Customer Reviews

Lon Minkus: Don Quixote [DVD Video]

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Ballet lovers, This is the same ballet as the discontinued version which was distributed by Kultur....Minkus - Don Quixote / Ananiashvili, Fadeyetchev.... So, don't pay an inflated price for the discontinued version. This is an excellent ballet with very good color, a live orchestra and Russian conductor Alexsandr Sotnikov, Dolby 2.0 sound, beautiful sets and costumes, and only one scene where a black costume was filmed against a black background. It was recorded in Japan, in the 4/3 format, and the resolution is very good. Nina Ananiashvili plays Kitri/Dulcinea, and Aleksei Fadeyetchev plays Basilio. This is a comic ballet, and Nina and Aleksei are good at comedy. I have one other version of DQ with Baryshnikov/Harvey.....Don Quixote / Baryshnikov, Harvey, American Ballet Theatre.....and I like this version better. Remember, that is a personal opinion.

Nina Ananiashvili is simply fabulous as the tavern owners daughter Kitri. He wants her to marry a goofy but rich jerk named Gamache, but she is bound to marry the poor barber Basilio, so the self made knight errant Don Quixote, whose aim is to save all damsels in distress, saves Kitri from having to marry Gamache. This is a fun ballet from start to finish, with a grand pas de deux that is so good it is many times performed in mixed bill ballet events such as Essential Ballet...The Magic of Russian Ballet / The Nutcracker, Return of the Firebird, Petrushka, Scheherazade, Essential Ballet, Kirov Ballet....Don't confuse it with Essential Ballet by the American Ballet Theatre.

If you don't know Nina Ananiashvili, do yourself a huge favor and get to know her with this ballet. You'll fall in love with her as I did......Richard.

I went to see the Bolshoi live in performances of Don Quixoti and Swan Lake in 2009 on their U.S. tour---unbelievable to watch them live on stage! This performance of Don Quixoti was from the early 90's and I was hoping to get instead a DVD of the two young phenoms, Natalia Osipova and Ivan Vasiliev, whom I had the great fortune to watch live in the two leading roles in 2009. I will still order a DVD of Osipova and Vasiliev dancing Don Quixoti when it becomes available in the U.S., but this production starring Nina Ananiashvili and Alexei Fadeyechev has the classic Bolshoi imprint---very athletic, extremely strong and flexible dancers, high leaps, astounding en pointe by all of the ballerinas, great spins by both men and women. This version did not have Alexi Fadeyechev lift Nina Ananiashvili with one hand and hold her above his head multiple times as Vasiliev did in the live performance I saw---imagine the strength that requires! Striking is that I only saw one ballerina in a principal role who was much too thin and looked as if she had an eating disorder. My biggest problem with the Bolshoi company and their artistic director and choreographer is that they have too many dancers on the stage throughout the production. All of the movement in the background becomes very distracting at times, esp. when you are watching Nina or another principal wearing a red costume and a large number of male dancers are waving orange bullfighting capes or are constantly moving behind her--they could do without this and it would improve the performance. The constant movement on stage of all the dancers walking to and fro and talking to each other while you are trying to watch the principals dance is also distracting. As usual, the costumes are gorgeous, the sets are great and I love the music. One last note about the ballet itself: I don't really care for the prologue with Don Quixoti and his sidekick preparing to go out and fight for the right---they do not have dancing roles and although it provides a context for the story of Don Quixoti, for my taste they could be deleted from the ballet without hurting the audience's understanding of the action (plus the make-up on the two and the wig on "Don Quixoti" are not very good). When I was looking for a version of this ballet to purchase on DVD, it was very hard for me to decide which to buy since I am not familiar enough with the other companies. I certainly was not disappointed with the Bolshoi! If you want to see world class ballet performed by superbly trained dancers, or have never watched the Bolshoi company, I highly recommend this DVD! It is a bargain at any price and certainly much cheaper than tickets to a live performance of this great ballet company! NOTE: This was filmed from a live performance in the early '90s and was transferred to DVD but not digitally enhanced or remastered, so don't expect the high resolution quality or lighting you are used to with more recent DVDs. I hope this review will be helpful to you in your selection of which version of Don Quixoti to buy. The Bolshoi is world-class ballet! Bravo!

Numerous attempts were made to adapt a literary work of Don Quixote Miguel de Cervantes Spanish for more diveversos genres. With the theme we operas, symphonic poems, suites and ballet. Some were very successful, so born masterpieces as the opera Don Quichotte by Jules Massenet and the symphonic poem Don Quixote by Richard Strauss.

