I'm opening a new topic to discuss news and post reviews on the big new 'Le Corsaire' by the Bolshoi Ballet. Following four performances at home, the production will be packed-up and shipped to the London Colisseum for the August '07 tour. The only announced set of principals thus far consist of Svetlana Zakharova and Denis Matvienko.

According to the Bolshoi website (bolshoi.ru), this will be a very traditional production, based on the Harvard notes, restoring the original score and reviving the late-1890s costumes from the Mariinsky. Sounds promising! A bit of information directly from the Bolshoi web:

*****
Will be premiered on June 21, 2007.
Presented with two intervals.

Use is made in the production of music by Leo Delibes, Cesare Pugni, Pyotr von Oldenburg, Riccardo Drigo, Albert Zabel, Julius Gerber.
Music dramaturgy conception – Yuri Burlaka
Score restored by Alexander Troitsky
The original score by Adolphe Adam/Leo Delibes for Le Corsaire has been made available by L'Opera national de Paris from the archives of La Bibliotheque nationale de France
The choreographic notation has been made available by the Harvard University Theatre Collection
Evgeny Ponomaryov's costume sketches (1899) used in the production have been made available by the St. Petersburg State Theatre Library
****

I'll be in London in August & hope to report what I see at that time. In the meantime, I hope that some of our Moscow-based members will be able to report on next week's premiere performances.

I'm planning to see this in London as well. I see practically no ballet these days, and am very much looking forward to it. Even if the production turns out to be flawed I can't imagine I won't enjoy it! Natalya -- if you learn anything about casting beyond opening night, please pass it along as you judge appropriate. (I would have loved to see Bright Stream in London but my work calendar did not comply.)

Please report back if you do see it - inquiring minds want to know.

Lunkina and Alexandrova are the other Medoras in rehearsals, according to insiders on the Russian-language fora. Tsiskaridze and Klevetsov the Conrads. Vasiliev & Bolotin among the Alis; Osipova & Krysanova among the Gulnares.

Keep an eye open for final London castings on the site of the impressarios for that tour, the Hochhausers:

http://www.victorhochhauser.co.uk/bolshoi_...07_corsaire.htm

The above link goes to a lovely photo of Zakharova & Matvienko wearing some of those ca-1899 costumes. Just to whet everyone's appetites.

Zakharova, Alexandrova and Lunkina all Gulnaras? An ecclectic mix! It should make for three very different interpretations. The Conrads too, come to think of it.

Edited to correct: Sorry, rq, you're quite right. I mean Medora, of course. It's just one of those things that I always get the wrong way round...

the little hochauser foto shows zakharova as medora and natalia notes alexandrova and lunkina also rehearsing medora.

According to this source, (Dansomanie), the Itar-Tass press interview/viewing of a rehearsal of Ratmansky's Le Corsaire revealed that Stepanenko and Antonicheva are also rehearsing Medora and Uvarov and Filin Conrad.

Maybe somebody with better French than mine can help here.

You can see some of the photos taken at the press viewing
Here

On the Itar-Tass website, the reader can just find a name-dropping without any precision.
I just make the supposition (between brackets) that the dancers mentioned could be Medora and Conrad.

The Medora-Conrad pairs will also include the veteran Stepanenko and Tsiskaridze, as seen in the following photos taken at yesterday's general rehearsal on stage. Notice the 70 dancers in the Jardin Anime scene! I wonder if the full complement of Moscow Ballet Academy girls and boys will also appear in London?

http://divanna.livejournal.com/173786.html#cutid1

Wonderful photos--I especially like the costumes...

Very detailed casting is finally up at the Bolshoi web site:

http://www.bolshoi.ru/en/season/ballet/pre...&act26=info

We can glean a lot of interesting info from this, such as the fact that the role of Ali is gone, as it was not in the Petipa version of the ballet. Instead, the young-whiz male dancers, such as Ivan Vasiliev, will be dancing the 'Pas d'Esclave' pdd...but not as the character Lankedem and not with the character of Gulnara. They will simply be a pair of young bravura-dancing slaves.

