The Red Poppy
Encyclopedia
The Red Poppy or sometimes The Red Flower is a ballet
in three acts and an apotheosis; score written by Reinhold Glière
and a scenario by Mikhail Kurilko. This ballet was created in 1927 as the first Soviet
ballet with a modern revolutionary theme.
Possibly the most famous dance from this ballet is the Sailors Dance, sometimes referred to as the 'Russian' Sailors Dance. It is this selection for which Glière is perhaps best known.
China. A ship carrying sailors from many lands, including Russia is docked in a Chinese seaport. The captain notices a group of half-starved, overworked Coolies being brutally driven to work even harder by their cruel harbormaster. One night while dancing for the sailors aboard the ship, the beautiful Tao-Hoa (Pinyin
: Taohua) notices a Russian captain trying to rescue the poor Coolies from the port commander. Impressed by the captain's act of kindness she gives him a red poppy as a symbol of her love. When Tao's employer, Li Shan-Fu learns of this, he is jealous and orders her to kill the captain. She refuses, and is later killed by her employer when a riot breaks out on the dock - thus sacrificing her life for the captain. As she dies, she gives another red poppy flower to a young Chinese girl as a sign of love and freedom.
Act Two
Act Three
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
in three acts and an apotheosis; score written by Reinhold Glière
Reinhold Glière
Reinhold Moritzevich Glière was a Russian and Soviet composer of German–Polish descent.- Biography :Glière was born in Kiev, Ukraine...
and a scenario by Mikhail Kurilko. This ballet was created in 1927 as the first Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
ballet with a modern revolutionary theme.
Possibly the most famous dance from this ballet is the Sailors Dance, sometimes referred to as the 'Russian' Sailors Dance. It is this selection for which Glière is perhaps best known.
Synopsis
The ballet takes place at a seaport in 1920s-era KuomintangKuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
China. A ship carrying sailors from many lands, including Russia is docked in a Chinese seaport. The captain notices a group of half-starved, overworked Coolies being brutally driven to work even harder by their cruel harbormaster. One night while dancing for the sailors aboard the ship, the beautiful Tao-Hoa (Pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Taohua) notices a Russian captain trying to rescue the poor Coolies from the port commander. Impressed by the captain's act of kindness she gives him a red poppy as a symbol of her love. When Tao's employer, Li Shan-Fu learns of this, he is jealous and orders her to kill the captain. She refuses, and is later killed by her employer when a riot breaks out on the dock - thus sacrificing her life for the captain. As she dies, she gives another red poppy flower to a young Chinese girl as a sign of love and freedom.
Structure
Act One- Introduction
- Coolies' Dance
- Tao-Hoa's Entrance
- Restaurant Scene
- Malik's Dance
- Boston Waltz
- Scene of European Dance
- Captain's Entrance and Sailors Dance
- Tao-Hoa's Scene
- Variation with Gold Fingers
- Coolies' Victory Dance
- Dance of the Soviet Sailors:Apple
Act Two
- Introduction - Scene in the Smoking Room* Scene
- Dance of the Chinese Women
- Adagio of Four Goddesses
- Adagio
- Prelude
- Tao-Hoa's Vision
- Procession Scene
- Sword Dance
- Phoenix
- Adagio
- The Rose Ship
Act Three
- Charleston
- Dance in the Restaurant
- Preparation of the Chinese Theatre
- Umbrella Dance
- Puppet Dance
- Chinese Acrobats' Dance
- The Conspiracy
- Scene of Confusion
- Captain's Scene
- Tao-Hoa's Scene: The Departing Ship
- Rebellion Scene
- Death of Tao-Hoa
- Apotheosis
Versions
There have been four main versions:- 1927 - Choreography by Lev Lashchilin (1st and 3rd Acts) and Vasily TikhomirovVasily TikhomirovVasiliy Dmitriyevich Tikhomirov was a dancer and a choreographer with the Bolshoi Ballet of Moscow, Russia. His most distinguished production was The Red Poppy , with his wife Yekaterina Geltzer in the main role. He and Geltzer were buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery....
