Paper abstract:

In 1930s Soviet ballet there was a shift due to the demands of Socialist Realism to base ballets on literature, in a genre termed drama-ballet (drambalet). The trend began with ballet librettos based on classic Russian works from the nineteenth century and then, with an eye on the international stage, began adapting classics from the world literary canon. Simultaneously, while Moscow shifted its sights to the global stage with successes such as Romeo and Juliet, ballet companies of the Soviet republics followed a similar trend of adapting literary works from their own language and cultures to reach regional audiences.

Examining this trend, I propose to focus on the Georgian dancer and choreographer Vakhtang Chabukiani and three of his ballets: the first Georgian national ballet, Heart of the Mountain (Mzechabuki, Serdtse gor, 1938), Gorda (1949), and Othello (1957). I argue that Chabukiani’s ballets, noted for their blending of classical ballet and traditional Georgian folk dancing, follow a similar trajectory of the main ballet companies within the Soviet Union, the Kirov in Leningrad and the Bolshoi in Moscow, in priming audiences for ballets through the use of literature. In the 1930s many of the ballet companies of the Soviet republics were creating national ballets, utilizing musical folk motifs, folk dance, and national literature. However, due to Chabukiani’s success both as a dancer at the Kirov and as the choreographer of the production of Heart of the Mountain in Leningrad, Chabukiani at the time was the only native of his republic to be given the authority to make these creative decisions. Other republics followed the model of a Russian artistic director from Moscow or Leningrad creating a republic’s national ballet. I will examine how Georgian identity is represented and identified through these three ballets, and moreover, the international reception of Chabukiani and his works.