Boris Eifman Ballet Theater Brings Literary Masterpieces to Minsk: ‘Anna Karenina’ and ‘Crime and Punishment’
Boris Eifman Ballet Theater Brings Literary Masterpieces to Minsk
This summer, continuing a cherished tradition, the Boris Eifman State Academic Ballet Theater will grace Minsk with its presence. As part of the “Touring Summer at the Bolshoi” project, the renowned St. Petersburg-based company will present two of its productions at the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus: “Crime and Punishment” (July 15, 16) and “Anna Karenina” (July 18, 19).
Literary Masterpieces on Stage
“I turn to literary masterpieces not merely for their plotlines, but to enrich my productions with philosophical and intellectual ideas that lie beneath the surface,” admits choreographer Boris Eifman. His enduring fascination with the literary legacy of brilliant writers, particularly Fyodor Dostoevsky, one of the most significant thinkers and artists in world culture, drives this creative endeavor.
The Ballet “Crime and Punishment”
When to see it: July 15 and 16 at the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus.
Boris Eifman’s first ballet inspired by Dostoevsky’s novel “The Idiot” was created in 1980. Later, he produced plastic interpretations of “The Brothers Karamazov,” which formed the basis for two of Eifman’s productions: the 1995 spectacle “The Karamazovs” and the ballet “Beyond Sin,” released 18 years later. In 2013, Belarusian audiences had the opportunity to see Eifman’s plastic interpretation of Dostoevsky’s novel “The Brothers Karamazov” on stage in Minsk.
The premiere of the ballet “Crime and Punishment,” set to music by G. Mahler and B. Tishchenko, took place in the autumn of 2024. This marks the third Dostoevsky novel that the choreographer has translated into the language of dance. Remaining true to his artistic principles, Boris Eifman does not illustrate the classic text. Instead, he attempts to provide his own answers to global questions about the inner nature of man, the significance of universal moral guidelines, and the consequences of their downfall.
“In our performance, we do not retell the plot of the literary source, but interpret in dance the emotional and ideological world of Dostoevsky’s key characters. Each of them is a microcosm, full of extreme passions and facing insoluble metaphysical contradictions…”
The Ballet “Anna Karenina”
When to see it: July 18 and 19 at the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus.
Another adaptation of classic literature into the language of modern author’s ballet is the performance “Anna Karenina,” based on Leo Tolstoy’s novel and set to music by Pyotr Tchaikovsky. By removing all secondary plotlines from Tolstoy’s novel, choreographer Boris Eifman focuses his vision on the love triangle of “Anna – Karenin – Vronsky.”
This ballet is filled with inner psychological energy and remarkably precise in its emotional impact. According to Boris Eifman, it is passion, the “basic instinct,” that led to a crime against social norms, destroyed maternal love, and shattered Anna Karenina’s inner world. A woman consumed and crushed by sensual attraction is ready to make any sacrifice. Through the special plasticity of the body in this production, Eifman conveys the drama of a transformed woman.
The choreographer notes that his ballet “Anna Karenina” is about the present day, not a bygone era. “What is more important – to preserve the generally accepted illusion of harmony between duty and feelings or to submit to sincere passion?… Do we have the right to destroy a family, to deprive a child of maternal care for the sake of the flesh’s frenzy?… These questions haunted Tolstoy in the past, and they cannot be avoided today. There are no answers! There is only an insatiable thirst to be understood in life and in death…”
The famous ballet company brought the ballet “Anna Karenina” to Minsk in the 2010s. The timeless emotional content of this performance and its direct parallels with reality will leave no one indifferent, whether new viewers or those who wish to see this production again. The highest level of performance technique of the troupe and Boris Eifman’s choreography will allow experiencing all the psychological peripeteia of Tolstoy’s novel.
Text: Maria Sergeeva (based on press release materials)
Photo: Evgeny Matveev, Michael Kuri (provided by the press service of the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus)
For more information, visit the official website of the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus.