Also interesting to note that -- unlike the recent Munich production -- this Jardin Anime will include two female soloists in addition to Medora & Gulnare. Also, this version will include a major Petipa set-piece not seen anywhere in ages (since Petipa perhaps?): the Grand Pas d'Eventailes - "Grand Pas of the Fans" for Medora and six female friends.

Odalisques Pas de Trois remains, to be danced at each performance by Stebletsova, Nikulina & Leonova ,as per the Bolshoi site.

Now I can hardly wait to see all of this.

Edited to add translation of 'Pas d'Eventailes'

Ooh, thankyou very much, Natalia: I've been curious to know the casting for ages (I'm seeing this in London). Your mention of the Pas d'Eventailes, which I had not heard of before, made me look up Le Corsaire on Wikipedia, and it has a most interesting history!

(PS: This being Wikipedia, I don't know whether this article has been plagiarised - if it has been recognisably 'borrowed', then please remove the link! Of course, inaccuracy is another matter... )

Thanks, scherzo. This is fascinating stuff. I did not realize that the 'Pas d'Eventails' and Pas de Six, together, formed a classical suite of dances that were later replaced (ca 1915) by what is now known as the 'Corsaire pas de deux' (or pas de deux-a-trois). That makes me wonder: Will the well-known 'Corsaire pdd/pdt' be at all performed by the Bolshoi? Perhaps not.

This Bolshoi edition may turn out to be far more loyal to 'Imperial Petipa' times than the much-touted Munich version earlier this year, although we can be eternally grateful to the Munich stagers for having at least presented a complete Jardin Anime scene and Medora 'Petit Corsaire' variation, from what I've read on this board and elsewhere.

In this fabulous year of Petipa-era reconstructions (the two Corsaires -- Munich & Moscow -- and 'Flora's Awakening' in St. Petersburg) it is a crying shame that ABT couldn't muster-up a 'Sleeping Beauty' that was equally loyal to Petipa and in the spirit of Imperial Russia.

Re the Jardin anime casting (I'm looking at opening night): looks to me like they have two soloists (Zakharova and Shipulina)and six demis listed, with an accidental space between Stashkevich and Alizade. This jives with the notation - Medora, Gulnare and 6 demi women.

The version of Corsaire that the Bolshoi used to dance in the early '90's had Lankedem as a strictly non-dancing role, the 'pas d'esclave', danced by Filin the night I went, wasn't performed by named characters. There was no Ali, simply a character called 'Rab' - slave. This role was dance by Alexander Vetrov and his was a single appearance to perform the pas de trois with Conrad and Medora. I have always assumed this version was far closer to the original than Vinogradov’s for the Kirov.

Thanks for for your respective clarifications and enlightments, Doug & Mashinka! Doug, the accidental space seen between the names of demi-soloists 2 and 3 occurs in each casting list; the names aren't the same at every performance. Hopefully it's just a recurring accident because you surely know what's in the notes. Jardin Anime shouldn't be 'stuffed' with extra variations that aren't meant to be there.

Pas des Eventailles keeps fascinating me. According to contemporary descriptions of that pas in Cyril Beaumont's Complete Book of Ballets, "...the corps de ballet dispose their fans on her [Rosati as Medora] back to resemble the wings of a butterfly..." Another account in Beaumont describes the fans held by each corps girl as resembling peacock feathers; these are held in different positions "...creating a variety of beautiful combinations..."

But with these old Petipa warhorses (God bless 'em), it's hard to know what is supposed to be there and what isn't. I think I recall the pas d'eventailles being transferred to the Grotto Scene in Don Quixote for a while there.

Mel, the good news about the Bolshoi production of Corsaire is that we can now be certain that there will be a Pas d'Eventailles in this version, as it is specifically mentioned in the casting list.

