31.10.2013
The Mouse King will die in the first act
Nacho Duato is concluding his ‘Russian Seasons’ with a performance of The Nutcracker. The name of the most popular ballet is on the playbill of the Mikhailovsky Theatre for mid-December, on the eve of the Christmas and New Year holidays.
The choreographer spends entire days in the rehearsal halls and is not inclined to give interviews. Nonetheless, he graciously agreed to answer a few questions, offering his answers with a sincere smile and even a chuckle.
Nacho, will The Nutcracker be similar to The Sleeping Beauty?
— No, they will be very different of course. After all, the plots are very different. And if we are talking about Marius Petipa’s version of The Sleeping Beauty, it is perhaps his most academic ballet. It contains a great amount of difficult choreography and demands exquisite technique. On the other hand, it seems to me that The Nutcracker contains more straightforward dance, which comes from the soul, from some sort of internal feeling.
Will you offer you own interpretation of this fairytale? Add something of you own?
— No, I dislike it when this kind of thing is done. I left the plot unaltered, with the exception of shortening certain segments. For example, I do not understand why the Mouse King is wounded at the end of the first act, but he is still alive in the second. Why is this necessary? In my production he will die in the first act. These rats are featured in almost all ballets! We will do without them, and begin the second act with the Spanish Dance.
Is this because you are Spanish? Do you feel that you have picked up some Russian personality traits?
— I do not even think that there is much Spanish in me. I do not even look that much like a Spaniard. I feel Mediterranean hedonism, a love of scents, warmth, beauty, and antiquity. On the other hand, while working in Northern Europe I picked up some Protestant traits such as Calvinist punctuality, practicality, and a serious attitude towards work. I think this is a good combination.
Do you plan to stage any classics in Berlin?
— Of course! I want to stage The Nutcracker and The Sleeping Beauty there. However, I will probably not stage anything new.
The choreographer spends entire days in the rehearsal halls and is not inclined to give interviews. Nonetheless, he graciously agreed to answer a few questions, offering his answers with a sincere smile and even a chuckle.
Nacho, will The Nutcracker be similar to The Sleeping Beauty?
— No, they will be very different of course. After all, the plots are very different. And if we are talking about Marius Petipa’s version of The Sleeping Beauty, it is perhaps his most academic ballet. It contains a great amount of difficult choreography and demands exquisite technique. On the other hand, it seems to me that The Nutcracker contains more straightforward dance, which comes from the soul, from some sort of internal feeling.
Will you offer you own interpretation of this fairytale? Add something of you own?
— No, I dislike it when this kind of thing is done. I left the plot unaltered, with the exception of shortening certain segments. For example, I do not understand why the Mouse King is wounded at the end of the first act, but he is still alive in the second. Why is this necessary? In my production he will die in the first act. These rats are featured in almost all ballets! We will do without them, and begin the second act with the Spanish Dance.
Is this because you are Spanish? Do you feel that you have picked up some Russian personality traits?
— I do not even think that there is much Spanish in me. I do not even look that much like a Spaniard. I feel Mediterranean hedonism, a love of scents, warmth, beauty, and antiquity. On the other hand, while working in Northern Europe I picked up some Protestant traits such as Calvinist punctuality, practicality, and a serious attitude towards work. I think this is a good combination.
Do you plan to stage any classics in Berlin?
— Of course! I want to stage The Nutcracker and The Sleeping Beauty there. However, I will probably not stage anything new.
