Rating: 
Summary: One of the greatest performances ever
Review: The biggest problem you face when watching this video is that by paying attention to the stars you will miss the corps of ballet, which is as good or better, I dare to say, than the latter.Try watching it several times, each focused on a particular item: the music, the costumes, the coreography, etc... And commit yourself to never watching "Spartacus" presented by any other company. Where on earth will you find an oustanding male corps to give you a full vision of Hollywood old Roman movies?
Rating:
Summary: SPARTACUS with Vladimir Vasiliev -A Magnificent Realization
Review: When the Bolshoi performed in New York in 1959 the dance critic Edwin Denby was unstinting in his praise of Vladimir Vasilev who was then just nineteen. "One or two other men leapt as high as he, but none as they leapt and danced had his power of sculptural contour in motion, or his power of upbeat in rhythm. None as actors had his lion-hearted magnanimity toward the heroine, the entire company, the whole world...His style is plain: his poetic gift - no simple one- is as radiant as that of the fabulous Russian dancers of the past." But Denby was not as impressed with the company as a whole, "The company has formalized its style...It covers up with care the brilliantly unreasonable resources of expression which are the glory of ballet dancing. It does so to stress instead an acted mime meaning. Four or five in the company can do this convincingly; the rest haven't a gift for vivid acting....the company's mime of deep feeling and psychological motivation isn't absorbing....The Bolshoi means to uncover its dance power in the next few years. When it does it will add to the literal meaning of pantomime the metaphorical meaning of dancing." In Grigorovich's 1977 film of Spartacus this goal has been magnificently realized. This is a ballet of conflict and contrasts; the conflict between the oppressive power of the state and the inherent urge for individual freedom, the contrast between cold sensuality and the warmth of abiding love. Spartacus and his lover, Friggia, enslaved by the Roman State are separated and she is paraded for the pleasure of the Roman General Crassus. He is captivated by her beauty and is about to satisfy his lust when his chief courtesan, Eghina, jealously intervenes and diverts him to her with her sensual dancing. Spartacus, forced to become a gladiator, is brought into the scene and in blind combat kills his friend for the "pleasure" of the assembly. Filled with remorse and anger Spartacus determines to lead the slaves in revolt. In the ensuing combat Crassus is captured and forced to duel with Spartacus who defeats him and then contemptuously frees him. Enraged Crassus determines to defeat Spartacus and the slaves, and as the armies gather their forces Eghina spies on Spartacus and then introduces her courtesans into a bacchanal with his soldiers. Spartacus's forces are depleted in the orgy and defeated, he is captured and fights valiantly until he is hoist on the spears of the legionnaires. Crassus slinks away into triumphal obscurity as Eghina is ironically incorporated into the standards of the Roman Legions. Friggia mourns Spartacus' death and in the final ensemble he is held triumphantly aloft in the immortal cause of freedom. This is a ballet that is meant to be viewed many times to savor the way Grigorovich's film reveals the story and fills the action with the "metaphorical meaning of dancing". Vasiliev as Spartacus is everything Denby described, and the pas-de-deux with Bessmertnova as Friggia are filled with tenderness, support, giving, trust, and passion. In contrast Liepa as Crassus and Timofeyeva as Eghina bring to their pas-de-deux arrogance,languorous sensuality, and the lust for power, while the company as a whole brings to the climaxes of the performance "the power of radiance ballet can achieve", and also the ample strength and weight of movement so characteristic of the Bolshoi. While this film has some of the technical limitations of VHS recording and Kultur filming the performance easily outweighs them and belongs in every ballet lover's collection.
Rating:
Summary: SPARTACUS with Vladimir Vasiliev -A Magnificent Realization
Review: When the Bolshoi performed in New York in 1959 the dance critic Edwin Denby was unstinting in his praise of Vladimir Vasilev who was then just nineteen. "One or two other men leapt as high as he, but none as they leapt and danced had his power of sculptural contour in motion, or his power of upbeat in rhythm. None as actors had his lion-hearted magnanimity toward the heroine, the entire company, the whole world...His style is plain: his poetic gift - no simple one- is as radiant as that of the fabulous Russian dancers of the past." But Denby was not as impressed with the company as a whole, "The company has formalized its style...It covers up with care the brilliantly unreasonable resources of expression which are the glory of ballet dancing. It does so to stress instead an acted mime meaning. Four or five in the company can do this convincingly; the rest haven't a gift for vivid acting....the company's mime of deep feeling and psychological motivation isn't absorbing....The Bolshoi means to uncover its dance power in the next few years. When it does it will add to the literal meaning of pantomime the metaphorical meaning of dancing." In Grigorovich's 1977 film of Spartacus this goal has been magnificently realized. This is a ballet of conflict and contrasts; the conflict between the oppressive power of the state and the inherent urge for individual freedom, the contrast between cold sensuality and the warmth of abiding love. Spartacus and his lover, Friggia, enslaved by the Roman State are separated and she is paraded for the pleasure of the Roman General Crassus. He is captivated by her beauty and is about to satisfy his lust when his chief courtesan, Eghina, jealously intervenes and diverts him to her with her sensual dancing. Spartacus, forced to become a gladiator, is brought into the scene and in blind combat kills his friend for the "pleasure" of the assembly. Filled with remorse and anger Spartacus determines to lead the slaves in revolt. In the ensuing combat Crassus is captured and forced to duel with Spartacus who defeats him and then contemptuously frees him. Enraged Crassus determines to defeat Spartacus and the slaves, and as the armies gather their forces Eghina spies on Spartacus and then introduces her courtesans into a bacchanal with his soldiers. Spartacus's forces are depleted in the orgy and defeated, he is captured and fights valiantly until he is hoist on the spears of the legionnaires. Crassus slinks away into triumphal obscurity as Eghina is ironically incorporated into the standards of the Roman Legions. Friggia mourns Spartacus' death and in the final ensemble he is held triumphantly aloft in the immortal cause of freedom. This is a ballet that is meant to be viewed many times to savor the way Grigorovich's film reveals the story and fills the action with the "metaphorical meaning of dancing". Vasiliev as Spartacus is everything Denby described, and the pas-de-deux with Bessmertnova as Friggia are filled with tenderness, support, giving, trust, and passion. In contrast Liepa as Crassus and Timofeyeva as Eghina bring to their pas-de-deux arrogance,languorous sensuality, and the lust for power, while the company as a whole brings to the climaxes of the performance "the power of radiance ballet can achieve", and also the ample strength and weight of movement so characteristic of the Bolshoi. While this film has some of the technical limitations of VHS recording and Kultur filming the performance easily outweighs them and belongs in every ballet lover's collection.
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