Customer Reviews

Prokofiev - Romeo & Juliet / Ulanova, Bolshoi Ballet [VHS]

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The first time the Bolshoi Ballet came to San Francisco, my mother didn't buy me a ticket because she thought I was too young to appreciate it. When the company returned, Galina Ulanova was no longer dancing! Fortunately, videos such as this one exist. Ulanova was truly a great artist.

This 1954 film is a feast for the eyes, as the costumes are gorgeous and the indoor and outdoor locations are spectacular. Though there's no mention of it in the credits, it appears to have been filmed in Verona, Italy (or at least a city that looks very much like Verona).

A major flaw in the film, for those who are familiar with the Prokofieff score, is that there are many cuts in the music, some of them quite awkward, particularly in the market scenes. As a result (I believe) of the cuts, Romeo (Yuri Zhdanov) has almost no dancing except partnering Juliet. Despite this problem, I give this video five stars because of Ulanova's beautiful, moving performance.

The Bolshoi version is an interesting contrast to the Royal Ballet's 1966 version, starring Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev. Both are excellent.

The eternity is not the destination for everyone. Galina Ulanova is one of the few who will always be livng in the people's hearts. Not because she was the most famous and celebrated ballerina of her time, but because of her purity, beauty and bounless dedication to the art.

I feel a need to add a review to call attention to the amazing spectacle of this filmic version. Others have commented on fine points of Ulanova's dancing, on the charisma and natural exuberance of her personality. What isn't mentioned, adequately, is that this is a superbly directed, choreographed spectacle involving intricate, complex interactions of a cast of hundreds in naturalistic outdoor, as well as indoor settings.

This disc had sat on my shelf for a number of years, in a laserdisc version. After seeing the Blu-ray Royal Ballet disc recently with Tamara Rojo and Carlos Acosta (which is incidently superb) I was inclined to go back and see the Ulanova version again for comparison. Frankly, I was blown away by how well the Ulanova film holds up. More should be made of this very exciting production!

This is an excellent film version in amazingly good 1950s colour that has the original Juliet. The tempi are fast and lively. Although this film version only lasts 90 or so minutes, a good impression of the whole ballet comes accross. This is acheived by having excerpts from all three acts and by cutting short many of the musical numbers. This works surprisingly well. It is a far better approach than leaving out vast chunks of the work. Unlike some productions, the Country Dance that opens Act 2 is included; the vast company fills the sceen with exuberant dancing. I have seen two live productions that lasted around 115 munutes and were only in two acts that omitted the Country Dance and seemed to reach the concluding scenes far too early.

I have watched other DVDs of productions of this work. They were from the late Soviet period and conducted by Algis Zuriakis. He conducts the work sensitively and with great experience, but those productions are hampered by an everpresent black background, and insufficient lighting and scenery. From a ballet point of view they may be very well danced but they do not reflect the very wide range of mood that the music depicts. I have yet to find a really affective modern Russian production on DVD.

So this DVD is one to get. It's a real find.

This Russian production of Prokofiev's ballet, Romeo and Juliet, is original and imaginitive.
It is also quite well directed and shot in vivid colours.
Ballet as an art form transcends language barriers and this production does just that!