Great news posted by Sophia at Dansomanie (in French).

Svetlana Lunkina and Nina Kaptsova will be dancing "Giselle" at Lausanne Switzerland, February 10-12. The Albrechts will be Ruslan Skvortsov and Dmitri Gudanov.

Svetlana Lunkina, when she's 100%, is one of the most beautiful dancers that I have ever seen. Nina Kaptsova was wonderful doing "Giselle" in London this summer.

I hope to see them both on my way back to where I live, about an hour from Lausanne. I also hope that they have some time to get outside. It is one of the most beautiful areas that they could imagine.

The Bolshoi in Switzerland for the first time in 25 years !

Lucky me and lucky Switzerland !


[typo correction made]

Sometimes words just don't do it.

Nina Kaptsova -- "Giselle"

Based on tonight's performance, if you ever have even the remotest chance to see this woman perform, don't ask why....

Just Go !!!!


An Evening's Dream
Of Enchanted Dimensions
In A Lover's Garden

Nina Kaptsova -- A Few Lasting 'Impressions'

A statuesque vision

A heartwarming presence

Pivoting weightlessly
Like a starry beacon

Reaching, spinning, flying, caressing

Immersed in a poetic dream

Elegant and delicate
Intricate and beautiful
Suspended and celestial

Eyes sparkling and radiant

So of the air
So of the heart

Svetlana Lunkina -- "Giselle"


Her second act Giselle was

Sublime, Absolutely Sublime !

Her duet after leading Albricht to shelter was

Breathtaking !

I believe that her partner was Ruslan Skvortsov. The program didn't list who was dancing on a particular night. He was magnificent as a partner (Svetlana Lunkina could not have sailed the way that she did without him), as a portrayal and as a dancer.

Both Svetlana Lunkina and Nina Kaptsova exceeded my hopes and I was hoping for a lot.

I will try and write some more as soon as I can.

It was a wonderful two evenings.


[typo corrections made]

The dominant memory of these two days will have to be the exceptional beauty of the performances of Svetlana Lunkina and Nina Kaptsova. I've been fortunate enough to have seen many outstanding performances of "Giselle" and these two were among the best.

Svetlana Lunkina rests in my mind as 'reaching out', both mentally and physically, to the outer limits of her being. It was a marvelous image that she created, so ethereal and so sculpturally magnificent. In addition the expression of her face was always so poetically perfect.

And perfect would have to be the word to use in describing almost every moment of Nina Kaptsova's performance, which seemed to go well beyond the idea of perfection. The image that I will keep of her is one of a statuesquely perfect being 'rotating' weightlessly in such a way that all that surrounded her became weightlessly enchanted as well. Such a sense of all embracing calm and beauty she created.

I can't say enough about how wonderful I think these two beautiful and heartwarming artists were. I woke up the morning after I saw Nina Kaptsova and my mind was as light, calm and peaceful as it could be as I visualized her dancing as lightly as the air itself.

Svetlana Lunkina, who performed the next day, is still dancing in my head, like a living masterpiece, set free to sail the heavens.

The entire company performed beautifully.

I will mention Ruslan Skvortsov again as being an unforgettably fine leading man. At the beginning of the ballet I really didn't notice him, probably because he was so perfectly in tune and supportive of Svetlana Lunkina and also because I generally focus completely on the ballerina. When his solos arrived in Act II I had to pay attention and they were outstanding. I also began to pay attention to his facial expression because it was so sympathetic and so perfect. In total I think that he did magnificently.

Dmitri Gudanov, as Albrecht, was also very fine and really impressed me with a wonderful series of jumps, legs forward with feet 'flickering' together (cabrioles).

I would say that both the Myrtas, Maria Allash and Anna Leonova, were equally excellent. They were flawlessly beautiful and compelling. Myrta's two 'assistants,' were also very fine.

All the women in the corps de ballet were lovely. They just floated along in a poetically and artistically perfect state of harmony.

I noticed one lady who was the furthest to the right in the Act II corps de ballet, Sunday, because she was extremely graceful and expressive.

All the men were as tightly together as I have ever seen with the Bolshoi.

Another thing that impressed me was how in control and how into what they were doing all the dancers were. There was a real sense of commitment and aliveness. If you thought for a second that they were drifting into just dancing or couldn't cover a momentary lapse, the artist's gesture would immediately assure you that all was alive and as well as could be.

The four dancers segment In Act I was very good.

Hilarion, just fine.

The audience response at the end of the evenings was highly enthusiastic with three or four curtain calls each.

I will mention something about Svetlana Lunkina that I have mentioned before. When the final ovations begin she becomes, almost immediately, as natural and lovable as can be. She radiates such a sincere and warm response to the audience's ovation and to the presence of her fellow performers. She is just lovely.