Russia’s two great ballet companies, the Bolshoi Ballet and the Kirov Ballet (now the Mariinsky) undertook their first major post-war tours in the early 1960s, exposing the West to the bravura and discipline of the Russian dancers for the first time. This DVD brings together performances by members of both companies, providing rare footage of some of the most brilliant dancers of their time. This is the first DVD released of this material.
Sergey Prokofiev: The Tale of the Stone Flower, Op. 118: Act I Danila – Yuri Soloviev Katerina – Alla Sizova Mistress of Copper Mountain – Alla Osipenko Severyan – Anatoli Gridin Kirov Ballet Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden Niyazi, conductor Yuri Grigorovich, choreographer Recorded from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on July 1960
Pyot’r Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake, Op. 20, Act II: Scene and pas de deux Odette – Galina Ulanova Prince Siegfried – Nicolai Fadeyechev Bolshoi Ballet Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden Yuri Faier, conductor Lev Ivanov and Alexander Gorsky, choreographer Broadcast from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on 21 October 1956
Sergey Prokofiev: Cinderella, Op. 87, Act II: Cinderella and the Prince at the ball Cinderella – Raisa Struchkova The Prince – Mikhail Lavrovsky Bolshoi Ballet Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Alexander Kopylov, conductor Algis Zhuraitis, conductor Rostislav Zakharov, choreographer
Adolphe Adam: Giselle, Act II: Giselle and Albrecht Giselle – Ekaterina Maximova Prince Albrecht – Maris Liepa Bolshoi Ballet Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Alexander Kopylov, conductor Algis Zhuraitis, conductor Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot, choreographer
Aram Khatchaturian: Gayaneh, Act IV: Gayaneh and Armen Gayaneh – Nina Timofeyeva Armen – Nikolai Fadeyechev Bolshoi Ballet Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Alexander Kopylov, conductor Algis Zhuraitis, conductor Nina Anisimova, choreographer
Ludwig Minkus: Don Quixote, Act I: Kitri and Basilio Kitri – Maya Plisetskaya Basilio – Vladimir Vasiliev Bolshoi Ballet Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Alexander Kopylov, conductor Algis Zhuraitis, conductor Alexander Gorsky, choreographer Recorded from 26–30 July 1963
Picture format: NTSC 4:3 B/W Sound format: Enhanced Mono Region code: 0 (worldwide) Running time: 81 mins No. of DVDs: 1
