The Russian Ballet School refreshed the magic of folk tales
Ballet is considered a great form of art because it combines agility, fluidity and flexibility all in one graceful motion. It takes years to perfect one movement bending the body in ways that defy logic. But when you have kids as young as four-years-old dressed up as a mushroom doing a perfect ballet walk, you cannot help but appreciate the effort. The recent annual performance of the Russian Ballet School, Delhi, recreated the classic Russian folk tale The Scarlet Flower, adapted from The Beauty and the Beast. Directed by Galina lyakhova, the dance drama had 90 children playing and performing various characters — even butterflies, mushrooms, rabbits, trees and wolves.
“It took me three months to put this entire thing together,” said Anna Voytsehovich, the additional choreographer, pointing out how difficult it was to coordinate so many kids for every scene. “It becomes quite tough because they are so full of energy and they do not want to remain in one place for too long,” she added. lyakhova, also the founder of the school, felt that the production is a way to make children understand the nuances and the beauty of the art form and fall in love with it. “The children here fulfill their parents’ wishes to learn ballet. I merely help them realise this dream,” said lyakhova, who has been living in India for the past 24 years and teaching ballet for the past 18. She told us that it is best to start ballet at a very young age.
photo Pankaj Kumar