The ballet Don Quixote composed by Leon Minkus buddy and choreographed by Marius Petipa eternal has the Spanish climate, feels the heat in the music of the Mediterranean, her dances that arise in transporting to medieval Spain. Simplistic for the most part, it lacks the depth that the original work. Nothing comic satire, the humor often acid and critical society. A constant presence in the book of Cervantes and totally absent in this ballet. We have more dances and Spanish dances, beautiful numbers that are repeated and not going anywhere.

The permanence of this ballet in the world repretório is due to the high degree of technical difficulty of their numbers, able to impress the public led him often to delírio.Toda great dancer likes to show off his virtuosity and technique, Don Quixote is ideal for this purpose . It really helped consolidate this ballet the great views of the Kirov and the Bolshoi in the West.

The weakness is the libretto, the plot of the novel 6, merely telling a silly story of love between Kitri and Basilio. Love that prohibited the father of the girl who wanted to marry her to the rich merchant Gamache. Don Quixote appears in Barcelona and becomes in his imagination Kitri in his beloved Dulcinea. He dreams of her, chasing her face mills and she falls in love with Basilio. The main character in Cervantes' masterpiece Don Quixote becomes secondary in this ballet.

Nina Ananiashvili dances so lush all your numbers, overcome with bravery, lightness and style of their own technical difficulties of ballet. Ballerina with its own light that enchants the audience. Fadeiechev dancer Alexei is Russian-style, classic, unique technique and broad jumps. It has the charisma and the interpretation that Mikhail Baryshnikov has impressed this ballet. Highlights of both is to gran pax de deux in Act IV, there is applause.

The production set up sets and costumes simple and correct. Recording image and sound good, we were in 1992, from the digital age. The DVD selection by chapters back, which helps a lot to choose certain part of the work

Don Quixote is a ballet virtuoso, with large numbers, which infect and raise the viewer. His story makes the gentleman crazy in the background and put a couple of romantic love to drive the play. Ask Fraquesas only in the libretto that closely resembles the novel of 6 global silly romance with a happy ending.

Don Quixote- Ballet com enredo de novela das 6!

Inúmeras foram as tentativas de se adaptar a obra literária Don Quixote do espanhol Miguel de Cervantes para os mais diveversos gêneros musicais. Com o tema temos óperas, poemas sinfônicos, suites e balé. Algumas foram muito bem sucedidas,nasceram assim obras primas como a ópera Don Quichotte de Jules Massenet e o poema sinfônico Don Quixote de Richard Strauss.

O balé Don Quixote composto pelo amigão Léon Minkus e coreografado pelo eterno Marius Petipa tem o clima espanhol, sente-se na música o calor do mediterrâneo, dela afloram danças que nos transportam para a Espanha medieval. Simplista em sua maioria , lhe falta a profundidade que esta na obra original. Nada do cômico, do satírico, do humor muitas vezes ácido e da crítica a sociedade. Presença constante no livro de Cervantes e totalmente ausente nesse balé. Temos danças e mais danças espanholas, belos números que se repetem e não vão a lugar algum.

A permanência desse balé no repretório mundial se deve ao alto grau de dificuldade técnica de seus números, capazes de impressionar o público levando-o muitas vezes ao delírio.Toda grande bailarina gosta de mostrar seu virtuosismo e técnica, Don Quixote é ideal para esse fim. Ajudou muito a consolidação desse balé as grandes exibições do Kirov e do Bolshoi no ocidente.

O ponto fraco é o libreto,com enredo de novela das 6, se limita a contar uma historinha boba de amor entre Kitri e Basílio. Amor esse proibido pelo pai da moça que queria casá-la com o rico comerciante Gamache. Don Quichote aparece em Barcelona e transforma em sua imaginação Kitri em sua amada Dulcinéia. Sonha com ela, corre atrás dela enfrentando moinhos e ela acaba se casando com Basilio. De personagem principal na obra prima de Cervantes Don Quichote passa a ser secundário nesse balé.

Nina Ananiashvili dança de forma exuberante todos seus números, supera com bravura,leveza e estílo próprio as dificuldades técnicas do balé. Bailarina com luz própria que encanta a platéia . Alexei Fadeiechev é bailarino de estílo russo, clássico, de técnica ímpar e saltos largos. Não tem o carisma e a interpretação que Michail Baryshnikov imprimiu a esse balé. Destaque de ambos é para o gran pax de deux do quarto ato, haja palmas.

A produção montou cenários e figurinos simples e corretos. Gravação com imagem e som boa, estavamos no ano de 1992, longe da era digital. O DVD trás seleção por cápítulos , o que ajuda muito a escolher determinada parte da obra

Don Quixote é um balé virtuoso, com grandes números , que contagiam e levantam o espectador. Sua história deixa o cavalheiro maluco em segundo plano e põe um par romântico apaixonado para conduzir a peça. Peca apenas na fraquesa do libreto que lembra muito a novela das 6 global, romance bobo com final feliz.

Ali Hassan Ayache