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Gala Diary
Irek Mukhamedov recorded by Brendan McCarthy | |||||||
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September 18 I’ve been rehearsing Yat Sen Chang, Martin Harvey and Yohei Sasaki in my Argentinian tango ballet, Four Horsemen. It’s a bit chaotic - but we’ve done it, we’re getting there. It's a little bit passionate, I hope! Preparations for the Gala have been a bit chaotic and rushed. But I’ve been talking to Masha, my wife, who is co-ordinating everything. She had a meeting at the Coliseum this morning, and she reassured me that it was all going to plan. We have had tiny problems as usual. No gala has ever been smooth and easy to organise. And it’s the same with us. But slowly we’re getting things sorted. One big problem is the Russian couple from the Bolshoi. They aren’t coming now. But I still want to keep the number from Spartacus because I need to show something that reminds audiences that I came from the Bolshoi. So it is important to have something from their rep. We will keep Spartacus; but there will be different dancers. I think audiences will be pleased to know that Adam Cooper will be doing Crassus in this piece. We are still thinking about the girl, but Adam has definitely agreed to do Crassus. The part is new to him. I think it will suit him - and he will be incredible in it. I will have to rehearse him in the middle of rehearsing everything else, but this will not be a problem. Luckily we have had time to rehearse the other numbers, such as Four Horsemen, which we were doing this morning. The same is true of the number with the students from Tring. I now need to start rehearsing the material I’ll be dancing myself. We soon start to rehearse Sita, then the William Tuckett piece, then Zorba; there is so much to do. I have had the flu in the middle of all this. I’m afraid my body responds to draughts more quickly than when I was 20. On the train I felt a draught, and at the same moment realised that I had a temperature - strange! But I’m a lot better now. September 22 Today Irek has been rehearsing Dharshan Singh Bullar’s Sita with Mara Galeazzi of the Royal Ballet, and he has also been fine-tuning his tango ballet Four Horsemen. During the morning he worked with Daria Klimentova, principal with English National Ballet, on the pas-de-deux from Four Horsemen. They then did a first run-through of the full piece with the rest of the cast. Meanwhile the pace of rehearsals for next Sunday’s Gala is increasing. On Tuesday, Irek and Adam Cooper will work on Spartacus. He is very brave. I like dancers who can take a challenge, because I myself can take any challenges. I like to take risks. I know it is not English or even European style choreography. This is practically Soviet Communist style choreography. To take that in your body, it’s easy. But it gives not so much responsibility as pressure, because everybody will compare immediately with the Bolshoi Ballet. Adam and Tamara Rojo will be doing this together. What I said to challenge them was this. They don’t need to copy. They will not be able in any case to copy. They would need to have finished at a different school to be really able to copy what they do. It’s just for fun - to really see how English dancers are capable of doing something like this. They will anyway do very well. Because Crassus really suits Adam, and Aegina (the courtesan) really suits Tamara. We have already had a rehearsal, and watched the video together. It’s not precisely cleared up, but we’ll rehearse more during the week. Since the last rehearsal we’ve had the usual problems with a gala, and also how the children at Arts Educational School at Tring and ENB School are learning Zorba, in the finale of the Gala. So that's more worries. After Thursday I finished and cleaned up the school choreography. So that's done. So there are small worries, but there are always problems there. There has never been a smooth ride with a gala like this. And in the middle of all of this I’ve had to visit the dentist. I’m not taking antibiotics, so that I can keep my head clear, and eyes clear so that I can see perfectly!” September 25 With just five days to the Gala, Irek and his friends continue to rehearse at Covent Garden. Because the Royal Ballet's rehearsals for Don Quixote have now tied up several studios, Irek and his friends migrate from studio to studio, ending the day in the Clore. Time is short and everyone wants more rehearsal time. Not only is Irek rehearsing his Gala; dancers from Warsaw National Ballet are in town performing an act from his Swan Lake in the Volochkova season at Sadler's Wells. I just wish sometimes agents of dancers would really see beyond their noses. All I can say is that there is a drama, but you will know more on the show. Otherwise the preparations are going fine. The tickets for the Gala are selling well and we will rehearse with the orchestra at the Coliseum on Saturday. We finished rehearsing Four Horsemen on Saturday. I’ve made some changes to the tango with Daria, but now we’re just cleaning it up. It is a bit of an experiment, which may or not develop into a full-length ballet. There will be a couple of impresarios watching in the audience so we’ll see what happens. Altynai Asylmuratova arrives from St Petersburg on Thursday. Altynai is going to kill me! Because I’m not sure of the piece that we’re doing! But I will remember it and we will have a couple of days to rehearse. Before rehearsing the tango with Daria, Mara Galeazzi and I had a session with Dharshan Singh Bullar, the choreographer of Sita. While it’s in my body, we need more time, and there isn’t enough time. Also Mara is busy with the Royal Ballet - but we’ll find time eventually. Next today I’m going to Sadler’s Wells to see my Swan Lake. My Swan Lake! They’re doing the Ballroom scene - but I’m very happy with the Polish dancers.
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