As tradition demands, the final and climatic event of the Festival was the Gala-concert of the world's ballet stars Dance Open, which was held in Oktyabrskiy Big Concert Hall on April 22.
From year to year the stars Gala is becoming a really special event both for the ballet fans and for those who is just starting to admire this beautiful art. In 2012 on our stage the most in-demand dancers from all over the world were performing on our stage.
Nevertheless, the Festival has prepared pleasant surprises even for the most demanding audience. Creativity and ambitiousess approach to the program of Gala have delivered its benefits: the concert can be called a breakthrough, plenty of things will happen here for the first time at the Festival, in St. Petersburg and even in Russia.
For instance, it was the first time contemporary ballet prevails over classical at the stars Gala. Best examples of the world's contemporary choreography, carefully selected by organizers, allowed to follow main tendencies of the artistic search of dancers. Nevertheless, classical dance will be represented with magnificent and ineresable pieces.
The Gala Dance Open will present guest performances’ premieres. St. Petersburg citizens and guests of the Festival will be the first foreign viewers of the Duet from Cinderella (Sergey Prokofiev) in the production of Christopher Wheeldon. The Performance will take place in St. Petersburg after its premiere in Amsterdam. Another surprise is a fragment from Firebird by Alexey Ratmansky. The production has had a great success in New York. The fragment will be shown in Russia for the first time; moreover, it is being re-made by Alexei Ratmansky exclusively for the gala performance within the Festival.
For the first time ever in Russia, specifically for the Gala Dance Open a fragment of one-act ballet Walpurgis Night from the opera Faust by Charles Gounod will be re-made and performed by the international trio.
Dance Open will also present the Russian premiere of a duet from A Sweet Spell of Oblivion by David Dawson, performed by Jurgita Dronina (Dutch National Ballet) and Fabien Voranger (Semperoper Ballett Dresden). David Dawson is well-known in Saint-Petersburg for his ballet, Reverence, which was presented in 2005 and won the Golden Mask Award. This spring, almost ten years later, spectators of the Festival will have a unique chance to see a ballet by David Dawson again. The choreographer will also join the Jury Panel of the Festival.
For the first time the amount of ballet companies taking part in the Gala Dance Open will be twelve: American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Boston Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, Berlin Staatsoper Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Bavarian State Ballet, National Ballet of Cuba, Mariinsky Theatre, Bolshoi Theatre of Russia, Ukrainian National Opera and Ballet Theatre. A lot of soloists who will perform at the Gala are those whom the audiences know well, as well as those who will perform for the first time in Russia.
The gorgeous Misty Copeland will take part in the Gala. She is one of the leading ballet dancers of the American Ballet Theatre and only third female African American ballet dancer in the history of world classical ballet.
And these “first times” are not the only reasons why the audiences will love the Gala of International Ballet Stars. But let us save some secrets till the very Gala…
Filigree ballet art, best soloists, fascinating program, powerful energy, impressive dynamic show, true picture of the world ballet – all those features are worth going to the Gala of International Ballet Stars within 12th International Ballet Festival Dance Open.
Participants of Gala of International Ballet Stars Dance Open: Anastasia Stashkevich (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Iana Salenko (Staatsballett Berlin), Yonah Acosta (English National Ballet), Alicia Amatriain (Stuttgart Ballet), Jason Reilly (Stuttgart Ballet), Anna Tsygankova (Dutch National Ballet), Matthew Golding (Dutch National Ballet), Ashley Bouder (New York City Ballet), Joseph Gatti (Boston Ballet), Jurgita Dronina (Dutch National Ballet), Fabien Voranger (Semperoper Ballett Dresden), Daniel Ulbricht (New York City Ballet), Herman Cornejo (American Ballet Theater), Evgenia Obraztsova (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Semyon Chudin (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Elena Algado (Entredos Ballet Espanol), Miguel Angel Corbacho (Entredos Ballet Espanol), Olga Smirnova (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Elisa Carrillo Cabrera (Staatsballett Berlin), Mikhail Kaniskin (Staatsballett Berlin), Lucia Lacarra (Bavarian State Ballet), Marlon Dino (Bavarian State Ballet), Kristina Kretova (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Artem Ovcharenko (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Anna Tikhomirova (Bolshoi Theater of Russia), Entredоs BALLET ESPAÑOL, Ballet dancers of National Opera of Ukraine.