Yaroslavna: Zlata Yalinich
Prince Igor: Alexander Sergeev
Div: Vasily Tkachenko
Konchak: Grigory Popov
Polovtsian Maiden: Kristina Shapran
Premiere of Boris Tishchenko's ballet choreographed by Oleg Vinogradov – 30 June 1974, MALEGOT, Leningrad
Premiere of the ballet choreographed by Vladimir Varnava – 30 June 2017, Mariinsky Theatre
Running time 2 hours 10 minutes
The performance has one interval
Boris Tishchenko wrote the ballet Yaroslavna (The Eclipse) in 1974 for the Maly Opera Theatre in Leningrad. The production choreographed by Oleg Vinogradov and directed by Yuri Lyubimov was one of the ballet highlights of the 1970s. The innovative masterpiece was acclaimed not only by the Soviet public and critics, but also by the guests of the prestigious Festival d'Avignon. At the core of the production lies a radically different interpretation of The Tale of Igor's Campaign from the one we have seen in the opera Prince Igor. This production features spectacular director’s work and Tishchenko’s piercing music, which has hypnotised the audience for 14 years – the number of years the production ran at the theatre. The author of a new scenic incarnation of Tishchenko’s work is the choreographer Vladimir Varnava. "When reading the text of The Tale of Igor's Campaign, I am trying to show parallels with myself, and in my production I am looking for emotions and images close to the people of today," the choreographer says. "My story is about a man; I try to imagine what might be going through the heart of someone who acts solely for the purpose of satisfying his own ambitions, boosting his ego, feeding his inner demon. It could be about anyone of us, and I want every spectator to consider his or her own actions while watching the production. Yaroslavna is not about some heroic feat, not about a liberator, it's a tragedy. It's like Macbeth in reverse – that's the hashtag I'd give our production. In Macbeth we observe the darkening of a man's soul, while here, from darkness through trials and the greatest guilt of all for the death of a huge number of people, the hero comes to light. The theme of the insight of one at the cost of many lives is present in The Tale of Igor's Campaign, and my task as a choreographer is to portray that idea."
The highlighting of performances by age represents recommendations.
This highlighting is being used in accordance with Federal Law N436-FZ dated 29 December 2010 (edition dated 1 May 2019) "On the protection of children from information that may be harmful to their health"