Maya Plisetskaya - Diva of Dance
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Maya Plisetskaya, Raymonda Romeo Juliet Swan Lake Ballet, Theatre Royal de la Monnaie Brussels Bolero BolshoiDVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: Classical, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 71 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-02-21
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Euroarts
Movie Reviews of Maya Plisetskaya - Diva of Dance
Movie Review: Prima ballerina assoluta!
Summary: 5 Stars
Maya Plisetskaya was named "Prima Ballerina Assoluta" by her home company, the Bolshoi, but she might as well be PBA of the entire ballet world. Her influence can be seen all around the ballet world. Maya, with her blazing red hair, broke all the rules of classical ballet. She famously took class with the men. Instead of dainty jumps, she flew onto the stage in grand jetes that would make the men jealous. Her ultra-flexible back and legs pushed the limits of the traditional classical line. And those arms! Everyone tries to emulate Maya's completely boneless arms, and no one succeeds.
This tribute to the great ballerina is a fitting one. It is divided into two parts -- there's 70 minutes of dancing, and 50 minutes of an interview with Maya (as well as her husband, the composer Rodion Schedrin). The 70 minutes of dance were IMO somewhat disappointing. For one, there's no dates given of any of the footage. Many of the dancing clips can be seen on VAI's film "Plisetskaya Dances." An uninterrupted clip of Plisetskaya dancing "Bolero," choreographed by Maurice Bejart, is entirely new. It was recorded in 1977 and Maya P, over 50 years of age, is still absolutely incredible both in terms of technique and charisma. There's also a clip of Maya and Nicolai Fadeyechev dancing from Bach's Prelude and Raymonda that were new to me. But we also get predictable stuff, like Maya's iconic Dying Swan. Although it's impossible to get too much of Maya's Dying Swan, which IMO remains unmatched. (Although obviously I never saw Anna Pavlova.)
More interesting to me is the interview with Maya. Now 80, still as beautiful and lively as ever, Maya recounts her incredible career. She is still every inch a ballerina -- like many dancers she cannot communicate without using her arms to demonstrate. And when Maya unfolds those long arms, you swear she's become a bird again. She dreamily recalls her debut in Raymonda by humming the Raymonda melody -- her eyes literally seem to go back in time, and she smiles happily. I'm reminded of that dialogue from The Red Shoes. "Why do you want to dance?" "Why do you want to live?" Maya talks about being called in at the last minute to dance Swan Lake for Chairman Mao, and the fact that Joseph Stalin apparently saw her dance, but incognito, and then died the next day. Incredible stories, which Maya tells with a mix of pride and contempt for the old Soviet government. For those who have read Maya's autobiography, you know that Maya's life was anything but easy. Her childhood was fraught with terror -- her father executed, her mother imprisoned. She was tailed constantly by the KGB for much of her career. But Maya in this interview mostly wants to focus on the good stuff, which is understandable, given her incredible career. Only her husband Schedrin interrupts the feel-good interview a bit at the end by saying, "Maya's life wasn't just bouquets of roses." And he talks a bit about Maya's childhood, and how Maya and her husband could hear the KGB snoring in cars parked outside their apartment. What an amazing lady.
So mostly, this is a great tribute to this truly legendary ballerina.
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