The premiere of the ballet “Cinderella” at the Astana Opera House will take your breath away

ASTANA – The Astana Opera will present the ballet “Cinderella” on October 8 and 9 in Astana.

The ballet will present the well-known story of Cinderella in a new interpretation: the dance is choreographed in a neoclassical style with elements of pop and breakdance added.

Choreographed by the German Raimondo Rebeck, the ballet is staged to the music of Sergueï Prokofiev, one of the major composers of the 20th century. In addition to melodies by Prokofiev, the show will feature popular modern compositions by Jimmy Durante, Billy Ray Cyrus, James Brown and Louis Armstrong.

The story of the ballet and its characters remains the same, while the time and place are transferred from the Rococo era to the modern era and vice versa. The romantic relationship between Cinderella and the Prince is revealed by the realization of their creative ideas: Cinderella (Ella) dreams of becoming a fashion designer, and the Prince – composer and DJ.

In a recent interview, Berlin-based Japanese set designer Yoko Seyama spoke about the play and what audiences should expect from the performance.

Yoko Seyama. Photo credit: Astana Opera

What inspired you in your work on the scenography of the ballet “Cendrillon”?

I was inspired mainly by the choreographer’s idea of ​​how Cinderella creates herself and dreams of becoming a fashion designer. In the first act, she not only cleans the house, but also works on her modeling outfits, making them from old stuff she found in the laundry, which means she finds some clothes herself. fabrics for his collection. And, in the second act, there is a fashion show at the ball.

Could you share some performance secrets?

I thought a lot about what’s important in the fashion world or for girls who dream of fashion, and of course it’s important for girls to have high heels. I had the idea of ​​the famous high heels with red soles. Everyone knows the famous scene with Cinderella’s carriage ride to the ball, so I created this amazing carriage in the form of a big high-heeled shoe as a symbol of fashion, and it’s the dream fashion that brings her to the party. I think that’s a particularly inspired part of my design concept.

Photo credit: Astana Opera

On the other hand, we have a Prince, whose life is the opposite of Cinderella’s. She is poor and the prince was born into a wealthy royal family. He is terribly bored in this atmosphere, so he decides to become a musician. Here we have all the shiny golden things, as well as his musical equipment, like speakers or tape recorders, which are shiny golden material. So it’s more of a pop and street style atmosphere, but it’s still royal. His image looks like a young celebrity, which is almost a joke, but a joke about his situation, despite which he strives to grow. The gyroscooter, which will be used to move by the character of Good Spirit, is one of the many interesting details that will appear in the play.

What is the color scheme of ballet?

I use mustard shades, warmer, cozier, “cosy colors”, and also a lot of velvet in the first act. But the velvet is not as important to me as the flowing fabric that creates the Cinderella vibe. In the second act, I have a lot of mint green tones to show the royal atmosphere, so there’s a sudden change from mustard to royal mint green.

Photo credit: Astana Opera

How difficult is it for theater artists to present a ballet in the form of a film?

“In this case, we are talking about an elderly couple, who present the performance of the ballet “Cinderella”. They are the first to appear on stage, turn on the TV with video tape to see their past life, their evolution. This are the ones watching this story. This time it was especially important for Raimondo Rebeck to show the dream and the purpose of life. We watch the events of the plot as if it were a movie, à la end of which we have good, kind and joyful feelings.

Photo credit: Astana Opera

The main character in this story is a designer, with whom you share similarities. Does he bring something personal to your work?

It’s very true, even though I didn’t really think about it when I created the concept. Young talents often find it difficult to express themselves. They have the capacity, or rather the ambition, to become someone, they are overflowing with energy, but they don’t know how to realize it. This is reflected in the first act of “Cinderella”, this struggle with difficulties, efforts to succeed in a given field. And in the second act, she finally has a platform where she can show off her creativity. Directing the ballet “Cinderella” is such an opportunity for me right now. For designers, for representatives of all creative professions, it is very important to be able to show the public the fruits of our imagination!