What is the Bolshoi Ballet?
Q: What is the Bolshoi Ballet?
A: The Bolshoi Ballet is a ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. It was founded in 1776 and is one of the oldest ballet companies in the world.
Q: When did it become renowned?
A: The Bolshoi Ballet achieved worldwide acclaim in the early 20th century when Moscow became the capital of Soviet Russia.
Q: How did it begin?
A: The origin of the Bolshoi Ballet can be traced back to 1773 when a dance school was created for a Moscow orphanage. In 1776, dancers from this school were employed by Prince Pyotr Urusov and Michael Maddox to form part of their new theatre company which performed at privately owned venues before acquiring the Petrovsky Theatre, later rebuilt as today's Bolshoi Theatre.
Q: Who was responsible for its development?
A: Alexander Gorsky became Ballet Master in 1900 and he began to develop its own unique identity by staging many famous ballets and competing with other companies such as Imperial Russian Ballet of St Petersburg.
Q: What are some examples of ballets produced by the company?
A: Some examples include Don Quixote (1900), Coppélia (1901), Swan Lake (1901), La fille mal gardée (1903), Giselle (1911), Le Corsaire (1912) and La Bayadère (1917).
Q: Is there any other notable ballet company from Russia?
A: Yes, besides the Bolshoi, another notable ballet company from Russia is Kirov Ballet which is recognised as one of foremost ballet companies in Russia.