Sorry for overdoing the excitement a bit, but the opportunity to see any heretofore-unseen creation by Petipa is 'The Ultimate' for us Russophile-balletomaniacs. It's hard to contain the joy!

Don't get me wrong. I'm happy as a clam this is going back in. I guess it just must be one of those things preserved in the school, as was Reveil de Flore and Pavilion d'Armide.

(By the way, has anybody talked to a clam lately? Are they particularly happy beings?)

About "a happy clam", I've been recently "educated" by a friend who gave me the full sentense :'as happy as a clam at high water/tide' - i.e. totally happy as being safe and undisturbed.... So, it's nice to be a happy clam on a high tide... - totally a high tide for Bolshoi's restoration (being a fan of "old-fashioned Petipa style ballets and Russian school ;-))

Ah, yes, but does that make them truly happy? I mean, what is there to being a clam? You suck in water, you spit out water. You suck in water, you spit out water. Does a clam ever think, "There has to be more to life than this!"?

Oh yes, but they are also very good at repressing their crippling emotional problems, thus giving the impression of happiness to the world. I have this on good authority.

Does anyone else think that the Bolshoi stage looks rather cramped (or just small) in the above photos? I fear for the London Coliseum's stage: I don't know how large it is compared to the Bolshoi's.

I was under the impression that the Bolshoi is still shut for refurbishments and current performances are taking place at a replacement venue.

You're correct Mashinka. The replacement venue is the Bolshoi's 'New Stage', an intimate theater on the left side of the Bolshoi.
I can't provide numbers, but both the stage and the auditorium are much smaller than the Bolshoi's.

I believe the London's Colliseum has one of the city's largest stages.

Oh right, that would make a lot of sense. I'd actually forgotten that the Bolshoi Theatre was closed!

The press section of the Bolshoi site now has photos up of the production:

http://www.bolshoi.ru/en/season/press-offi...tos/lecorsaire/

I am dying to hear reviews...

Clement Crisp has reviewed this for the FT - you should be able to find this by a search on www.ft.com/home/uk/

Crisp provides an idea of the sheer number of classical variations in this reconstructed version. The entire show goes on for nearly 4 hours...a-la Kirov 1890 Sleeping Beauty!

My Russian sources are in ecstasy about this production. It is out-of-this-world and a feast for anyone who adores such reconstructions. The ballet includes not only all of the well-known classical set pieces but also the complete Pas des Eventailes (including the formation of the peacock tail on Medora, by female corps holding aqua-blue fans) and Pas de Six with delectable variations for six female slaves. Jardin Anime is 'expanded' to nearly twice the usual length. It will be interesting to see if the additional variations are all of those that have ever danced in this section, i.e., the two original Petipa-Delibes variations for Medora & Gulnare + all of the others (K. Sergeyev, Gusev, Grogorovich, etc.) that have been substituted through the years? The 'Petit Corsaire' variation of Medora is danced in full Greek-soldier costume and holding a little cornet; she shouts something like 'To Arms!' at the end. The shipwreck is huge & very effective. Those are the bits & pieces that I've gleaned from e-mail from friends & such.

Some bits of film may make it to on-line sites but we won't post links here. I *will* post links to on-line Russian reviews as they trickle in.

It sure is a stunning production. Loved every second of it.
I have a small gallery up at For Ballet Lovers Only.

Thanks for the wonderful photos, marc.

re. Jardin Anime: Mamma Mia, that's a whole lotta foliage on the ground! The Bolshio Theater will need a lawn mower to keep it trim.

Frequent ABT photographer Gene Schiavone has just posted 39 photos of this Bolshoi production on his website:
Awesome!
http://www.geneschiavone.com/gallery/

There are now 57 photos, as Mr. Schiavone has added the Masha Alexandrova (partner Tsiskaridze) performance, at the moment on the second page of his corsaire set:
http://www.geneschiavone.com/gallery/album15
On the basis of the photos, that's the cast I'd hope to see when they bring it here (if they do... wake up, Met!). Dear Moscow friends, how do the casts compare in real performance?

