Fortress of Olavinlinna
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The tour of Karelian actors participating in the IVth international ballet festival in Savonlinna (Finland) is over.
Russian actors performed on the stage of Northern medieval castle of the Olavinlinna Fortress.
In August the city of Savonlinna received more than 120 actors from Petrozavodsk, soloists of ballet from St.-Petersburg and Moscow. Within four days all 2200 places of the unusual concert hall of the fortress were filled with spectators. For two days the Music Theatre of Karelia presented The Swan Lake ballet directed by the main ballet master of the theatre Cyril Simonov at participation of soloists of Mariinsky Theatre. The Symphonic orchestra had the most important task, as its musicians took part in all rehearsals and concerts. Also, precise organization of the working process, the four-day sellout and very warm reception of spectators have smoothed unpleasant surprises of weather.
The Two Swans' Rock
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Ballet-illusion directed by the main ballet master of the Music Theatre of Karelia Cyril Simonov has been highly estimated by fans of the art of choreography. On Saturday, August 9, actors presented the opening night of the new ballet The Two Swans' Rock based on the national legend and music of Karelian composer Alexander Beloborodov; the second part of the performance included performance of Bolshoi Theatre ballet soloists Ilze Liepa, Maria Allash, Gennady Yanin, Nadezhda Gracheva and others. The new ballet was staged by Karelian-Finnish creative collective under direction of choreographers director of the festival Hannu Hyttinen and the ballet master of Kantele Irina Zotochkina. Due to ideas born by the festival, for the first time in the past 40 years after the Sampio ballet Karelian composer Alexander Beloborodovym created music to ballet The Two Swans' Rock.
On the eve on the theatre opening after major overhaul, the ballet troupe of the Music Theatre of the Republic of Karelia has increased almost twice and all the new actors participated in the festival. About twenty young actors from Khanty-Mansiysk, Ulan-Ude and Perm have joined the troupe only two weeks before the festival and performed successfully. Young actors represented Russia at the ballet festival in Savonlinna along with soloists of Mariinsky Theatre Ekaterina Kondaurova, Islom Baimuradov and Maxim Zyuzin.
The Swan Lake
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Having joined the troupe of Kantele ensemble and gone on the tour in Finland, students of the Karelian school of culture have also performed at the festival. The soloists invited from Chelyabinsk State Opera and Ballet Theatre Konstantin Yuganov and ours countrylady Olga Shemyakina studied in Perm from the honored artists of Karelia Svetlana Gubina and Yury Sidorov.
Performances of the festival passed on the scenic platform of a true castle inspired towering in the middle of one numerous lakes of Saimaa system. They were held at direct participation of the Symphonic Orchestra of Karelian State Philarmonic Society conducted by Marius Stravinsky. On Sunday, August 10, the orchestra played with the famous violoncellist Sergey Antonov, and this concert was the last in the tour in Finland.
Thus, Russian-Karelian-Finnish weekend in the fortress of Olavinlinna passed at complete sellout. The audience appreciated performance of the "stars" of Russian and Karelian ballet, and both actors, and organizers were satisfied with the job done. The cultural project organized under the patronage of the Head of the Republic of Karelia Sergey Katanandov and Governor of East Finland Pirje Ala-Kapee-Hakulinen proceeds. The already signed Agreement on intentions contains the plan of organization of the ballet festival in 2009 which will present The Two Swans' Rock and Romeo and Juliet directed by Cyril Simonov.
Larisa Krasvtseva
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