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Although Tchaikovsky was always critical of his music and did not trust his own talent, he considered “The Sleeping Beauty” one of his best works. This is the second of his three ballets. The composer wrote the ballet in 1889, and the premiere performance took place at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg in 1890. Choreographer Marius Petipa's production raised a furore, and since then “The Sleeping Beauty” has seen numerous premieres all over the world and is also included in the principal repertoire in Latvian National Opera and Ballet Theatre. It is one of the cornerstones of classical ballet, and a challenge to every dancer's professionality.
The European folk story, which was made popular by story masters Charles Perrault and Brothers Grimm, tells about Princess Aurora, which has been cursed by the evil fairy Carabosse to die from a prick of a needle. The kind fairies are not able to divert the curse, but they can alter it, allowing the needle to cause her sleep until she is awoken by a prince's kiss.
Lita Beiris was given the role of Aurora in 1980, and this can be justifiably called the turning point in her dancing career. After achievements in competitions in Moscow and Varna, Bulgaria, Beiris secured her positions as prima ballerina at home.
Ballet historian Ija Bite wrote in her review that “the time of Lita Beiris blossoming has begun, she has been noticed and she fascinates both as a dancer and as a charming, wise woman.” Meanwhile, ballet master Aivars Leimanis, commenting this role says that only an extraordinary dancer who has mastered perfect technique can do it. Beiris lived the role of Aurora. Her acting skills were in harmony with ballet technique, and it resulted in a convincing story and performance that was in the dancer's repertoire for many years. One of Beiris' partners in the role of Prince Desire was the outstanding dancer Viesturs Jansons. Another successful partnership was with Andrey Rumyancev. The ballerina herself, speaking on the role remembers the true satisfaction of dancing it with several partners.
The paintings that relay the story of the Sleeping Beauty include various themes. Forest and the sea, an image of a girl and flowers, princesses and princes... Each of us has our own world of fairytales and moments when we want to return into childhood and believe once more that all the fairytales will have happy endings.
Guntars Gritāns, art historian
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The French composer Maurice Ravel wrote one of his most famous works, “Bolero” in 1928. Initially the dancer Ida Rubinstein asked Ravel to make an orchestral transcription of some piano pieces by the Spanish composer Isaac Albeniz. However, another author had already acquired the rights to orchestrate them, therefore Ravel wrote a completely new piece, based on the Spanish dance “Bolero”. The composer wrote: “It is a dance with a very moderate and continuously even movement, both due to its melody and to its harmony and rhythm. The element of diversity is added by the orchestral crescendo.”
The composition has seen a multitude of different choreographies over the years. However, many former Soviet people remember best of all the French choreographer Maurice Bejart's production in 1961, in which Maija Plisetskaya eventually danced in 1978.
The performance, staged at the Latvian National Opera and Ballet Theater in the 1980s, sets the story in a pub, where the main characters are a love triangle - a tavern dancer, her lover and a young man that the woman begins an affair with. The dramatic culmination of the story comes when the lover stabs the young man.
The Spaniard, played by Lita Beiris, evoked excitement and praise in the public and media. It seemed that Spanish passion and temperament have been tailor-made for the dancer. The story danced by Lita was in a way a continuation of Carmen, whom the dancer had interpreted and introduced to the public as a free, independent woman. The artist's Spanish spirit and the celebration of life could also be felt in the role of Rosita in the ballet “Don Quixote” by Ludwig Minkus. Ballerina's emotional performance once again shattered the widespread stereotype of “Nordic coolness.”
For many years Beiris' stage partner in “Bolero” was Andrey Rumjancev, and the dancer has said about him that “he was able to load this story with drama and intensity of feelings”.
The paintings in the show that illustrate the music of “Bolero” are about the hot Spanish sun, passionate heart, wild temperament and glamourous outfits. The stately, independent image of a Spanish dancer with a fan in her hand, vivid and bright colours – that is the way the artists, taking part in this exhibition, see the story in their artworks.
Guntars Gritāns, art historian
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