It is only November, but the theater follows its own calendar. A Christmas tree on the stage, fake snowflakes whirling around... This fall will go down in the history of Ukrainian National Opera with two events. At the end of October the theater premiered the opera Mazepa, and now there is one more novelty in the repertoire, The Nutcracker ballet. Hoffmann’s well-known fairy tale in an interpretation by choreographer Viktor Lytvynov, conductor Volodymyr Kozhukhar, and stage director Maria Levytska was transformed into a Christmas dream. The stage, with its doll-sized houses and Christmas tree that grows, as if by magic, to a gigantic size, resembles a fanciful jewelry box. A night of wonders indeed! The characters will visit a skating rink, a ball, and the murky realm of the King of Mice, cross swords with dark forces, find their love, and travel across various countries and continents.
Children always get presents on Christmas Day. There is also a place for magic and night dreams that come true, for example, when dolls suddenly come to life.
The Lytvynov version of Tchaikovsky’s ballet shows a “Ukrainian connection.” As the choreographer says, it is his know-how. He borrowed music for a Ukrainian dance from the opera Mazepa.
“As part of the divertissement, this music fits The Nutcracker ballet very well,” Mr. Lytvynov believes, “because both pieces are by the same composer, Peter Tchaikovsky. In 1997 I produced The Nutcracker in Canada. That project involved not only ballet dancers but also some members of the Shumka dance company, who played the mice and performed the Russian and Ukrainian dances. Since the Canadian audiences gave a warm welcome to this innovation, I decided to repeat this trick in the Kyiv production. After all, the Ukrainian dance fitted in well with the depiction of Maria and Prince Nutcracker’s travels, just like the Spanish, Chinese, French, and Russian ones. Maksym Motkov plays the role of Drosselmeier in both productions. As a choreographer, I tried to stage a more vigorous dance for him, taking his capability. Maksym is a technically strong dancer. He didn’t just obey the ballet master’s instructions, he co-created the role. I used to be a dancer myself, so I think the producer and the artists should work together closely. Natalia Lazebnykova plays the part of Maria. She is a very subtle, expressive dancer. If you classify it in vocal terms, she is a coloratura soprano. Kostiantyn Pozharnytsky (Fritz) and Andriy Hura (Prince Nutcracker) are strong dancers with a fine technique. They work with excellent youthful gusto. These dancers have great potential. Although there are many soloists in our theater, unfortunately artists cannot perform very often on stage. I clearly see some irregularities in the production, but they will definitely be ironed out in the course of work. The artists should get used to the costumes, scenery, and their roles, too. I liked the corps de ballet dancers, as well as the concerted actions of the entire production team.”
Lytvynov changed the libretto and rearranged the music. The Nutcracker is now Drosselmeier’s nephew, whom the King of Mice bit in childhood, with the result that the boy turned into a horrible doll. The choreographer broke down the pas de deux into parts: the variations of Maria and the Prince, and the adagio. The production employs the semi-classical style. Sometimes Mr. Lytvynov resorts to simplified plasticity in dances and introduces grotesque moments into the action, which causes the audience to smile. Yet it is easy to notice that at times the plot both flies and flounders. This strips the romantic gloss from the protagonists’ dances, giving way to somersaulting that is supposed to mean love. But there was a happy ending to the story. This is the fourth production of Tchaikovsky’s legendary ballet at the Kyiv opera house. Suffice it to recall the sad philosophical parable of The Nutcracker staged by Anatoly Shekera with a tragic adagio. The message of that production was that no fairy tale will ever come true. Valery Kovtun’s production of The Nutcracker was on the National Opera’s repertoire for almost seventeen years. Now we have a new version by Viktor Lytvynov. The artists were preparing this ballet at a brisk pace to meet the deadline set by the theater’s foreign partners. The scenery props were sent to Portugal right after the premiere. The dancers are going abroad on tour. Later this month they will perform Kovtun’s production of The Nutcracker in Japan. The two different productions and sets of performers will still be performing under the company name of the Ukrainian National Opera. This is a calculated step on the part of the producers rather than a split in the troupe: demand begets supply. Popular titles or star performers are what attracts foreign spectators. Tchaikovsky’s ballets always play to full houses, and tour organizers reap commercial profits. Kyiv’s Opera is already quite popular throughout the world. The management of the Kyiv theater is doing exactly what their counterparts in many other leading troupes do. For example, the Mariinsky Theater troupe may be on a tour of several countries at the same time. While some artists are away on tour, Saint Petersburg audiences are not at a loss: they can see current repertory shows.
The Kyivans and our guests who failed to attend the premiere will be able to watch The Nutcracker in December, when the artists come back home.
