“A Minute Before Christmas” features music by Mykola Leontovych and Camille Saint-Saëns — a ballet review
The new fairy-tale production “A Minute Before Christmas”, with an original plot, was presented by the “Kyiv Modern Ballet” Academic Theatre at the capital’s cultural cluster “Krakow”. Audiences of all ages respond to the premiere with delight, and the posters announce performances throughout the Christmas and New Year period.
The project to create this one-act dance-and-music journey was led by the chief ballet master of «Kyiv Modern Ballet» Radu Poklitaru, Honoured Artist of Ukraine — and that already means a certain style and signature. This time the production gives especially vivid expression to the line of good resisting evil — for the times shape the tale. Although the production makes no mention of the armed war.
Strange enchanted creatures of the underwater world and noble snow-white birds revolve around Christmas in this new ballet, and at a certain moment bikers unexpectedly burst onto the stage. Although the framework is traditional — a family somewhere in Europe is finishing its preparations for the main holiday. And then, according to the libretto by Oksana Taranenko, this ritual is repeated a hundred years later.
The blend of reality and illusions is somewhat reminiscent of a horror story (in the evil wizard’s laboratory), but everything ends optimistically.
As a reminder that this is also our own history of celebrations, the ballet features the famous «Carol of the Bells» Carol of the Bells — that is, our «Shchedryk», translated into English in the 1930s, with music by the Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych. In the production «A Minute Before Christmas» his melodies also serve as a frame: at the beginning and at the end.
Inside, the ballet is filled with the music of the French composer Camille Saint-Saëns. (It is mere coincidence that both composers departed this world in 1921. The composer from Podillia died from a Chekist’s bullet.) The sound director of the production is Oleksandr Kuriy, Honoured Artist of Ukraine.
The author of the libretto, Oksana Taranenko, says that the tale contains a great many ideas that are important for young audiences, for children, for teenagers. Through the ballet, its creators show audiences how to find new friends, even if those friends are nothing like you.
«A very important idea, and the most important, the principal one in my view, is that if you want to overcome evil, it can only be done together. And our main character forms just such a company of friends, which helps to defeat the evil wizard in the end", — Ms Oksana emphasises.
This was the first time that the ballet’s choreographer Serhiy Kon created a production together with the artists of the «Kyiv Modern Ballet» theatre. «The wish to work and create a new production with dancers at a professional contemporary dance theatre had been with me for quite some time. When I received the invitation to work with the artists of the «Kyiv Modern Ballet» theatre and to create the choreography for a new Christmas show, I agreed at once», — the choreographer comments.
The image of the demonic wizard Nebulon was created by Michel Fondu, who has been with the «Kyiv Modern Ballet» company since 2009. The performers also include: Sofiya Husieva, Dmytro Kondratiuk, Hanna Karnaukh, Polina Hrinina, Ivan Zaiets, Serhiy Shcherbinenko, Sait Khalimzhanov.
The festive magic and the enchantments of different worlds and eras are shown on stage through the video projections of Olha Nikitina. The video designers are Hanna Bevza and Anastasiya Popovych. The lighting designer is Olena Antokhina.
Like other works of art created during the full-scale period of the Russo-Ukrainian war, the ballet «A Minute Before Christmas» is a resistance to the darkness, a hope and a faith.
Valentyna SAMCHENKO
Ukraina Moloda
