The atmosphere of the pre-general rehearsal of the performance is always tense. This is the dress rehearsal when the entire company and orchestra are on stage, the technical assemblers, costume designers and set designers check the last details. This also happened at his rehearsal. ballet “Don Quixote” which we looked at Stavros Niarchos Hall of ELS, except that the show’s choreographer, Brazilian Thiago Bordin, didn’t get annoyed for a moment. When we briefly met with him during a break, he admitted that his last few days were full of stress, but in fact he seemed relaxed and light as a feather. Don Quixote by Ludwig Minkus is one of the most famous ballets of all time. The choreography that we will see in Athens is based on the classical choreography by Marius Petipa, first staged in 1869 at the Bolshoi Theatre. Only Bordin, one of the most important choreographers of the new generation, with a great love for classical ballet and a successful work experience in the Hamburg Ballet under the direction of the brilliant John Neumeier, as well as in the Netherlands Dance Theater, did not leave all the classical elements exactly in their place.

“After I read Cervantes’ novel, I began to sort through what the doctors had discovered by studying him,” he tells us. “It is my understanding that the book has played a very important role in research on neurological problems, in which cases of insomnia, epileptic seizures and night terrors are described. So I felt it was important to add a little contemporary commentary to this particular classic, a reference to our modern world.”

So the first surprise of the show comes right after the start. Don Quixote is in the hospital, and the nurse pushes his wheelchair, while the characteristic sound of machines is heard that checks the condition of the body, heartbeat and breathing. Suddenly, a huge set of books comes on the scene, and our hero gets up, leaves the present and enters his fantastic, wonderful world. The same one that literature and ballet created for Don Quixote, a world that is not as serious as it seems. On the contrary, in many places, because of the pantomime and scenes reminiscent of silent film gags, the fantastical ballet “Don Quixote” causes laughter.

“But this is a comedy,” explains the choreographer, “which must be presented not only in dance, but also in drama. In order for the jokes to reach the audience, everything that happens on the stage must be absolutely clear. Corrections after corrections have been made, and most of them are no longer related to dance technique. I repeat to the dancers that in the most narrative parts, they should not move like they dance, but like normal people that the audience will fall in love with. Even if it is a ballet performance, our dancers should stop dancing for a while and, like actors, tell us a story.”

Training

“This is a comedy, but it should be presented not only in dance, but also in drama,” says choreographer Thiago Bordin.

The second big surprise for the audience of the performance is the appearance on the stage of two world ballet stars, who are collaborating with the Greek Ballet for the first time, the Georgian Maya Makatelli and the Russian Daniel Simkin in the lead roles. The presence of both underscores the high standard of this ballet production, the first of its kind at the LES in five years.

Simkin holds the position of lead dancer in two of the world’s most important dance companies: the American Ballet Theater and the Berlin State Ballet. Having performed the most important roles in the repertoire, participating in international performances and ballet galas, he comes to ELLS to perform one of the most difficult choreographies of its kind, a challenge for classical dancers.

“It’s all about method and proper planning,” he says when we ask him how he prepares for this gig. “I work with my body every day long enough before I hit the stress of rehearsals, I practice a little more than the show calls for. That is, I poured more gasoline into the tank. Ten days before the show, I start preparing the difficult technical parts. I finish my daily activities and continue jogging. It hurts at first, but gradually I build muscle to fit the role. This is combined with the right doses of rest. The body, as you know, is a very fragile system.”

From today until 31.12, for 7 impressions.

^{Source: APE-MEB, Reuters}