(2nd Act). First performance on 14 June 1927 in the Bolshoi TheatreBolshoi TheatreThe Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds performances of ballet and opera. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world...
. - 1949 - Choreography by Leonid Lavrovsky. Scenario was rewritten by Aleksey YermolayevAleksey YermolayevAleksey Nikolayevich Yermolayev was a Soviet baller dancer, choreographer, and teacher. He played an important role in the development of Russian ballet between 1920 and 1950, and he was considered an outstanding actor....
. First performance on 30 December 1949 in the Bolshoi Theatre. - 1957 - Choreography and scenario by Tikhomirov and Kurilko. The ballet was renamed The Red Flower, the number of scenes was increased from 8 to 13 and the first performance was 24 November 1957 in the Bolshoi Theatre.
- 2010 - Choreography by Nikolay Androsov, scenery and costumes by Elena Puliti, conductor Andre Anichanov, musical cooperation from Francesco Sodini, director of production Beppe Menegatti. First performance - 12 February at Teatro dell'Opera di RomaTeatro dell'Opera di RomaThe Teatro dell'Opera di Roma is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat Costanzi Theatre, it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements...
- 2010 - Scenario editing, choreography and scenery by Vladimir VasilievVladimir VasilievVladimir Vasiliev is the director and chief instructor of the Toronto School of Russian Martial Arts located in Thornhill, Ontario, where he teaches Ryabko's Systema as the top student of Mikhail Ryabko. V. Vasiliev has allegedly served in the Russian Special Forces...
, costumes by Maria Vol'skaya, music director and conductor - Anatoly Chepurnoy. First performance - 23 November at KrasnoyarskKrasnoyarskKrasnoyarsk is a city and the administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on the Yenisei River. It is the third largest city in Siberia, with the population of 973,891. Krasnoyarsk is an important junction of the Trans-Siberian Railway and one of Russia's largest producers of...
Ballet and Opera Theater
Characters
- Tao-Hoa (Yekaterina GeltzerYekaterina GeltzerYekaterina Vasilyevna Geltzer was a prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet who danced in the theatre from 1898 to 1935. She worked with Marius Petipa, Sergei Diaghilev, and Reinhold Glière. After the Russian Revolution of 1917, she helped to preserve the art of ballet in Russia...
(1927), Viktorina Kriger (1927), Galina UlanovaGalina UlanovaGalina Sergeyevna Ulánova is frequently cited as being one of the greatest 20th Century ballerinas. Her flat in Moscow is designated a national museum, and there are monuments to her in Saint Petersburg and Stockholm....
(1949 and 1957), Olga Lepeshinskaya (1949), Alexandra DanilovaAlexandra DanilovaAleksandra Dionisyevna Danilova was a Russian-born prima ballerina who became an American citizen....
(1943), April Mcleod (2007), Oksana Kucheruk (2010), Gaia Straccamore (2010), Anna Ol (2010) ). - Soviet Captain (Alexey Bulgakov (1927), Alexander Radunsky (1949 and 1957), Frederic Franklin (1943), Lukash Abrahamyan (2007), Igor YebraIgor Yebra- Early life :Igor Yebra was born in Bilbao, Spain, and was encouraged to start dancing by his parents, two music and dance enthusiasts who named him Igor in honour of the title character in Borodin's opera....
(2010), Vito Mazzeo (2010), Vyacheslav Kapustin (2010)). - Ma Lichen, introduced in the staging of 1949. (Yury Kondratov (1949 and 1957), Mikhail Gabovich (1949), Damiano Mongelli (2010)).
- Li Shan-fu (Ivan Smoltsov (1927), Sergey Koren (1949 and 1957), Alexey Yermolayev (1949), Vito Mazzeo (2010), Manuel Paruccini (2010), Ivan Karnaukhov (2010)).
- NüwaNüwaNüwa is a goddess in ancient Chinese mythology best known for creating mankind and repairing the wall of heaven.-Primary sources:...
, goddess of fertility, introduced in the staging of 2010 (Carla FracciCarla FracciCarla Fracci is a ballet dancer and actress. Her career highlights include Nijinsky, Giselle , Complete Bell Telephone Hour Performances: Erik Bruhn 1961-1967.-FAO Ambassador:...
