Eifman Ballet has completed the first half of the 2014–2015 season

Eifman Ballet has concluded the first part of its 38th season. As we approach the New Year the company presents the summary of the main results of the its creative activity from August to December 2014.

Eifman Ballet commenced the season at the beginning of August with a series of performances at the Alexandrinsky Theatre. The ballets Rodin, and Requiem (premiere of 2014) were presented. In the second half of August, the citizens and visitors of Saint Petersburg saw Anna Karenina, and Beyond Sin.

In the middle of September, the Company landed in Monte-Carlo, at the famous Grimaldi Forum, with Anna Karenina. Princess Caroline of Monaco honored the performance with her own presence. On September 27, the Company participated in the gala concert Kremlin Gala “Ballet Stars of the 21st century” held in Moscow, at the State Kremlin Palace, which gathered together outstanding dancers of the leading world companies.

On September 29, 30, and October 1, the New Stage of the Bolshoi Theater hosted the Moscow first premiere of Requiem within the International Chereshnevy Les Open-Art Festival. Those performances proved to be one of the most landmark events of the Moscow theatre life to attract attention both of exquisite connoisseurs of art, and of numerous representatives of public and cultural elite.

In October and November, the Company went on tour through the European capitals. In late October, Eifman Ballet performed in Prague and Bratislava, where Rodin was presented for the first time. All performances received standing ovations and exclamations “Bravo!”. The Czech printed mass media mentioned, “The large stage of the State Opera is only just enough for all jumps and energy the dancers put in their entrances.” At the end of November, the company visited Napoli. The stage of the oldest European Teatro di San Carlo, Anna Karenina had a tremendous success.

On November 3 Boris Eifman’s dancers met the Petersburg audience for the last time in 2014 with Beyond Sin danced at the Alexandrinsky Theatre. At the end of the month, the Company was on tour in Warsaw, with a Polish premiere of the same ballet. We should mention that the departure from Saint Petersburg to the capital of Poland was marked with a surprise. During the check-in for the flight bound to Warsaw Eifman Ballet performed a flash mob at the Pulkovo Airport and presented a swing dance from the upcoming production Up & Down.

Warsaw performances were held at the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera as part of the VI Days of Dance Festival. The Company gave four performances in Poland. The spectators accepted the ballet enthusiastically. “The Polish audience was watching the acting area on the edge of the seats to rise in applause in the end. Thankful spectators did not leave the artists to go for a long time,” printed media set. An authoritative newspaper Rzeczospolita reviews Beyond Sin as follows, “We always welcome Boris Eifman with open arms, because he can create breathtaking performances in cooperation with brilliant dancers. Eifman is extremely sensible of the 21st century audience.”

Having completed their performance in Warsaw with triumph, Eifman Ballet immediately left for France. The tour lasted until the middle of December. The Company performed in Cannes, Lyon (being there for a week), Amiens, Massy, and other cities. The French audience could see Rodin. “We were welcomed fantastically heartily, accompanied with a great tornado of cheers. After one of the performances in Lyon, the audience cried “Bravo” so loudly and furiously that we felt like it’s a stadium,” says Lyubov Andreyeva, Eifman Ballet’s leading soloist performing the role of Camille in Rodin. She told that while on the tour in France, the dancers not only took the audience by storm, but also enjoyed inimitable pre-Christmas atmosphere, which inspired the Company.

French ballet reviewers highly appreciated psychological insight inherent in Boris Eifman, admiring “impressive and intellectual chorography painting the characters’ feelings”.

On December 7–9 the III St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum took place in St. Petersburg. As part of its “Choreography” section (curator – Boris Eifman) three different events dedicated to modern ballet art were successfully carried out. In particular, on December 8 the panel discussion “Topical issues of aspiring choreographers’ creative activities and their support: a look into the future of the ballet world” took place at the Boris Eifman Dance Academy. It brought together artistic directors of the famous ballet companies, respected critics, promoters and producers from Russia, USA, Canada, Unite Kingdom, China, Poland and other countries, as well as beginner choreographers and students of choreographic departments of St. Petersburg educational institutions.

That same evening at the Aurora Cinema there was the premiere of the screen ballet Rodin directed by Boris Eifman. On December 9 at the Yeltsin Presidential Library the final event of the “Choreography” section took place: presentation of the album Another Realm for the Word dedicated to the Boris Eifman's ballets based on the masterpieces of Russian literature. Later on the same day the choreographer participated in the concluding plenary meeting – closing of the Forum.

The Company devoted the second half of December to working at the ballet Up and Down. Rehearsals will last until the end of January. The Petersburg first night will take place on the January 27 and 28 at the Alexandrinsky Theatre. The European premiere to be held at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, on February 9, 10 and 11. In the words of the choreographer, in the new ballet, “hedonistic jazz atmosphere collide with a spiritual disaster of the main character”.