Moscow-based Moiseyev Dance Company
Makes Its Bowl Debut with Traditional Russian Folk Dances

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, and SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, AT 8:30 PM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, AT 7:30 PM

September 17th is a Lexus Passionate Performance;

September 18th generously sponsored by Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts

Media sponsor: 89.3 KPCC

This year's traditional Fireworks Finale spectacular with John Mauceri and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra celebrates the brilliant sights and sounds of Russia on Friday, September 16, and Saturday, September 17, at 8:30 p.m. and Sunday, September 18, at 7:30 p.m. Focusing on the importance of Russian influence in America, the program includes works by native composers (Prokofiev, Shostakovich and Rachmaninoff) and descendents (Alfred Newman), as well as one piece inspired by Russian literature (Nikolai Gogol's Taras Bulba). The evening's highlight is the Hollywood Bowl debut by of Moiseyev Dance Company, still under the direction of 99-year-old Igor Moiseyev, whose choreography embodies the authentic spirit and exuberance of Russian folk dance.

The evening begins with pieces from two of Khachaturian's three ballets: the famous "Sabre Dance" from Gayane and the Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia from Spartacus, followed by Tiomkin's score to the Hitchcock thriller Dial M for Murder, Prokofiev's March from The Love for Three Oranges and his Waltz from Cinderella. The first half of the program continues with Rachmaninoff's Vocalise, a haunting, sinuous melody he arranged for orchestra. The first half also includes Shostakovich's Tahiti Trot, composed in response to a challenge to complete an orchestration of the song "Tea for Two" in under an hour. Shostakovich, who was well-versed in popular music-he began playing piano in silent movie houses at the age of 18-completed the challenge in 40 minutes. Newman's Main Title to the motion picture How the West Was Won closes the first half of the program.

In his many arrangements of traditional Russian folk songs, Igor Moiseyev reflects on different aspects of the Russian national character. The second half of the performance features the Moiseyev Dance Company, with some of their most famous dances: Russian Suite, Adzharian War Dance "Khorumi," Russian Dance "Polyanka," Gypsy Dance, Two Boys in a Fight, and a suite of Moldavian Dances.

The evening ends with a colorful pyrotechnic display marking the final fireworks spectacular of the Hollywood Bowl season. The orchestra performs Waxman's The Ride of the Cossacks from Taras Bulba, a motion picture starring Yul Brynner based on the novel by Nikolai Gogol.

JOHN MAUCERI's accomplishments extend nationally and internationally, not only to the world's greatest opera companies and symphony orchestras, but also to the musical stages of Broadway and Hollywood, before large television and radio audiences, and in recording studios and major publications. Mauceri has received substantial recognition for his work as one of the principal forces behind the movement to preserve two of America's great art forms, the American musical and music for the American cinema. He is equally at home conducting artists ranging from Plácido Domingo (during a live broadcast of the Grammy Awards) to Madonna (with whom he recorded the soundtrack to Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita), from Garth Brooks (an inaugural inductee into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame) to the Smashing Pumpkins (for the 1996 MTV Music Awards). Carol Burnett, Chicago, John Denver, Rodney Gilfry, Jonathan Pryce, Jane Eaglen, Jennifer Larmore, Patrick Stewart, Tito Puente, Charlotte Church, and Trisha Yearwood are among the multitude of artists who have performed with Mauceri and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Mauceri and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra have presented an astonishing number of premieres, and during his tenure, opera and ballet along with the staging of Broadway musicals returned to the Bowl's stage. In addition to his Hollywood Bowl position, Mauceri has served as music director for the Pittsburgh Opera since June 2000. The 2005 Hollywood Bowl season marks Mauceri's 15th season and 300th concert with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, which was created for him by the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1991.

The MOISEYEV DANCE COMPANY was founded in 1937 by Igor Moiseyev, and has been electrifying audiences ever since with their powerful and exuberant Russian folk dances. Traveling by foot and on horseback through Pamir, the Caucasus and the Urals, Moiseyev became convinced that folk dancing needed a new life on stage, a new life which would conform to the laws and requirements of theatre. There was a need for a mobile company, capable to emulate the nature of folklore by theatrical means. The performing art as well as the technical equipment of the company have developed immeasurably over its more than six decades.

One of the largest natural amphitheaters in the world, with a seating capacity of nearly 18,000, the HOLLYWOOD BOWL has been the summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since its official opening in 1922, and in 1991 gave its name to the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, a resident ensemble that has filled a special niche in the musical life of Southern California. The 2004 season introduced audiences to a revitalized Hollywood Bowl, featuring a newly-constructed shell and stage and the addition of four stadium screens enhancing stage views in the venue. To this day, $1 buys a seat at the top of the Bowl for many of the Los Angeles Philharmonic's concerts. While the Bowl is best known for its sizzling summer nights, during the day California's youngest patrons enjoy "SummerSounds: Music for Kids at the Hollywood Bowl," the Southland's most popular summer arts festival for children, now in its 37th season. Attendance figures over the past several decades have soared: in 1980 the Bowl first topped the half-million mark and close to one million admissions have been recorded. In February 2005, the Hollywood Bowl was named Best Major Outdoor Concert Venue at the 16th Annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards; the Bowl's summer music festival has become as much a part of a Southern California summer as beaches and barbecues, the Dodgers, and Disneyland.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2005 at 8:30 PM

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2005 at 8:30 PM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2005 at 7:30 PM

HOLLYWOOD BOWL, 2301 N. Highland Ave. in Hollywood

Fireworks Finale: The Russians are Coming!!!

HOLLYWOOD BOWL ORCHESTRA

JOHN MAUCERI, conductor

MOISEYEV DANCE COMPANY, special guests

KHACHATURIAN Sabre Dance from Gayane

KHACHATURIAN Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia from Spartacus

TIOMKIN Dial M for Murder

PROKOFIEV March from The Love for Three Oranges

PROKOFIEV Waltz from Cinderella

RACHMANINOFF Vocalise

SHOSTAKOVICH Tahiti Trot

NEWMAN Main Title from How the West Was Won

WAXMAN The Ride of the Cossacks from Taras Bulba (with fireworks)

 

September 17th is a Lexus Passionate Performance

September 18th generously sponsored by Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts

Media sponsor: 89.3 KPCC

Tickets ($4 - $110) are on sale now at the Hollywood Bowl Box Office, by calling Ticketmaster at 213.480.3232, at all Ticketmaster outlets (Robinsons May, Tower Records, and Ritmo Latino locations), or online at HollywoodBowl.com. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for a 20% discount, subject to availability; call 323.850.2050 for further details.
For general information or to request a brochure, call 323.850.2000.

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