The International Ballet Festival Dance Open has ended in St. Petersburg

The XXV anniversary season of the Dance Open International Ballet Festival has ended in St. Petersburg, demonstrating once again that this city rightfully remains one of the main points on the world dance map. From April 4 to April 17, the stage of the Alexandrinsky Theater was in non-stop mode — styles, schools, countries and generations met here. The festival program consisted of five Russian premieres and one St. Petersburg premiere, a final gala and creative meetings with participants. More than 350 artists from France, Spain, Italy, Hungary, Mexico, China, Cuba, Argentina, Canada and Russia brought their best works to St. Petersburg, and about 7,000 spectators became part of this large-scale conversation without words. The festival was held with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Presidential Foundation for Cultural Initiatives and the Committee for Culture of St. Petersburg.

The Dance Open Festival preserves and strengthens professional and personal contacts, confirming that the language of dance remains universal and unifying. In an environment where global connections are being tested for strength, this is especially valuable.

"This year is special for the festival — the anniversary. And it is fundamentally important for us that we have managed to preserve its main quality — openness. Despite the geopolitical situation, colleagues from all over the world have come to us this season. Today, this is not just participation, but a professional, courageous and truly human step. Culture, and especially dance, is still capable of uniting and creating miracles," said Ekaterina Galanova, founder and artistic director of the festival.

The program of the jubilee season has become a reflection of the state of modern dance. Six premieres in a wide range of genres — from classical ballet to modern choreography, from national dance traditions to synthetic forms in the style of hip-hop, acrobatics and visual theater — allow viewers to see dance in all its diversity. The opening set a high pace: the Hungarian Inverdance company and choreographer Zoltan Fodor brought a performance based on a classic literary plot and turned into a dense, atmospheric stage thriller. It only gets stronger: Pavel Glukhov's "The Wedding" and the Ballet Moscow Theater with its almost physically palpable energy; the French play by Murad Merzuki and his company "The Cage" with reflections on age that are both ironic and touching; the Mexican program, assembled from four completely different topical choreographic statements; the hypnotic "Song of the Wanderer" the Chinese company HUHU Dance; the temperamental Antonio Naharro and his perfect Spanish dance.

On April 17, the festival ended with the Gala of the Stars of the World Ballet, an evening for which soloists of world theaters traditionally come to St. Petersburg. The gala program is built like a panorama of ballet — lively, multigenre and open. Here classical and modern choreography sound on equal terms: academic precision, virtuoso technique and scenic freedom meet with daring plasticity and the search for new forms.

Leading soloists of the Mariinsky Theatre Renata Shakirova, Alexey Orokhovsky, Roman Gudilev and Maxim Izmestyev performed on stage, as well as artists of the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia — Elizaveta Kokoreva, Igor Tsvirko, Alexey Putintsev and Anastasia Stashkevich, as well as dancers of the Leonid Yakobson Ballet Theater. The international line was presented by dancers from Europe and America: Tatiana Melnik and Motomi Kiyota (National Ballet of Hungary), Rakele Burias and Esnel Ramos from the Canadian Ballet, Zoë Lenzi and Felix Berning, as well as Tatiana Ten and Wesley Carvalho from Astana Ballet. A special emphasis is placed on the participation of the Ballet Moscow Theater and the Antonio Naharro troupe, representing modern and national dance in an up—to-date sound.

"Special and sincere thanks to our viewers who have been staying with us for 25 years. Full halls, a warm welcome, lively reactions and attentive stares are the best confirmation that the festival is needed, important and truly in demand," Ekaterina Galanova added.