Zurich Ballet’s “Anna Karenina” piece met art lovers in Istanbul on the occasion of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV).
A team of 83 people with 45 dancers and an opera singer came to Türkiye for the show, which took place over two days at Zorlu PSM.
The team was joined by two child dancers and eight supporting actors from Türkiye.
Sergei Rachmaninoff, Witold Lutoslawski, Sulkhan Tsintsadze and Josef Bardanashvili wrote the soundtrack for the work adapted for ballet by Christian Spuck from the novel of the same name by the famous Russian writer Lev Tolstoy.
Lead actress Katja Wunsche, who plays Anna Karenina in the work, told Anadolu Agency after the screening that she was not completely satisfied with her first performance, saying, “I really enjoyed it. To be here on this big stage with this wonderful team working in the background in front of so many audiences. It was really awesome.”
Wunsche said that the Zurich stage was smaller, so she was very impressed with the size of Zorlu PSM’s stage, saying, “Dancing on a bigger stage was a nice experience.”
Pointing out that a team of 70 people work on stage, the successful dancer noted that the number increases with costumes, makeup and office workers.
As for the stylish and eye-catching costumes that grab attention on stage, she pointed out, “The costume designers and the choreographer work closely together.”
Referring to the character of Anna Karenina, whom she portrayed, she emphasized, “It’s so beautiful and natural for me to play Anna.”
“I think I’m a lot more comfortable describing the hardest part,” she added.
Wunsche pointed out that they had been staging the work for a few years, mentioning that they were working really hard for the show.
Noting that the Zurich Ballet has several rules, the head ballerina said: “It’s determined by the rules how many hours we will work, how long we will take a break, how long the breaks between performances should be. .”
The artist said that she had been to Istanbul for vacations before, noting that: “I had a lot of good memories from that time.”
“I stayed on the historic peninsula side and went to Hagia Sophia. I went to the palace and around. It was so beautiful.
“I had a great time. I haven’t had time to go out yet this time. Maybe tomorrow will be a possibility,” she said.
“However, I can say that I came back here with very good memories. I still have a great time. The people are really friendly, open, helpful and very kind,” she said.
The show met Istanbul audiences under the special sponsorship of Palo Alto Networks, the world leader in cybersecurity, in cooperation with IKSV and Zorlu PSM.
Türk Havayollari, the national airline of Türkiye, also contributed to the event, which was supported by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, as a partner airline.
The show, which impressed the public with its flamboyant costumes, contemporary scenography and choreography based mainly on neoclassical dance, was sold out.
