L. Minkus, "La Bayadère" (ballet): content

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

L. Minkus' ballet "La Bayadère" is one of the most famous Russian ballets of the 19th century. Music by Ludwig Minkus, libretto by Sergei Khudyakov and choreography by the legendary Marius Petipa.

How the ballet was created

La Bayadères were Indian girls who served as dancers in temples where they were sent by their parents because they were unloved and unwanted.

There are various versions that explain why the idea of creating a performance based on an exotic plot for Russia at that time arose. This is not known for certain, so disputes between theater historians are still ongoing.

The idea of creating "La Bayadère" belongs to the chief choreographer of the Russian imperial troupe - Marius Petipa. According to one version, he decided to stage such a performance in Russia under the influence of the phrase ballet "Shakuntala", the creator of which was his older brother Lucien. The author of the music for the French production was Ernest Reyer, the author of the libretto, which was based on the ancient Indian drama Kalidasta, was Theophile Gauthier. The prototype of the main character was Amani - a dancer, prima of an Indian troupe that toured Europe,who committed suicide. Gauthier decided to stage a ballet in memory of her.

But there is no evidence that this is true. Therefore, it cannot be argued that it was under the influence of Shakuntala that La Bayadère (ballet) was born. Its content is very different from the plot of the Parisian production. In addition, Petipa Jr.'s ballet entered the Russian stage only 20 years after its production in Paris. There is another version of Marius Petipa's idea of creating "La Bayadère" - a fashion for Eastern (in particular, Indian) culture.

The author of the music was Ludwig Minkus, an Austrian of Czech origin, who served under the Russian emperor, composer, violinist and conductor. La Bayadère has become one of his most famous works.

Literary basis

The libretto of the ballet was developed by Marius Petipa himself together with the playwright S. N. Khudekov. According to historians, the same Indian drama Kalidasta served as the literary basis for La Bayadère as in the production of Shakuntala, but the plots of these two ballets are very different. According to theater critics, the libretto also includes Goethe's ballad "God and the Bayadère", based on which a ballet was created in France, where the main part was danced by Maria Taglioni.

Ballet Characters

Main characters: bayadère Nikiya and the famous warrior Solor, whose tragic love story is told by this ballet. A photo of the central characters is presented in this article.

Dugmanta - the Raja of Golconda, Gamzatti - the daughter of the Raja, the Great Brahmin, Magdaya - the fakir, Taloragva - the warrior, Aya -slave, Jampe. As well as warriors, bayadères, fakirs, people, hunters, musicians, servants…

The plot of the ballet

This is a performance of 4 acts, but each theater has its own "La Bayadère" (ballet). The content is preserved, the main idea is unchanged, the basis is the same libretto, the same music and the same plastic solutions, but the number of actions in different theaters may be different. For example, at the Mikhailovsky Theater (St. Petersburg) the ballet has three acts instead of four. For many years, the score of the 4th act was considered lost, and the ballet was staged in 3 acts. But it was nevertheless found in the funds of the Mariinsky Theater, and the original version was restored, but not all theaters switched to this version.

In ancient times in India, the events of the performance "La Bayadère" (ballet) unfold. The content of the first act: the warrior Solor comes to the temple at night to meet Nikiya there, and invites her to run away with him. The great brahmin, rejected by her, witnesses the date and decides to take revenge on the girl.

Second act. The Raja wants to marry his daughter Gamzatti to the valiant warrior Solor, who is trying to refuse such an honor, but the Raja sets a date for the wedding. The great brahmin informs the raja that the warrior met Nikiya in the temple. He decides to kill the dancer by presenting her with a basket of flowers with a poisonous snake inside. This conversation is heard by Gamzatti. She decides to get rid of her rival and offers her riches if she refuses Solor. Nikiya is shocked that her lover is getting married, but cannot refuse him and in a fit of anger rushes at the Raja's daughterwith a dagger. Faithful maid Gamzatti manages to save her mistress. The next day, a celebration begins at the Raja's castle on the occasion of the wedding of his daughter, and Nikiya is ordered to dance for the guests. After one of her dances, she is given a basket of flowers, from which a snake crawls out and stings her. Nikiya dies in Solor's arms. Thus ends the second part of the play "La Bayadère" (ballet).

Contents of the third and fourth acts. Solor mourns Nikiya. During the wedding ceremony, he sees the shadow of his beloved in the air, she looks at him tenderly. The great brahmin completes the wedding ceremony, after which a terrible earthquake occurs, and the angry gods destroy the temple. The souls of Solor and Nikiya unite to be together forever.

Composer

The author of the music for the ballet "La Bayadère", as already mentioned here above, is the composer Minkus Ludwig. He was born on March 23, 1826 in Vienna. His full name is Aloysius Ludwig Minkus. As a four-year-old boy, he began to study music - he learned to play the violin, at the age of 8 he first appeared on stage, and many critics recognized him as a child prodigy.

At the age of 20, L. Minkus tried himself as a conductor and composer. In 1852, he was invited to the Royal Vienna Opera as the first violinist, and a year later he received a place as bandmaster of the orchestra in the fortress theater of Prince Yusupov. From 1856 to 1861, L. Minkus served as the first violinist at the Moscow Imperial Bolshoi Theater, and then began to combine this position with that of a conductor. After it took placethe opening of the Moscow Conservatory, the composer was invited to teach violin there. L. Minkus wrote a large number of ballets. The very first of them, created in 1857, is the "Union of Peleus and Thetis" for the Yusupov Theater. In 1869, one of the most famous ballets, Don Quixote, was written. Together with M. Petipa, 16 ballets were created. For the last 27 years of his life, the composer lived in his homeland - in Austria. Ballets by L. Minkus are still included in the repertoires of all the leading theaters in the world.

Premier

On January 23, 1877, the ballet La Bayadère was presented to the Petersburg public for the first time. The theater in which the premiere took place (the Bolshoi Theater, or, as it was also called, the Stone Theater), was located where the St. Petersburg Conservatory is now located. The part of the main character Nikiya was performed by Ekaterina Vazem, and dancer Lev Ivanov shone as her lover.

Different versions

In 1900, M. Petipa himself edited his production. She walked in an updated version at the Mariinsky Theater, and M. Kshesinskaya danced the part of Nikiya. In 1904 the ballet was transferred to the stage of the Moscow Bolshoi Theatre. In 1941 the ballet was edited by V. Chebukiani and V. Ponomarev. In 2002, Sergei Vikharev re-edited this ballet. Photos from the performance of the Mariinsky Theater are contained in the article.