Impressions of the Ballet "Passions. Rogneda"

I believe that it's impossible not to love theatre. It shows how wonderful & interesting our life is. Unfortunately I can't say that I go to the theatre very often, the main reason is the shortage of time, but every visit is a great event for me.

Of all Minsk theatres I prefer the State Academic Opera & Ballet Theatre, because ballet conquered my heart many years ago when I visited it for the first time. And it's no wonder that I was so much impressed as the ballet-company of our Ballet Theatre is considered to be one of the best in the world & all the performances are always magnificently staged: costumes, scenery, everything being done on the most lavish scale. Moreover the interior of the theatre with its columns & candelabrums, with great number of photos of famous ballet dancers & opera-singers, the photos of the scenes from famous ballets hanging on the walls - everything dispose me to the atmosphere of solemnity.

Also it makes sense to say about the theatre's rich repertoire: the plots of the ballets are based on histori­cal events, literary works, and mythological subjects & can be with great interest seen by both children & adults. Of course each ballet is special; unforgettable in its way, but there is sure to be one which will impress you so greatly that you'll constantly look forward to seeing it again & again. The same thing happened to me when J saw "Passions" (Rogneda) by our famous choreographer Valentin Elizariev.

The ballet was very easy to see as the plot was familiar to me from the history. It was based on the legend about the princes of Polozk Rogneda, on the dramatic facts of her life. From the beginning of the 1^st act till the very end of the 2^nd one my attention was drawn to the stage, to the dancers showing their craftsmanship.

The main heroine was Rogneda. At first I could see a young & beautiful girl full of happiness & hopes for the future, who was in love & was loved at the same time. But then the audience saw (viewed) an absolutely different woman, who was in grief, who couldn't forgive her husband the murder of the father & her brothers, the same as his adultery. And the leading ballerina who performed the role of Rogneda entered into the part so greatly that every expression, every moment, every gesture of her went straight to my heart, her touching dancing just made the audience share with her in the moments of Rogneda's joy & sorrow. The dancer who was performing the part of Yaropolk, Rogneda's beloved also touched my feelings with his sensitive portrayal of the hero, but to tell the truth, the dancer, who was taking the part of Vladimir appealed to me more. Personally I think that it is necessary to be gifted & be a first class dancer to represent the negative hero in a ballet. From my point of view it was the most difficult role, but he brought the character to life so truthfully & successfully that he deservedly received the tremendous cheers from the public at the end of the performance.

Also I can't help telling you about the sets & the costumes of the ballet as the whole because they comple­mented one another. Everything was so bright, colourful & skillfully done that I couldn't but admire.

Also enjoying the ballet I was enjoying the music, which was specially written for the ballet, it fitted per­fectly all the scenes & dances. It was lyrical, romantic & moving, arousing deep emotions & creating a special mood. I was just charmed away by this fascinating music of A. Mdivani.

And when the ballet had been already over & I was going home, the sounds of the music, the scenes from the ballet were still alive in my memory & I realized that this ballet would always be a success.