A ballet where everything is beautiful. The only show of the play “Two Annas” took place in Minsk

The Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus hosted the only show of the ballet performance “Two Annas” – about two great women of the XX century, symbols of the Silver Age. In two parts, different in style and mood, the directors focused on emotional resonance, internal experiences and the difficult choice between love and creativity that the poet Anna Akhmatova and ballerina Anna Pavlova had to make.

This is a joint project of the MuzArts production company and the Diaghilev P.S. International Art Festival. Its premiere took place in February 2025 in St. Petersburg at the Bolshoi Drama Theatre named after G. A. Tovstonogov. The ballet became one of the brightest events in the cultural life of Moscow and St. Petersburg. Art historians called it “a work that combines poetry, music, theater and dance, a bold experiment, a delightful production in which everything is beautiful: music, plastic, scenery, costumes, directing.”.

The story of Anna Akhmatova is set to the expressionist music of the piano quintet in F minor by Cesar Frank performed by the soloists ensemble of the National Presidential Orchestra of the Republic of Belarus. Music for the ballet about Anna Pavlova was written by composer Ilya Demutsky.

In the first part, choreographer Yuri Posokhov presents to the audience... Two Akhmatovs. Prima of the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia Eleanor Sevenard translates the fate of the poetess into the language of dance:

- I am very happy to be in Minsk for the first time with this performance, unlike any other role I play. In the center of the plot - Akhmatova and two main men in her life: her husband - poet Nikolai Gumilev and artist Amedeo Modigliani. This truly dramatic image we create on stage together with the actress BDT (St. Petersburg) Polina Malikova, in whose performance the word of the poetess sounds. From play to play, it seems to me that we are more and more dissolved in this music, choreography and the meanings of great poetic lines.

The role of Modigliani was performed by the first soloist of the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia Alexei Putintsev, Gumileva - the famous dancer Ildar Gainutdinov. According to them, today much is built on their own feelings, personal perception of those stories, legends and the truth that has reached contemporaries.

- I must say that the soloists of the Presidential Orchestra of Belarus taking part in the production are simply incredible and instantly joined the process. The music is complex, there are nuances, but they instantly caught everything that is needed, said Alexei Putintsev.

“The two Annas are very different, but they are united by the strength of character and talent,” the prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia Elizaveta Kokoreva is convinced. Today I play the role of Anna Pavlova, where, unlike the role of Anna Akhmatova, there is humor, and even some grotesque. The second part is a different style. Pavlova as an actress was able to light the hall, was bright and very sincere in art. It's a pleasure to play such a role!

A striking decoration of the production was the costumes of the Russian designer Svetlana Tegin. Inspired by the era of the Silver Age, she created images that emphasize the characters of the heroines and harmoniously interweave into the overall aesthetics of the performance. Textures of fabrics refer to the beginning of the last century, and especially cut into the memory of the stunning beauty of lace for the wedding dress of Anna Pavlova, the sketch of which was used to create a poster of an amazing production.

Photo: Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus.