Gayane (ballet)

Gayane
ChoreographerNina Aleksandrovna Anisimova
MusicAram Khachaturian
Premiere9 December 1942
Perm, Russian SFSR, USSR
Original ballet companyKirov Ballet
CharactersGayane
Karen
Armen
Nune
Giko
GenreClassical ballet
TypeSoviet "folk" ballet

Gayane (Gayaneh or Gayne, the e is pronounced; Armenian: Գայանե; Russian: Гаянэ) is a four-act ballet with music by Aram Khachaturian. Originally composed in or before 1939, when it was first produced (in Yerevan) as Happiness. Revised in 1941–42 to a libretto by Konstantin Derzhavin and with choreography by Nina Aleksandrovna Anisimova (Derzhavin's wife),[1]: 133–34  the score was revised in 1952 and in 1957, with a new plot. The stage design was by Nathan Altman (scenery) and Tatyana Bruni (costumes).[2]

The first performance took place on 9 December 1942,[3] staged by the Kirov Ballet while in Perm, Russia, during the Second World War evacuation, and was broadcast on the radio.[4]: 57  The principal dancers were: Natalia Dudinskaya (Gayane), Nikolai Zubkovsky (Karen), Konstantin Sergeyev (Armen), Tatanya Vecheslova (Nune), and Boris Shavrov (Giko). The conductor was Pavel Feldt.[4]: 59  The most famous parts of the ballet are the "Sabre Dance", which has been performed by many (including pop artists).

Khachaturian's original Gayane was the story of a young Armenian woman whose patriotic convictions conflict with her personal feelings on discovering her husband's treason. In later years the plot was modified several times, the resultant story emphasizing romance over nationalistic zeal.

  1. ^ Yuzefovich, Victor (1985). Aram Khachaturyan. New York: Sphinx Press.
  2. ^ Bremser, Martha (1993). Martha Bremser (ed.). International Dictionary of Ballet, Volume 1 (illustrated ed.). St. James Press. ISBN 978-1-55862-084-1.
  3. ^ "Aram Khachaturian – Gayane". intoclassics.net (in Russian). Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  4. ^ a b Shneerson, Grigory (1959). Aram Khachaturyan. Moscow: Foreign Languages Publishing House.