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GALLERY FOR RUSSIAN ARTS AND DESIGN Bolt 6 December 2014 – 28 February 2015 GRAD: Gallery for Russian Arts and Design presents an exhibition exploring the ballet ‘The Bolt’, one of Dmitri Shostakovich’s musical experiments of the early 1930s, through costume designs and period photographs. Curated by GRAD’s Elena Sudakova and Alexandra Chiriac, the exhibition is organised in collaboration with the St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music. ‘The Bolt’, written in 1931, is an unruly satire full of skulduggery and drunken conspiracy, populated by a host of comical characters. Following its premiere at the Leningrad Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet in 1931, an unfavourable reaction from critics saw ‘The Bolt’ promptly pulled off the programme. Any performance of the ballet was thereafter strictly forbidden, and it was 74 years before it saw the stage again, reconstructed for the Bolshoi Ballet by its director Alexei Ratmansky. GRAD’s exhibition brings the neglected story of this tumultuous production to life through a selection of costume designs and period photographs. The ballet, which is based on a true story, tells of the exploits of Lyonka Gulba (‘Gulba’ in Russian means ‘idler’), an indolent worker who persuades a young man to throw a bolt into the factory machinery, sabotaging the production of his workplace in revenge for his being sacked. In this industrial production, which featured real hammers and machine-inspired choreography, Shostakovich embellished the story with aerobics and acrobatics, with several passages mimicking the swishing and hammering sounds of modern factory machinery. Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Olga Kozelkov Both gouache and watercolour on paper Courtesy GRAD and St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music 3-4a Little Portland Street London W1W 7JB Tel.: +44 (0) 207 637 7274 www.grad-london.com Twitter: @GRAD_london Facebook: GRAD Instagram: grad_london GRAD’s display will feature the witty and grotesque costume designs by Tatiana Bruni bringing to life the characters that populate the ballet: from the Sportsman, the Textile-Worker or the Komsomol Girl, to the Drunkard, the Loafer and the pompous Bureaucrat. Featuring striking geometrical colour blocking, Bruni’s designs have been called ‘the apogee of postrevolutionary Russian experiments in stage design’ and were inspired by the aesthetics of agit-theatre and ROSTA windows or artist-designed propaganda posters. Shostakovich’s exceptional blend of proletarian music genres play through the gallery space, catapulting the viewer to early 1930s Russia and evoking Fedor Lopukhov’s daring choreography. Constructivist values and aesthetics are reflected in all of the elements of the ballet, from the costume designs to the score, choreography to set design. Shostakovich was commissioned by the Moscow Art Theatre to compose the score to a ballet that would serve and support the goals of socialism and communism. Combining circus music, waltzes, marches and tangos together with popular tunes, the composer envisaged the piece to be a celebration of the proletariat. Nonetheless, ‘The Bolt’ was banned by the Soviet authorities amongst suspicions that it was a satirical work. That ‘The Bolt’ was produced in 1931 is significant. Visual art and literature were on the cusp of monumental change in Soviet Russia, after a series of political and artistic revolutions had changed the course of modernist art and modern history. The critical rejection of the ballet can be understood within the context of a progression toward Socialist Realism, and the suppression of the vanguard imagination, accelerated by the 1932 issue of the ‘Decree on the Reconstruction of Literary and Artistic Organisations’, a measure designed to curtail artistic independence. The satirical characters and acid comedy of ‘The Bolt’ stand as a bastion of an experimental spirit, which demonstrated an extraordinary edge and robustness. Notes to Editors About GRAD GRAD is a pioneering institution that brings new insights into Russian art, design and culture to international audiences through exhibitions, publications, live events, collaborations and digital engagement. Our purpose is to share our specialist knowledge in ways that capture the imagination, inspire creativity and spark new ideas. About the St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music Located in the 19th century building of the former Imperial Theatres headquarters, the museums continues to preserve and revive Russian theatrical heritage. In addition, it aims to connect the past and the present by hosting new performances, encouraging creativity and continuing to enlarge the collection with contemporary acquisitions. Its department of paintings, drawings and applied art comprises over 40,000 items and the museum also preserves many items belonging to countless legendary figures, from Shostakovich to RimskyKorsakov, from Fokine to Nijinsky and Pavlova. Bolt is open 6 December 2014 – 28 February 2015. Suggested donation £5. All donations to GRAD directly support the continuation of our exhibitions and events programme. The exhibition opening hours are: Tue-Fri 11am–7pm Sat 11am–5pm For more information on Bolt, please contact: Chloe Kinsman or Florence Ritter E: [email protected] or [email protected] T: +44 20 8969 3959 3-4a Little Portland Street London W1W 7JB Tel.: +44 (0) 207 637 7274 www.grad-london.com Twitter: @GRAD_london Facebook: GRAD Instagram: grad_london Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 The Typist Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Komsomol Member Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Kozelkov’s Girlfriend All are gouache and watercolour on paper Courtesy GRAD and St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music 3-4a Little Portland Street London W1W 7JB Tel.: +44 (0) 207 637 7274 www.grad-london.com Twitter: @GRAD_london Facebook: GRAD Instagram: grad_london Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 The Carter Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Factory Worker Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 The Terrorist Tatiana Bruni, Costume Design for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 The Drunkard All are gouache and watercolour on paper Courtesy GRAD and St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music 3-4a Little Portland Street London W1W 7JB Tel.: +44 (0) 207 637 7274 www.grad-london.com Twitter: @GRAD_london Facebook: GRAD Instagram: grad_london Photographs Taken During Rehearsals for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Courtesy GRAD and St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music 3-4a Little Portland Street London W1W 7JB Tel.: +44 (0) 207 637 7274 www.grad-london.com Twitter: @GRAD_london Facebook: GRAD Instagram: grad_london Photographs Taken During Rehearsals for ‘The Bolt’, 1931 Courtesy GRAD and St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music 3-4a Little Portland Street London W1W 7JB Tel.: +44 (0) 207 637 7274 www.grad-london.com Twitter: @GRAD_london Facebook: GRAD Instagram: grad_london