I would say that all three casts, which were shown in the first run, are remarkable in their own way. Svetlana Zakharova is a shining beauty, this role suits her perfectly. Svetlana Lunkina is both delicate and playful. Maria Alexandrova demonstrates her vitality and character not less than the pirates themselves, along with strong technique in jumps and turns. Conrads can also suit different tastes: Denis Matvienko with his bravura dancing; Nikolai Tsiskaridze being the most picturesque and emotional; Yuri Klevtsov full of noble manliness which we do not see often nowadays. Between Gulnaras – another role with a lot of dancing – I would rather prefer Marianna Ryzhkina to Ekaterina Shipulina, whose technique is brilliant, but her style of dancing a bit too modern for this staging. I watched Anastassia Yatsenko only at the rehearsal so I have no right to comment.

In autumn we are promised to be introduced to a new cast formed with young dancers – Natalia Osipova, Ekaterina Krysanova, et al.

There are a lot of other parts in this ballet – with dancing (as in Pas des esclaves or the newly composed Pas des eventails) or mime. I would rather point out Andrey Merkuriev as Birbanto (brilliant character dancing and acting) and Gennady Yanin as Lankedem (you would hardly recognize this good looking dancer in the old Jewish merchant!). Beautiful Anna Rebetskaya who partnered Merkuriev in two corsaires’ dances also should be mentioned.

Of course this ballet is a vehicle for a ballerina since the female dancing prevails, especially in the harem scenes with the famous Jardin Animee, but this is how it is supposed to be in Marius Petipa times. I would also like to attract special attention of future watchers to the dances of six girls in Pas des eventails – it is pure Ratmansky, but very much in style of the Petipa ballet. To the best of my knowledge only variations of Gulnara and Medora could be attributed as original in this lost and "found" Pas.

There are lots of interesting details to enjoy in the scenery, costumes, etc. I do hope that ballet-lovers will enjoy this staging – a sumptuous feast of classical dancing. I consider Le Corsaire at the Bolshoi to be a great success due to the efforts of the whole staging team under Yuri Burlaka and Alexei Ratmansky.

Thanks for your illuminating and nonpartisan report. PLEASE remember to report back after seeing that autumn cast!



Thanks, too, for this clarification. You must know of Mr. Ratmansky's great choreographic successes here in New York. Just one more reason for us to hope for a Bolshoi visit as soon as possible.

But please don't wait till autumn to tell us more about the glorious Bolshoi!

So is this a reconstruction of Petipa's 1899 revival? It certainly looks like it is straight out of a performance for the Tsar! Such Imperial splendor!

No, it is not a reconstruction. It's a new ballet. All the available parts of Petipa's choreography were revived with the Stepanov notations (about one hour). Yet some 20 more minutes were choreographed anew by Ratmansky. Most of the costumes are based on sketches from the 1899 production, but the sets are only inspired by 19th-century models and are no reconstructions. Moreover, Ratmansky and Burlaka cut a lot from the surviving mimed parts in order not to make a 5-hour marathon. One could say, the new Corsaire evokes the spirit of a late 19th century production (as far as anybody in 2007 can judge...) within a contemporary theatrical presentation.

Yes, I thought so too. Corsaire has always been my least favorite of the old classics--no matter what production I saw. I hope Ratmansky works his magic with this one.

Wow! Mr. Schiavone has more than doubled his offerings. There are now 128 photographs, arranged by performance (four):
http://www.geneschiavone.com/gallery/album15

I had hoped to see this cast in London but in fact it is the only cast that I am not seeing (no advance casting: ). Out of interest, what is it about the photos that made this cast stand out to you?

