Bolshoi Live from Moscow: Taming of the Shrew

Saturday, February 6, 6:30 p.m., Orcas Center

— from Artha Kass —

TAMING OF THE SHREW (photo by Elena Fetisova)

This weekend, the Bolshoi Ballet will be performing Taming of the Shrew the magnificent ballet created for the Company in 2014 by Jean-Christophe Maillot, Choreographer-Director of Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo. It played to sold-out houses then — and also when the Bolshoi subsequently took it to Monte-Carlo — and the three performances in Moscow this weekend are also sell-outs. We at Orcas Center have the opportunity to see this rich and brilliant production streaming live from Moscow on Saturday, February 6 at 6:30 pm.

The popular Shakespeare story of many suitors who dream of marrying the lovely and docile Bianca. However her father will not let anyone marry her before her elder sister, the ill-tempered shrew Katharina, is herself married. Jean-Christophe Maillot lands a coup with his adaptation of Shakespeare’s comedy tailored specifically to the Bolshoi dancers, and achieves a magnetic two hours of breathtaking, nonstop dance, portraying the Bolshoi′s audacity and energy.

Why should this be relevant to audiences on Orcas and across the United States? Well the Saturday evening’s performance offers many of us the opportunity to see for the first time, perhaps, the work of this highly acclaimed choreographer. This production of Taming of the Shrew in Moscow marked the first time that Maillot had choreographed a ballet for a company other than the Ballets de Monte-Carlo since his appointment in 1993. It also represented the first time that a foreign choreographer had been invited to create a full-length work for the Bolshoi.

Jean-Christophe Maillot wanted to create a ballet for the artists of the Bolshoi which would highlight both their theatrical skills, as well as the brilliant dancing for which they are known. Realizing the need for a strong narrative theme to the work, Maillot took his inspiration from the greatest playwright in the English language, William Shakespeare, focusing on the battle of wills between the flamboyant Petruchio and the cantankerous Katherina, which forms the central plot of the play.

Taming of the Shrew won three Golden Masks at the National Theatre Awards in 2015 – the most prestigious awards in Russia given to productions in all genres of theatrical art. They were awarded for best ballet, best actress (Krysanova) and best actor (Lantratov).

The ballet is set to music by Dmitri Shostakovich, which was mostly composed for the cinema, and includes a piece which we’ll all recognize – Tahiti Trot, Shostakovich’s 1927 orchestration of Vincent Youmans’ Tea for Two, from the musical No No Nanette.

Tickets for The Bolshoi’s Ballet in Cinema Taming of the Shrew are $20, $15 for students, $2 off for Orcas Center members, and may be purchased at www.orcascenter.org or by calling 376-2281 ext. 1 or visiting the Orcas Center Box Office open Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from noon – 2 pm. $5 subsidized tickets are available at the Box Office. For more information about Orcas Center’s 2016 season visit www.orcascenter.org.