#ninel petrova | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

balletretrospective · 2 months

Text

Happy 100th Birthday to Ninel Petrova

Though I have never had the pleasure of meeting this heroine of classical ballet. I owe to her all the thanks in the world. For as a young, bright-eyed yet naive student, I was no stranger to discouraging remarks from some teachers. I was assured that I would never be capable of becoming a dancer. Until one day, when I was fortunate enough to be taken with some classmates on a tour of the Mariinsky Theatre. The guides were so lovely, and told us many stories of the history of dance, they showed us the massive undertaking of the skilled craftsmen, artists, and designers and how, with their precision, care, and expertise the ballet could come to life. But it was a single pair of pointe shoes that changed my life forever. The pointe shoes of ballerina Ninel Petrova.

"they are so small" I remarked. Our lovely guide smiled down at me, "yes, ballerinas in this era were short in stature, and grand in character.' A small video of her dancing played on repeat. I could not break my gaze, my feet glued to the floor. I was in awe. She was the most beautiful dancer I had ever seen. For me, she is the soul of dance. After this experience I was able to be enlightened to such talents as Alla Sizova, Ninella Kurgapkina, Ekaterina Maximova, who I furthered aimed to emulate. No longer did I fight to "hide my shortcomings" or work against my body. I was able to start an approach to dance, first from the soul, then from the technique. There are such a great many people I have to thank for my life in ballet. But nothing will ever touch my heart as deeply as Ninel Petrova in Chopiniana.

Thank you. My deepest gratitude and most wholehearted wishes on your birthday.

#russian ballet #ballet history #living legend #kirov ballet #mariinsky theatre #ninel petrova

6 notes · View notes

sovushka-seraya · 3 years

Text