) - Chinese prestidigitator (Asaf MessererAsaf MessererAsaf Mikhailovich Messerer was a Russian Jewish ballet dancer and ballet teacher. He was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. From 1919 until 1921 he trained as a dancer at the Bolshoi Ballet School under Mikhail Mordkin...
(1927)). - Harbormaster (Ivan Sidorov (1927), Alexei Bal'va (2010)).
Other performances
- 1929 in LeningradSaint PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
by Leningradsky Theatre of opera and ballet and in 1949 and 1958 by Kirov BalletMariinsky BalletThe Mariinsky Ballet is a classical ballet company based at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russian Ballet, the Mariinsky Ballet is one of the world's leading ballet companies...
; - 1943 in Public Music HallPublic AuditoriumPublic Auditorium is located in the central business district of downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Since it was opened in 1922, it has served as a concert hall, sports arena and convention center. Although it was planned and funded prior to World War I, construction did not begin until 1920. Designed by...
, Cleveland, OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, USA, by Ballet Russe de Monte CarloBallet Russe de Monte CarloBallet Russe de Monte Carlo was a ballet company created by members of the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo in 1938 after Léonide Massine and René Blum had a falling-out with the co-founder Wassily de Basil...
http://www.butler.edu/dance/index.aspx?pg=7106; - 1928 and 1930 in SverdlovskYekaterinburgYekaterinburg is a major city in the central part of Russia, the administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast. Situated on the eastern side of the Ural mountain range, it is the main industrial and cultural center of the Urals Federal District with a population of 1,350,136 , making it Russia's...
; - 1928, 1949 and 1958 in SaratovSaratov-Modern Saratov:The Saratov region is highly industrialized, due in part to the rich in natural and industrial resources of the area. The region is also one of the more important and largest cultural and scientific centres in Russia...
; - 1941 and 1950 in GorkiNizhny NovgorodNizhny Novgorod , colloquially shortened to Nizhny, is, with the population of 1,250,615, the fifth largest city in Russia, ranking after Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and Yekaterinburg...
; - 1946 in BakuBakuBaku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
by Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet TheatreAzerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet TheatreThe Akhundov Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater is a theatre in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was built in 1911.-History:...
; - 1949 in PermPermPerm is a city and the administrative center of Perm Krai, Russia, located on the banks of the Kama River, in the European part of Russia near the Ural Mountains. From 1940 to 1957 it was named Molotov ....
; - 1950 and 1961 in KuybyshevSamara, RussiaSamara , is the sixth largest city in Russia. It is situated in the southeastern part of European Russia at the confluence of the Volga and Samara Rivers. Samara is the administrative center of Samara Oblast. Population: . The metropolitan area of Samara-Tolyatti-Syzran within Samara Oblast...
; - 1950 in NovosibirskNovosibirskNovosibirsk is the third-largest city in Russia, after Moscow and Saint Petersburg, and the largest city of Siberia, with a population of 1,473,737 . It is the administrative center of Novosibirsk Oblast as well as of the Siberian Federal District...
; - 1962 in VolgogradVolgogradVolgograd , formerly called Tsaritsyn and Stalingrad is an important industrial city and the administrative center of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. It is long, north to south, situated on the western bank of the Volga River...
; - 2010 in RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... - 2010 in KrasnoyarskKrasnoyarskKrasnoyarsk is a city and the administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on the Yenisei River. It is the third largest city in Siberia, with the population of 973,891. Krasnoyarsk is an important junction of the Trans-Siberian Railway and one of Russia's largest producers of...
External links
- Rome Opera Theater's webpage on the ballet
- Pictures from 2010 Italian production
- Video clip from 2010 Italian production
- Short video clip from 2010 Italian production
- http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/24/35564426.htmlRussian Radio report on the Krasnoyarsk KrasnoyarskKrasnoyarsk is a city and the administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on the Yenisei River. It is the third largest city in Siberia, with the population of 973,891. Krasnoyarsk is an important junction of the Trans-Siberian Railway and one of Russia's largest producers of...
2010 production]