Three Bayadères, three Nikiyas
On 12, 13 and 15 February the Mikhailovsky Theatre will play host to La Bayadère. The part of Nikiya will be danced by Ekaterina Borchenko and Polina Semionova, as well as Angelina Vorontsova, who will be performing the role for the first time.
Taking turns onstage, these three dancers will demonstrate the emotional range of both the part, and the production as a whole. The public will see Ekaterina Borchenko, with her “lyrical cantilena dance”, perform the part of Nikiya on 12 February. Noting the academic discipline of her dance, Kommersant remarked that “the ballerina’s elongated, gothic forms resemble trigonometry incarnate.” There are no such comparisons to advanced mathematics in the reviews of Polina Semionova, who will perform the part of Nikiya on 13 February: “The dancer has fortunately avoided the temptation of resorting to exaggerated affectations. She neither wallows in romantic despondency, nor plunges into a frantic, shamanic dance. Her Nikiya was bewitching, slowly and inevitably pulling the audience into a trance.”
On 15 February, Angelina Vorontsova will perform as the bayadère for the first time. She has been rehearsing for this role alongside Zhanna Ayupova, a National Artist of Russia, who herself has danced in the ballet for many years.
“I try to learn as much as I can from Zhanna Ayupova. Critics have described her bayadère as fragile and stirring”, says Vorontsova. “I see the role of Nikiya as the quintessential display of skill in female ballet roles, and I am glad that I have taken it on with an extensive classical repertoire to my name and at an age that I can understand what the bayadère felt. But I realize that I can spend my whole life perfecting this part. It is that special.”
La Bayadère, written by Marius Petipa in 1877, is considered a treasure of world choreography. Over its many years on stage, it has always required the dancer to perform the perfect academic ballet, to give the role a subtle psychological treatment, and to develop a unique dramatic approach.
