet The Little Humpbacked Horse with choreography by Alexei Ratmansky, which delighted the critics with its mood, colours and freshness.

"Usually, this is the world’s most beautifully stuffy and elegantly unspontaneous company; here, as when it danced this ballet (...), it bubbles over with impish sweetness. It’s as if Mr Ratmansky had reinvented the Mariinsky," commented critic Alastair MacAulay of The New York Times. His opinion was confirmed by Carolyn Kelemen, columnist for the portal DC Metro Theater Arts: "From the start there were lots of chuckles from the audience and, at times, from the characters onstage as the whimsical tale unfolded. Alexei Ratmansky, the hottest choreographer around plus Rodion Shchedrin, who wrote the dance-friendly score, have created a magical melange of music and dance that will leave you smiling."

In addition to the production itself, the performers also received favourable reviews: "Each brings a high set of skills to their roles, but also a certain casual comedic sense," according to Broadway World. "Dancer after dancer paraded before the Opera House audience in a flourish of youthful talent that no other company, not even its Russian rival, the Bolshoi, could match. What a treat to witness this fairytale come alive in a whirlwind of movement and merriment," wrote Carolyn Kelemen (DC Metro Theater Arts).

The Washington Post's critic Sarah Kaufman commented on the work of the cast which opened the tour: "the Gentleman of the Bedchamber (Yuri Smekalov) – appears without fanfare, but just from the way he wiggles his fingers greedily, as if imagining riches sliding through them, you know he’s a schemer. Yaroslav Baibordin, in the role of the titular horse, has enough bounding energy to run a steeplechase. Vladimir Shklyarov’s Ivan was adorably endearing, and although Anastasia Matvienko had some struggles with Ratmansky’s flowing, spiraling solo as the Tsar Maiden, she was believable as a child at heart who has found her soul mate."

"In no other role is he (Vladimir Shlyarov) so ebulliently, exuberantly fresh. On Tuesday, the Tsar Maiden was Anastasia Matvienko, playing the role with a screwball combination of beauty and tearaway impulsiveness. The title character was danced by the young Yaroslav Baibordin, intoxicatingly frisky," wrote Alastair MacAulay (The New York Times).

Hilary Stroh, columnist for Bachtrack also lavished praise on the performance, awarding it five stars: "Of absolute brilliance were his (Vladimir Shklyarov's) pas de deux with the Horse, Yaroslav Baibordin; their mirroring of each other’s steps was one of the most immaculately timed things I’ve ever seen. From the first jolly fairground music to the last processional apotheosis, Alexei Ratmansky's The Little Humpbacked Horse was the most terrific romp – enormously fun and outrageously charming."

The Mariinsky Ballet's tour took the company to the Kennedy Center from 31 January to 5 February. The roles of Ivan the Fool and the Tsar Maiden were performed by Vladimir Shklyarov and Anastasia Matvienko (31 January and 3 February), Ernest Latypov and Renata Shakirova (1, 4 and 5 February), Maxim Zyuzin and Anastasia Kolegova (2 and 4 February). The role of the Little Humpbacked Horse was performed by Yaroslav Baibordin, Grigory Popov, Vladislav Shumakov, that of the Gentleman of the Bedchamber by Konstantin Zverev and Yuri Smekalov and that of the Mare by Tatiana Tkachenko and Zlata Yalinich.

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