Valentina Ganibalova
The life of ballet dancers is incredibly difficult. Both morally and physically.
Even to penetrate this profession is not easy. Once, even the name of the applicant could put an end to the profession. This happened.
The ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater Valentina Ganibalova began to dance in Central Asia. And she recalls how she was refused admission to the choreography school from the fact that the name is Russian, and there they are preparing national cadres.
In March, Valentina Ganibalova celebrated her jubilee, and on the eve of the International Dance Day she allowed the correspondent of the “Culture” TV channel to spend one day with her.
11th entrance of the Mariinsky Theater, service entrance. It’s like 50 years ago, when Valentina Ganibalova took armfuls of roses after the execution of the main parties. On familiar steps – in the blue drawing room before the director’s box. Here and today – a meeting place.
“Our, St. Petersburg,
– so Valentina Ganibalova did not always speak.
She was born in Tashkent, and she started dancing quite late, at 10 years old. She entered the Uzbek Choreography School, and then, after the earthquake in 1966, she came to Leningrad.
During the lessons of the “improvement class” she was noticed by the famous ballerina and teacher Natalia Dudinskaya, and the fairy tale about Cinderella became a reality. After the show in the ballet Paquita, Valentina Ganibalova was accepted into the troupe of the then Kirov Theater.
She was the first performer of four new ballet parties in the Kirov theater. Danced Odette and Odile, Gisselle, Ophelia. Such a bright and successful ballerina was noticed and invited to the cinema.
Valentina Ganibalova with Yevgeny Shcherbakov and Elizabeth Taylor on the set of J. Cukor’s film “The Blue Bird”, 1975
In the film “Anna Pavlova” she dances for the main character, and in the Soviet-American musical “Blue Bird” – plays the role of Water on one set with Elizabeth Taylor.
A talented ballerina at the All-Union competition of ballet dancers was noticed by the famous restorer Savva Yamschikov. I could not resist the beauty of the fragile ballerina and made her an offer.
Now in her apartment, as in the artist’s studio, all the walls are hung with paintings. Shelves are bursting with books.
And the main business of life was the annual arts festival in the Pushkin Mountains “Joy of Discovery”, which she devoted to Savva Yamshchikov.
At the Mariinsky Theater this evening, Valentina Ganibalova congratulates one of the partners on the stage, Rejepmyrat Abdyev, on the anniversary. As a gift – a picture.
They danced the main parts in the ballet The Legend of Love, which is also given at the Mariinsky Theater this evening. Now in these corridors she is a guest. The current troupe hardly knows. Before the performance in the program, he looks for familiar surnames.
“Christina Shapran. I liked this girl Shapran at one time. Well, I do not know how it is today. She will or not, we’ll see,
Says the ballerina.
After the final – hurry backstage. On my native scene was not long ago. Such familiar backstage, even the scenery from the ballet are the same. He hurries to support the young ballerina. Ganibalova remembers how this support is needed.
Valentina Ganibalova with her husband Savva Yamschikov, 1974
After an evening of memories – home. There is the same machine at the mirror. After tens of years, her day still begins and ends with ballet positions and plies. The love of dancing has long since evolved into a necessity.
“The body itself asks to make such familiar movements,
She says.
