The ballet company known presently as The Mariinsky Ballet is recognized around the world as one of the premiere ballet companies from Russia. They arrive in Los Angeles this week to perform choreographer George Ballanchine’s Jewels at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion beginning on Thursday and continuing through Sunday afternoon.
Founded in 1740, The Mariinsky Ballet was previously known as The Kirov Ballet – its former Soviet name.
Jewels is considered one of the first abstract ballets. There are three acts each named for a precious stone: Emeralds, Rubies and Diamonds. The music used for each act, which will be performed live by the Mariinsky Orchestra, comes from composers Gabriel Fauré, Igor Stravinsky and Peter Tchaikovsky.
For Emeralds Ballanchine chose music from Fauré’s Pelléas et Mélissande and Shylock. For Rubies he used Stravinsky’s Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra. For Diamonds he used music from Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 3 in D Major.
In 2016, Alistair Macaulay wrote in The New York Times about Jewels: “It remains a perfect introduction to ballet: Few full-length story ballets are as satisfying as this storyless one…”
Here is the line-up for the five performances:
October 24th:
Emeralds: Daria Ionova, Maxime Zyuzin
Rubies: Renata Shakirova, Kimin Kim, Ekaterina Chebykina
Diamonds: Alina Somova Vladimir Shklyarov
October 25th:
Emeralds: Maria Shirinkina, Konstantin Zverev
Rubies: Nadezhda Batoeva, Philipp Stepin, Maria Bulanova
Diamonds: Ekaterina Kondaurova, Andrei Yermakov
October 26th matinee:
Emeralds: Daria Ionova, Maxime Zyuzin
Rubies: Renata Shakirova, Kimin Kim, Ekaterina Chebykina
Diamonds: Maria Khoreva, Timur Askerov
October 26th evening:
Emeralds: Maria Shirinkina, Konstantin Zverev
Rubies: Nadezhda Batoeva, Philipp Stepin, Maria Bulanova
Diamonds: Ekaterina Kondaurova, Andrei Yermakov
October 27th:
Emeralds: Daria Ionova, Maxime Zyuzin
Rubies: Renata Shakirova, Kimin Kim, Ekaterina Chebykina
Diamonds: Maria Khoreva, Timur Askerov
For tickets go here.
Photo: Nadezhda Batoeva & Kimin Kim in Rubies/ Photo by Natasha Razina © State Academic Mariinsky Theatre