Such things as the awareness of partner in 7, physical reality of 9, how 10 says it all, the yearning conveyed by 23, the grand old Bolshoi intensity of 30 and 31, the look of artist fulfilled in 33. Caveat: Schiavone does like to rearrange his photosets, so hope these numbers still apply to the Alexandrova set. In general the rehearsal room mirror is less evident in this performance, they are more immersed in each other. Or so Schiavione has captured it.

The photo of the pd3/odalisques in the first gallery is a gem for all times!
Thanks, Marc.

Dear Friends, these are my notes on the Bolshoi’s new production of Le Corsaire. I hope they will be of interest to some of “alertniks”.

First of all, Burlaka and Ratmansky do not pretend that this is a reconstruction of “the original Petipa”. That would not be possible for many reasons. They did use everything they could find – Harvard notations, Petipa’s own notes from The Bakhrushin Museum in Moscow, different scores from Paris, Moscow and St.Petersburg, and so on. But notations are incomplete and even if we had full records of the steps, dancers’ bodies have changed, costume materials have changed, dyes are different, etc. Thus, the stagers concede only to giving an interpretation of what was found in the archives. At least this is honest, and I like that. They consider the various interpolations as also being of importance from the point of view of dance art and have decided to preserve these. They staged the missing bits themselves, together. Initially it was decided that Burlaka would concentrate on Petipa’s choreography and Ratmansky would create new dances. And so it is written in the booklet. But in the end, in the opening night program both are listed on equal basis as co-authors of the new production. Burlaka alone is given credit for musical dramaturgy of the production as he is an expert in old ballet music.

I guess the list of dances is the most important part for us because the synopsis is almost the same everywhere and is well known. In what follows I mark by blue color dances and names of composers.

Act 1, scene 1 - The Market Place

There is no shipwreck at the beginning as there is in the ABT production or in the Mariinsky version. A group of pirates appear among the crowd at the bazaar. Conrad and Birbanto are there, too. Medora is on the balcony. She throws a bouquet of flowers to Conrad and then goes downstairs for a while – Medora’s entrée, a very short dance, just a few steps on the music of Adolphe Adam.

She contacts Conrad, but Isaac Lanquedem (a mime role) sends her back to the house. Seid Pasha appears and sees Medora on the balcony. He is impressed and wants her downstairs, but Lanquedem offers him a couple of slaves instead, a male and a female. Then this couple dances the famous Pas des esclaves (music by Prince Peter von Oldenburg, the male variation – Riccardo Drigo). The entrée of this pas des deux is much longer than in other productions.

The Pasha is not impressed and orders Medora to come. Lanquedem has to obey, and Medora dances a pretty and very long (4.5 minutes) variation which is called Finesse d’amour on the music by Cesare Pugni. The dance is very nice and consists of eight sections; the Pasha and Conrad take part in it too. Burlaka says this is original choreography. I have never seen it before, at least not all of it.

Seid Pasha offers a lot of money for Medora. Lanquedem sells her and signs the paper. The Pasha goes to his palace, and finally Danse des corsairs (ballabille d’action) follow (Adam and Pugni), which is also common and well-known. Birbanto and his girlfriend lead it. At the end of the scene Medora and Lanquedem are kidnapped by Conrad.

Act 1, scene 2 - The Cave

The corsairs arrive with goods, and very soon three couples begin Danse des Forbans (Pugni) lead, again, by Birbanto and his girlfriend.

After that comes the famous Pas de deux (Riccardo Drigo, female variation – by Julius Gerber). This is the Pas de deux with the slave which we know, but there is no slave Ali, who appeared later during the Soviet epoch. Conrad and Medora dance it, the text is standard, but the very end is changed a bit – there is no “slave” pose, extremely bent one – Conrad just falls on one knee in a noble, European way.

