Marco-Bomba on the «Island of dances»

Abstract

    The article is devoted to the music of the ballet Marco-Bomba, which in 1936 was staged by A. V. Shatin at the theater Island of Dances (this theater was created on the basis of the school of stage dance, which existed at that time at the Gorky Central Park). This ballet is an interesting example of a performance in which a somewhat expanded (compared to the ballet of the 19th century) libretto and music specially written for the Island of Dance were combined. The score of Marco-Bomba belonged to S. A. Khalatov, who created the music by combining the traditions of the ballet of the 19th century and elements close to the viewer of the first half of the 20th century. The composer used the leitmotifs characterizing the characters, resorted to numerous quotations (both from the author’s and folk music), included choruses and solo vocal numbers in the score. Marko-Bomba by S. A. Khalatov is an example of an adaptation of a ballet of the 19th century in the 20th century.