Today we remember a legendary artist – an amazing dancer, tutor, Honored Artist of RSFSR Vladimir Ryabov would have turned 70 on 25th September.
Vladimir Ryabov used to tell his ballet uprise was absolutely unexpected. The future soloist of the Novosibirsk theatre was born and raised in one of those small towns in Novosibirsk region. The artist would recall how his elder brother saw an ad in a newspaper and proposed him to enroll in the choreographic school: “Let’s go, at least we’ll see the city”. The commission told him to come the next year. In 1966 after graduating from college Vladimir was invited to the ballet company of the Novosibirsk theatre.
Vladimir Ryabov confessed that during his first years at the theatre he didn’t even think of playing leading roles: “On the stage I used to feel that I lack the guts, the artistic talent and technical skills, though I danced clean.” He was always very self-rigorous.
In 1971 Vladimir was called to perform the leading part in “The Fountain of Bakhchisarai” ballet. Since that moment the dancer has performed a lot of leading roles in classic and contemporary ballets: Romeo and Paris («Romeo and Juliet»), Colas («La Fille mal gardée »), Prince («Cinderella»), James («La Sylphide »), Frantz («Coppelia»), Siegfried («The Swan Lake»), Albrecht («Giselle»), Désiré («The Sleeping Beauty»), the Hooligan («Leningrad Symphony»), Antony («Antony and Cleopatra »), Ivan («The Little Humpbacked Horse »), Adam («Creation of the World»), Macbeth («Macbeth »), Igor («Yaroslavna», first performer) and many other.
At first, Vladimir Ryabov was considered a classic performer of lyric plane. But then, in 1976 a tragic-heroic aspect of his talent unlocked while preparing Spartacus of Yury Grigorovich’s ballet of the same name. Vladimir managed to create his own image of Spartacus, different from all others: « I impersonated him not like a madman or a hero. Under the given circumstances his only choice was to make great deeds. For me he’s not an icon, he’s just a regular man with his emotions and feelings”. His perfprmance of Spartacus was “very mature and skilled”. A young, pure person with standard appearance at first sight, he displayed such a strong spirit. As would colleagues and spectators say, Vladimir Ryabov was very explicit in his streak of high-skilled emotional monologues. These lyric confessions precede important decisions and courageous deeds.
Vladimir Ryabov toured a lot with the Novosibirsk ballet company around the country and abroad; he performed at the best venues, played many leading roles at the Bolshoi theatre, in France, Hungary, Australia, New Zealand, Bulgary, Italy and Cuba.
“We had a lot of cooperative work with Vladimir Nikolaevich. I managed to see him work as a dancer, and I must say he danced very thoughtful and literate – he was a very reflecting artist. And he tried to pass these qualities to his apprentices. We started together, only I started dancing and he started teaching – told one of Vladimir Ryabov’s students, ballet tutor of NOVAT, Honored Artist of Russia Vladimir Grigoriev. – I prepared a lot of my parts under his guidance, including Spartacus of Grigorovich’s ballet, and Vladimir Nikolaevich helped me a lot, since he prepared the premiere of “Spartacus” at NOVAT with Grigorovich himself. I remember Vladimir Ryabov as demanding, competent and strict tutor (our profession requires it), but he was only strict when it was necessary».
Vladimir Nikolaevich started teaching early. While still dancing as a soloist with the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet theatre he has been already teaching classic dance at the Novosibirsk choreographic school since 1968, then from 1994 to 2003 he has been working as Artistic Director of the school. At the age of 28 Vladimir Nikolaevich started working as tutor-ballet master at the theatre, paying a lot of attention to the young students. He also worked as a tutor in Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The list of his students includes principal ballet dancers, winners of prestigious Russian and international competitions.
With the memory of great artists of the past we create new performances. We invite you to see a modern version of “Spartacus” with Georgy Kovtun’s choreography on 12th and 13th October at 19:00 on the main stage of NOVAT. This is an occasion not to miss!