Then we have the argument over the slave women. The pirates are mutinous, and a small fight ensues, but the conflict is resolved and Medora appears in a male costume to dance Le petit corsaire (Pugni). She is not on her toes, and is dressed in the same costume and shoes as all the other pirates. I heard that in Munich the ballerina danced on pointe and to different music, which was not in the original Petipa version.

A funny story. At the end Medora has to cry “Au bord” – Karsavina described this in her memoirs and several ballet critics of that time have written about it. But both the French words and their Russian translation (“na bort”) are phonetically similar to the gynecological medical procedure – abortion (“abort” in Russian). So our ballerinas confused and hesitated, and Burlaka and Ratmansky were indeed afraid that the audience would laugh. On the other hand, Medora dances Le Petit Corsaire with a megaphone in her hand which doesn’t make any sense if she stays silent. Finally they changed the words to “À l’abordage” (“na abordage” – almost the same in Russian).

By the way, can you tell me please what should they cry in English to be understood in London and in New York?

There is also Danse des enfants (music by Adam) – danced by four girls and two boys from the Ballet Academy, the end of the 2nd year.

Then we get the scene with Conrad and Medora’s frolicking on the couch, and Medora’s variation (also by Adam) follows. After this, the story with the poisoned flower and the second kidnapping of Medora takes place.

The end of the 1st Act – about 65 minutes.


Act 2 - Harem games

Zulma, the favorite wife of Seid Pasha appears surrounded by her ladies-in-waiting. Zulma is an important mime role because the young Gulnara is her rival and enjoys the support of the younger harem girls.

Gulnara’s variation (again Adam, the main composer) with the Pasha’s cane. The variation is very coquettish and vivid. Seid Pasha is pleased and throws her his handkerchief as a sign that he is going to spend this night with her. A game with the handkerchief ensues, and it finally comes to the hands of an old and unattractive female slave (in black-face).

Pas des trois des odalisques (Adam – entrée and third variation, Pugni – 1st and 2nd variations and coda) begins. Then Lanquedem brings Medora and we arrive at the great-great Le jardin animé.

It consists of Valse 1 (Léo Delibes), Adagio 1 (Delibes), Gulnara’s variation (nice harp music by Albert Heinrich Zabel), a variation for two coryphées (Drigo), Valse 2 (interlude by Delibes), Adagio 2, Medora’s variation and coda – all to Delibes’ music.

Burlaka found the scheme for Le jardin animé in the State Central Theatrical Museum (Bakhrushin) archives in Moscow and says he was surprised that this wonderful composition was created on the basis of only 6-7 steps. He says that his reconstruction is simpler in steps but much more complicated as an ensemble than what we are familiar with, and that he considers the composition to be a perfect creation of Petipa on the same level as The Shades in La Bayadere or the Dream scene in Don Quixote. At one point all the women dance between the flower beds and garlands to demonstrate their exact and exquisite technique. The New Bolshoi Stage is too small for this scene (as is the Coliseum’s stage in London) and I dream of seeing it on our main stage when it reopens.

Then we have the episodes with pilgrims who are really the pirates in disguise. A fight begins and Conrad is arrested.

The end of the second act, about 40 minutes.

Act 3 - The Wedding

To save Conrad, Gulnara suggests that she and Medora exchange dresses and that she marry Seid Pasha in Medora’s place. Medora tells the Pasha that she agrees to the wedding. The festivities begin with Pas des eventails (music by Riccardo Drigo, with one exception).

This Pas existed in previous productions and was danced in the pirates’ Cave. Burlaka and Ratmansky transferred it to the third act and re-choreographed it almost completely anew, as the old choreography has not survived. It is danced now by Medora, Gulnara, a cavalier, six coryphées (the leading two of whom are the same girls from Le jardin animé).

