On 4 December, the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre invites audiences to the premiere "Coppelia", dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Lithuanian ballet.
“We will soon witness a grand historical moment, when the Lithuanian Ballet will enter its second century of existence, passing the baton to future generations. One hundred years ago, the young independent state of Lithuania had enough focus and strength to implement the ambitious idea of a professional ballet company by presenting Léo Delibes’s ballet “Coppelia”. During that century, it took the selfless contribution of many talented people so that we could be here today and celebrate the significant anniversary of the Lithuanian Ballet,” – emphasizes Laima Vilimienė, General Manager of the LNOBT.
"Martynas Rimeikis's "Coppelia" is a performance of special importance, a true gift to the history of Lithuanian ballet. We are proud that the milestone of two centuries will be marked by the work of a Lithuanian choreographer. We are entering the new century by purposefully shaping the identity of the LNOBT’s ballet company together with a bright, unique, distinctive choreographer, who, together with a team of top-level Lithuanian creators, is presenting a performance that will remain in history for the birthday of Lithuanian ballet. This "Coppelia" is the first page of the new century," – says Jurgita Dronina, Artistic Director of LNOBT’s ballet.
Revelation of Hoffmann's Drama
M. Rimeikis himself urged viewers preparing for the premiere of "Coppelia" to expect a completely new production.
"When I began to examine E. T. A. Hoffmann's short story "The Sandman", which became the basis for the libretto of "Coppelia", two themes emerged – about the inner child that lives within us, sometimes hindering and sometimes helping us, and about artificial intelligence, or the human desire to create something more perfect than ourselves. I think that Lithuanian ballet, which has reached its second century, is already capable of speaking about such deeper themes," – emphasized LNOBT's chief choreographer.
Having started rehearsing with Edvinas Jakonis and Jonas Kertenis, who dance the role of Nathanael, he became convinced that these themes were also close to today's youth. "I am very impressed by the openness and strength of the current generation of ballet dancers," – says M. Rimeikis.
Laurynas Katkus, who previously co-wrote the libretto for M. Rimeikis' ballet "The Trial", emphasized the desire to transfer Hoffmann's drama, tension, and unease to the ballet stage, but without causing a preconceived rejection reaction in the audience. "It seems to me that society is already mature enough to delve into such things as childhood traumas, and even get a certain amount of pleasure from it," – the writer says.
Premiere with a Live Sound
Jievaras Jasinskis, who has re-composed the music of L. Delibes's ballet in a modern way, revealed that it was seeing M. Rimeikis' ballet "The Trial" that inspired him to choose composition studies.
"I wonder if the audience will recognize which scenes in "Coppelia" are composed by me, but in L. Delibes's style, which is not a style close to me anyway. There will also be a scene in the ballet in which we did not change L. Delibes's music at all. There will be no artificial soundtracks in this performance – for instance, the pianist will play live from the score. However, the musical instrument itself is programmed in such a way that a unique atmospheric soundscape composed in this theatre, specially created for the ballet's centennial production, will be heard at the same time. Having said that, I would invite the audience to analyse "Coppelia" less when watching it, and simply immerse themselves in the general flow of sounds," – the composer urged.
The theatre's chief conductor Ričardas Šumila testifies that L. Delibes's music has been reincarnated, acquiring modern charm and wit, as well as complexity, as the stylistic framework of the ballet has expanded significantly.
"If we were to talk about the classical ballet of L. Delibes, his music was quite unified. And in this production we can find echoes of a wide variety of musical styles: from classical to jazz, and minimalist monotony. There will also be a number of associations with music written for films," – the conductor reveals.
"Coppelia" Unites Three Generations
M. Rimeikis's constant companion in choreographic work, set designer Marijus Jacovskis, admitted: "When Martynas revealed the title of the production, I was scared, and said that I didn't know how to create classical productions. But I was reassured that this would not be a classical, but a modern version of "Coppelia". Of course, while fantasizing, we initially came up with a lot of nonsense, which we later, thank God, abandoned. I hope that only the most necessary things remained," – says the set designer.
For costume designer Elvita Brazdylytė, "Coppelia" is a special, dynastic work: her grandfather danced the role of Coppelius on stage, and her father created a production of this ballet at the Latvian National Opera and Ballet Theatre.
"I know my father's "Coppelia" by heart – it accompanied me in childhood. However, now we have looked at this ballet through the prism of our generation and reflect what is relevant to us. The main hero of the performance, Nathanael, is a man with darkness and deep experiences, and he will be like a contrast to the colourful corps de ballet," – says E. Brazdylytė.
The Premiere is just the Beginning of Celebration
The premiere of "Coppelia" is just the beginning of the parade of events marking the 100th anniversary of Lithuanian ballet on the LNOBT stage. In December, audiences will also see the Lithuanian premiere of choreographer Krzysztof Pastor's ballet "Moving Rooms" and the performance of the young dancers of the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Arts "Called to the Arts. The Language of Dance".
Klaipėda and Kaunas State Musical Theatres will present their touring ballet performances on the LNOBT stage: Klaipėda brings the diptych of one-act performances "Cacti+" by choreographers Gaj Žmavc and Alexander Ekman, and Kaunas introduces the ballet "Desdemona" by choreographer Anželika Cholina.
Just before Christmas, the LNOBT will invite you to the festive gala concert "A Moment to Behold" dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Lithuanian Ballet, which will feature the most famous Lithuanian ballet soloists and guests from famous foreign theatres.
