On May 20-26, the capital of Tatarstan was welcoming participants of the Navruz International Theatre Festival of Turkic Peoples from Turkey, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, and Middle Asia. The Grand-prix was granted to «Carmen» staged by the Crimea-Tatar Music and Drama Theatre, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary. One of the most touching moments was when a special prize of the TURKSOY International Organization was presented to the widow of Marcel Salimzhanov for his last production «The Basketball Player». The Best Director Award was granted to «The Red-Haired Mocker and His Dark-Haired Beauty,» and the Best Composer — to Masgud Shamsutdinov, who wrote the score for this play. The Best Drama Award went to another performance of the Kamalov Theatre, «I Was Looking for You, My Love» based on the play by Tufan Minullin. This production was also mentioned for the Best Acting Duet received by Ilsiya and Ramil Tukhvatullin. — Some people are sweating over one festival. Here in Kazan, one festival follows another. It is time for Mintimer Shaimiyev to present the second Golden Masque... — said Alexander Kalyagin, a Guest of Honor at the Festival. |
The village of Russian Nikolskoye in Layishev District conducted Karavon, a traditional celebration of Russian Folklore with more than a 300-year-old history. This holiday is timed to the patronal festival of the village — the Day of Nicholas the Miracle-Worker, and it starts with the morning service at Nikolsky Cathedral, just as 200 years ago. Karavon itself is held at the central square of the village. This is a very special sight, the round dance is almost pulsating, its circle is sometimes growing, sometimes getting smaller, and at the same time it is slowly going in circles clockwise. Of course, back in the old days Russian Nikolskoye wasnt the only village celebrating Karavon. But this village managed to almost miraculously maintain this original tradition, and its bearers are still alive. About 60 folklore groups from different places came to Russian Nikolskoye for the festivities. The participants and guests included many city residents, students and foreigners. The local old-timers remember not only the old round dance songs, but also the details of the Russian wedding rites, as well as of the traditional folk costume. Today in Kazan there is a Society of Russian Culture and a Center of Russian Folklore. They not only participate in restoring folk traditions, but also are organizing new expeditions to look for Russian folklore across the republic. The traditions of one village, Russian Nikolskoye, are tremendously influencing the modern status and development of Russian folklore in the republic, and most importantly the process of returning the Russians to their cultural roots. |
The Tenth All-Russian Festival of Graduation Productions called «Youth of Theatrical Russia» upset the routine even of the most prudish Kazan theatergoers. They were drawn into the circle of a huge student party that was occupying the Kazan Russian Childrens Theatre for a week. Inviting the audience to talk about the strange sides of love — an eternal subject for any theatre — the students and their professors selected the classics, although this time mostly Soviet classics, such as «Valentine and Valentina,» «Oldest Son,» «Dear Elena Sergeyevna»... This wasnt a competition; nevertheless the spirit of creative rivalry was obviously present. In this secret contest the Kazan theatre schools stood out not only because they presented three out of the nine productions, but also due to the level of training of the young actors. These students were graduates of such experienced teachers as Rashid Zagidullin, Director of K. Tinchourin Tatar Theatre of Drama and Comedy, and Yuri Blagov, Honored Worker of Arts of Tatarstan (Kazan Academy of Culture and Arts). The Club Program, which included personal performances by the leading dramatic actors from Saint Petersburg, Samara and Voronezh, became probably the most important award both for the participants of the festival and for its organizers. |
Students of Kazan School of Choreography, which next year will mark its 10th anniversary, visited Saint Petersburg for the first time. They were invited to the stage of the Hermitage Theatre. — «It was our long-standing dream to come to Saint-Petersburg,» — said Professor Ninel Yultyeva, Creative Director of the School, Peoples Actress of Russia. «And we are all happy that it came true, although in our times it is not easy to organize such a trip. Leningrad, or Saint Petersburg, as it is called now, is almost my native city. Here I graduated from the Vaganov School of Ballet and from the Leningrad Conservatory. I really wanted to show to the masters of ballet the results of creative work of our teachers and their students. The concert included the third act of the «Sleeping Beauty» with Petipas choreography, staged by the Peoples Artist of the USSR Nikita Dolgushin, who was present in the audience... |
The 170th anniversary of Ivan Shishkin, an outstanding still life artist, was widely celebrated in Yelabuga. House-museum of Ivan Shishkin became the center of celebrations, where has been gathered a wonderful collection of paintings created by the great Russian artist. This collection didnt fade even next to the exhibition of works by Shishkin from the collections of the Russian Museums, including the State Russian Museum, which was opened in June. The residents of Yelabuga for the first time saw the «Willows Lit by the Sun» (1869), etchings by Shishkin, including a wonderful self-portrait, and 16 water-colors and drawings by Karlis Gun, a famous artist and a friend of Ivan Shishkin. A long time ago at the request of Yelabuga merchants Stakheyevs, Karlis Gun and Vasily Vereschagin painted the icons at Protection of the Virgin Church in Yelabuga. In their free time, the artists were making drawings and paintings from life. Finally, their paintings came back to Yelabuga. |
The First Russian-American International Sergey Rakhmaninov Competition in Pasadena was a triumph for the Kazan piano school. The Jury (co-chaired by Nikolay Petrov and Byron Jenis) unanimously awarded the first prize, established by Alexander Konyus, the grandnephew of Rakhmaninov, in the amount of 30,000, as well as the golden medal of the laureate to Yevgeny Mikhailov, a pianist from Kazan. Furthermore, he was presented with a KAVAJ concert piano. After his victory at the Rakhmaninov Competition Yevgeny Mikhailov gave several concerts in the USA and in Mexico, and participated in the Musical Kremlin Festival in Moscow. This is the forth international award received by the 29-year old musician, a pupil of Elfiya Burnasheva, a professor at the Kazan Conservatory. His grandfather and great-grandfather were musicians, and even his grandmother played the hobo. His parents went to Kazan Conservatory. At the School of Music in Izhevsk, where Yevgeny was born and grew up, he was a pupil of Tamara Yuvenalievna Korepanova, who is also a former student of Elfiya Burnasheva. Yevgeny jokingly calls himself Prof. Burnashevas «musical grandson.» By the way, another one of her students, Sergei Malinin, became a prize-winner at the III International Sergei Rakhmaninov Competition, which was held in Moscow not long before the American competition. |
The Fifth Regional Festival of Childrens Art «The Land of a Singing Nightingale» gathered around almost all the young talents of the oil South-East of Tatarstan. This became possible due to the Rukhiat Fund of Spiritual Revival, established by JSC Tatneft. The Fund assumed responsibility for gifted children of oil industry workers. According to tradition, the gala-concert of the Festival was held in Kazan, on the stage of Musa Dzalil Tatar Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet. The sight was truly colorful and enthralling. The young artists conquered the heart of everyone in the audience by the charm of their youth, by their happy shining eyes... The final festival menu had everything in it: a jazz orchestra and a violin company, variety and folk dances, violin, accordion and kuray solos... And for desert a huge chak-chak shaped as the Sjujumbike Tower. Participants and guests of the Festival were greeted by the Deputy Prime Minister of Tatarstan Zilya Valeyeva. She expressed her tremendous appreciation to the General Director of JSC Tatneft Shafagat Takhautdinov and to the Rukhiat Fund for supporting the young talents. |