On July 25 and 26, the Astana Opera Ballet Company will perform on tour at the 71st Ljubljana Summer Festival in Slovenia. The creative team has prepared a diverse program, which will feature choreographic numbers set to the national and foreign composers’ music, the press office of Astana Opera reported.
It includes the works that will be a discovery for the Slovenian audience, such as The Call of the Steppe to Renat Gaissin’s music, Qily Zaman to the music of the ethno-folklore ensemble Turan, both choreographed by Patrick de Bana. In addition, fragments from classical and modern ballets will be presented, for example, Adolphe Adam’s Le Corsaire, Riccardo Drigo’s Le Talisman, a philosophical excerpt from Raimondo Rebeck’s ballet How Long Is Now? to Max Richter’s music. The highlight of the evening will be the exclusive number Leda and the Swan, which the celebrated choreographer Roland Petit based on Greek mythology and set to Johann Sebastian Bach’s music. An adagio from Aram Khachaturian’s Spartacus, inspired by a Roman gladiator, and an excerpt from Ludwig Minkus’ classical ballet Don Quixote will also be offered to the audience.
After a short intermission, the Kazakh ballet company will perform one of the most famous humorous ballets Sechs Tänze, created by the world-famous Czech choreographer Jiří Kylián. This masterpiece with a relatively short running time was set to Mozart’s music and pays tribute to the composer’s sense of humor and creative brilliance. Kylián’s choreography usually transcends the classical canon, as he has established himself as a philosopher-choreographer, exploring the depths of human nature rather than the body’s physical capabilities.
There is a little less than a month left before the start of the tour, so now the dancers are actively preparing in the rehearsal studios. The Honored Workers of Kazakhstan Aigerim Beketayeva, Anel Rustemova, Yerkin Rakhmatullayev, laureates of many international competitions Arman Urazov, Olzhas Tarlanov, Serik Nakyspekov, Shugyla Adepkhan, Anastasia Zaklinskaya, Moldir Shakimova, Sultanbek Gumar, Aibar Toktar, as well as Bekzat Orynbayev, Galymzhan Nurmukhamet, Zhanibek Akhmediyev, Sofia Adilkhanova, Adelina Tulepova, Bakhytgul Ispanova, Daniyar Zhumatayev, Madina Kuzhamzharova and others will perform in Ljubljana.
«This summer festival is the focal point of the best teams: orchestras, opera and ballet companies, the best conductors and musicians. It takes place in an open air format, which does not give us the opportunity to bring a full-length ballet production with many set changes, so we will perform a concert program. The choice of the organizers, who came to our opera house and assessed the dancers’ performance level, fell on Jiří Kylián’s ballet Sechs Tänze and the gala program. We have good performers who can worthily represent the ballet art of Kazakhstan at this famous festival. Incidentally, people come here from all over the world, because the art of different countries is fully represented here. This is also an incentive for us to show our skills and artistry, to be recognized across the world and invited to other well-known venues,» the world ballet star, the artistic director of the Astana Opera Ballet Company Altynai Asylmuratova emphasized.
As a reminder, world-famous performers of the highest caliber perform at the Ljubljana Festival during the summer months. This year, Placido Domingo will also present his art at the festival along with renowned collectives.
Source : Kazinform