The order of the dances:

Entrée, adagio (Medora and her anonymous cavalier), variation of the six coryphées, Gulnara’s variation (it is done to the harp music by Zabel and was composed by Petipa for Sokolova, Karsavina’s teacher), the cavalier variation, Medora’s variation (which also belongs to Petipa) and coda. The stagers’ imagination is responsible for what is not Petipa in this scene. I did not like at all the cavalier’s variation. The adagio was not bad, and I liked the coda, but I was completely surprised by the variation for the six girls – the coryphées. It is so beautiful and so correct in style that it looks as if it was composed by Petipa himself. I believe the Muse visited Burlaka and Ratmansky with this one. But the game with fans is not so impressive as we could wait following the descriptions in literature. There is no effect of a peacock tail, the coryphées just keep blue fans during their entrée.

After the Pas des eventails, Gulnara takes Medora’s place during the wedding. Then Medora is left alone with the Pasha and Scène dansante de caractère (Adam) follows during which the Pasha is disarmed and Conrad and Medora successfully escape. Seid Pasha has to be satisfied with Gulnara, who reveals his ring on her finger and announces that she is his wife. Zulma falls unconscious.

To conclude – the music of this Pas is not original, not by Adam. I asked Burlaka and he told me that it was taken from Drigo’s score for the ballet “The Enchanted Forest” (“La forêt enchantée”). Then I’ve read that this was the first full-length ballet by Drigo and the first ballet staged by Lev Ivanov. It was done for the graduation from the Imperial Ballet School in 1887. Composed for one performance it held the stage for 20 years (R.J.Wiley, The Life and Ballets of Lev Ivanov, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1997, pp. 84-91).

Epilogue– the Shipwreck

A large ship appears on stage - I counted ten people on it with Conrad, Medora, and Birbanto among them. Then we have a short dance (actually, just some ballet poses) for Medora and Conrad, the storm, a new fight between Conrad and Birbanto, and, finally, the shipwreck. This is called Danse au bord de vaisseau (Adam), but there is no space for any real dancing on the ship. The shipwreck is very impressive even in our time of special effects in movies. Everybody dies at sea, but Medora and Conrad are saved on the seashore and stand in the famous final pose to thank the heavens for their rescue.

This is the end of the story and the 3rd act again takes about 40 minutes. The ballet starts at 7 pm in Moscow (actually, 15 minutes later), and there are two intermissions, plus curtain calls, so it ends at 10:45 pm.

Sorry for the equivalently long text.

Thank you, Mikhail. This post was a labor of love and totally fascinating.

Great synopsis, Mikhail!

If I understand the "au bord" correctly in its idiom, it would seem to be "boarders away" in English and American naval usage. "Ware ship for action" could possibly be it, too, but kind of long to say.

Thank you very much, Mikhail!

According to Ratmansky the Medora variation in his "Grand pas des éventails" comes from Petipa's ballet "Pygmalion" or "La Statue de Chypre" (music by Prince Trubetskoi).

Mel, "à l'abordage" is actually shouted when the pirate ship hooks or hitches its opponent so that the attackers can jump aboard. Now you tell us what the English/US naval term for that action is.

Yes, Marc, but the music of the variation belongs to Drigo. I specially asked Burlaka why Trubetskoi was not mentioned in the booklet and received this answer.

Thanks for the correction, Mikhail. Took note of that!

Eh, Marc, the history of different variations and their music is so complicated… For example, please listen to this music well known as Esmeralda’s variation which was usually attributed to Drigo. Yuri Burlaka found that this is a variation of Sieba from the ballet “Sieba or La Spada di Wodan” (1877, Teatro Regio) by Romualdo Marenko (1841-1907). Nice, isn’t it?

By the way, this variation with tambourine was interpolated by Grigorovich in his version of Le Corsaire (Bolshoi, 1994) as Medora’s variation in the first act, when she danced at the Market Place in front of Conrad. Not a good idea, I guess, to use so famous dance.

It is indeed a deep musical (and choreographic) swamp. I guess Grigorovich was only doing what his predecessors from the 19th century did all the time. At least some light in the darkness is being shed with all these more authentic approaches.

Thanks again, Mikhail!