Indian enchantment, haunting ethereal images and a lavish setting make one of the greatest classical ballets, Marius Petipa's ‘La Bayad?re' a very fitting tribute to mark the 30th anniversary of the Bermuda Civic Ballet.

Founded in 1972, the Civic Ballet has established itself as an ideal training ground for local dancers wishing to pursue a life in performing arts. To mark such an auspicious occasion, this mesmerising Elysian work will be performed in the grounds of Government House beneath the stars, under the skilful direction of Coral Waddell.

With just one week to go before opening night, a wealth of effort is going into making ‘La Bayad?repremier danceur at the Maryinsky School and Theatre in St. Petersburg, where he worked for some 60 years. He also inherited the celebrated title, ‘Teacher of the class of Perfection' from the ‘great teacher', Christian Johansson.

Nicholas Legat worked with and produced some of the world's finest dancers, including Anna Pavlova and Nijinsky. Today his accomplishments and influence on dance are practised throughout the world. The Russian Ballet Society in Edinburgh is one such establishment specialising in the Nicholas Legat system of classical ballet training. Founded in 1923, the Society has a completely unbroken link from Nicholas Legat to the present time.

The plot of ‘La Bayad?re' revolves around Prince Solor, who is in love with Nikiya, a re (Indian temple dancer). Solor is offered the hand of a Rajah's daughter, Princess Gamzatti, in marriage, and accepts. Jealous of Prince Solor's affections for the re, Gamzatti sends her a basket containing a poisonous snake. In turn, Nikiya dies of the fatal snakebite. In Solor's dreams of the re, he follows her into the ‘Kingdom of Shades', where he pleads with her for forgiveness.

Bermuda welcomes the immensely talented Ilonja Dierl, principal dancer of the Vienna State Opera, who performed in ‘Giselle' at Government House in 1990. Ilonja will perform the part of Gamzatti.

“It is a really terrific role and an interesting part to play, especially thinking through the emotions of such an intriguing character,” she says.

The two lead roles will be performed by members of the Sacramento Ballet. Kristen Bloom is Nikiya and Jack Hansen is Prince Solor.

‘La Bayad?re' was first performed at the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, on February 4, 1877. Petipa was influenced by the literary Indian classics, in particular by the master of Sanskrit poetry, Kalidasa. Furthermore, Gustav Dor?'s illustrations for Dante's ‘Paradiso' provided strong and thought-provoking inspiration for the work.

Petipa created as many as sixty ballets, including ‘The Sleeping Beauty' and ‘Swan Lake', his familiar ethereal stamp firmly planted over these legendary, timeless, haunting and beautiful classics. However, ‘La Bayad??re' remains his finest and most complex work and is still part of the repertoire of most dance companies today.

The ballet score is composed by Ludwig Minkus, who also wrote music for Petipa's other works, including ‘Don Quixote'. He was also the official composer to the Imperial Russian Ballet, writing music for ‘La Source', ‘Le Papillon', ‘Le Brigands' and many other outstanding works. Most notably, he composed additional music for ‘Giselle'.

It is due to the dedication and hard work of ‘La Bayad?re's artistic director, Patricia Deane Gray MBE, that Bermuda is able to pay host to great artists and ballets of this magnitude. This is fantastic for the Bermuda Civic Ballet, and gives students a chance to learn and to work with top professional stars.

She has also invited Bermudian, Ray Tanva, to join the busy throng of dancers and crew. Mr. Tanva is designing some 60 elaborate costumes, along with a team of women who are helping him to sew them together. He is currently cutting shimmering fabrics in gold and peach, and has the tricky task of creating classical ballet designs blended with Indian saris. The result promises to be something quite spectacular.

Madame Deane Gray founded the Bermuda School of Russian Ballet in the 1950s and was also a fine dancer and instructor, having studied ballet in the UK and throughout Europe, as well as being a soloist with the National Theatre in Yugoslavia. Her experience in the field was invaluable to the students of Bermuda.

“The Civic Ballet is a company strictly for the community - for the people, by the people, of the people. However, it does need the support of the community and patrons in order that Bermuda can sustain this unique, educational and very special experience,” she says.

@EDITRULE:‘La Bayad?