For those in the know, and even those who aren’t, not too long ago, Mariinsky prima ballerina Viktoria Tereshkina married soloist Roman Belyakov, and the two have become a common fixture not just on city sidewalks and the Petersburg stage, but various stages around the world. Vaganova Today attended their performance of “Romeo and Juliet” in early March which confirmed that the pair definitely brings their offstage romance onstage with them – at least in this ballet.
The Lavrovsky “Romeo” is hardly new to fans of Russian classical ballet, and it is this version that runs at the Mariinsky. The Bolshoi has two versions – Lavrovsky’s version and Ratmansky’s renovated version – but their recent Petersburg visit showed that their Lavrovsky has shiny new sets and simplified choreography especially in some sections of the corps de ballet dances which slightly disappointed many pure classicists. The Mariinsky version allows for no adjustments to the steps, and the result is high-quality dancing and the maintenance of a decades-long tradition.
Belyakov’s stately Romeo –he seems taller than most– appears on the city square, meandering, dreaming and as far away from war and conflict as anyone could be. Belyakov easily embodied the peace-loving romantic as he stared lovingly at the statue in the square. As we know, it’s not until his friends Mercutio and Benvolio persuaded him to attend the masked ball that the trouble begins.
From her first entrance, Tereshkina depicts a childish Juliet while frolicking with her Nanny, Lira Khusulmanova, before Lady Capulet’s entrance. The strict expectations of Lady Capulet stand in stark contrast to Juliet’s hitherto childlike play: when Juliet must demonstrate her birthday dance, Tereshkina first performs the steps with an exaggeratedly stiff position and then bursts into laughter at the ludicrious idea of performing for society. As the audience we realize she’s still just barely a teenager. And yet, by the time Juliet takes the vial of sleeping potion, ready to drink it, we witnessed the monologue of an already young woman, tortured, frought with fear and grief, attempting to alter the course of fate somehow.
When Romeo and Juliet first set eyes on each other, through Romeo’s mask no less, the moment is not yet one of ecstasy but of knowing and near shock at soul-to-soul recognition. As his mask drops, the expression on Tereshkina’s face is one of “oh no”… a superb embodiment of a fated encounter. As the ballet progressed, the couple infused all of their romantic interludes with true passion, making it easy to believe these were two love-birds completely enraptured with each other. On the balcony scene, Belyakov’s tour jetés gather significant height. Tereshkina’s penchée to kiss him is a sincere expression of love. Her bourrées flutter like an anxious heart just before he flees Verona. And his departure leaves Tereshkina numb and bereft as she stares blankly into space, unmoving and unseeing even as her nanny shakes her back into reality. Again Lady Capulet enters and “sculpts” her into the appropriate position for receiving a visit from her suitor Paris. We witness Tereshkina’s Juliet torn between the demands of her family lines, and the desires of her own heart.
In this performance, the young and talented Nail Enikeev danced a cruelly bloodthirsty Tybalt alongside Maxim Izmestiev’s comic, light-hearted and clearly etched Mercutio. Enikeev’s Tybalt was particularly cruel. The two managed to tip over an onstage table near the second wing as they fought; Enikeev waved “goodbye” mockingly as Mercutio’s body was carried away, and wiped away the spit from his face in the battle with Romeo with deep scorn. Izmestiev performed Mercutio with expert flair: he displayed perfect timing when interrupting the other “actors” on stage in order to tease Tybalt, and his death scene proved heart-wrenchingly real. Izmestiev received well-deserved compensation for his ongoing talent and efforts with a promotion to soloist that very weekend.
As the Troubador, the usual happy-go-lucky Ramanbek Beishenaliev shifted into purely classical form both dramatically and technically, performing beautiful double cabrioles as he tried hard to win over Kamilla Mazzi as Juliet’s Friend. Beishenaliev is increasingly proving his wide range as a dancer, from both comic to dramatic roles. (see our interview with him here on VaganovaToday.com)
This “Romeo” demonstrated the high quality adherence to tradition preserved at the Mariinsky. If you visit Petersburg, this production and these dancers should be on your list of “must-see’s”.
Valery Ovsyannikov conducted.