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Photo, Print, Drawing First among Equals. Vladimir Vasiliev.

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About this Item

Title

  • First among Equals. Vladimir Vasiliev.

Summary

  • Leonid Zhdanov (1927-2010) took this photograph of Vladimir Vasiliev (born 1940) in the role of Majnun in 1968 at the Bolshoi Theater during the rehearsals of the ballet Layla and Majnun choreographed by Kasian Goleizovsky (1889-1950). Vasiliev was born in Moscow and graduated from the Moscow Ballet School at the Bolshoi Theater (now known as Moscow State Academy of Choreography) in 1958 in the class of Michael Gabovich. His first main role at the Bolshoi was that of Bacchus in Walpurgis Night. This was followed by the role of Danila in Stone Flower and Ivan in Little Humpbacked Horse, based on the Russian fairy tales. By the time of the premiere of Layla and Majnun at the Bolshoi, Vasiliev, despite being only 24, was one of the most admired dancers in the company. Once asked about Vasiliev, Goleizovsky replied: "I saw Tikhomirov, who was a teacher of all our great dancers. I saw wonderful Sergei Legat. I saw Mordkin, an unusually beautiful person, well built, with a wild temperament. I saw Nijinsky. I was familiar with his technique, and his technique was soulful, but I have never seen anyone like Vladimir Vasiliev...." Zhdanov, a Bolshoi dancer and then a professor of choreography for 50 years, was also a professional ballet photographer for most of his career. His pictures are spontaneous and capture on film the movements, moods, and emotions of the unposed dancers. The Reborn Art Foundation in Moscow holds this image and the rest of the Zhdanov archive.

Names

  • Zhdanov, Leonid, 1927-2010 Photographer.

Created / Published

  • [place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], 1968.

Headings

  • -  Russian Federation--Moscow--Moscow
  • -  1968
  • -  Ballet
  • -  Bolshoi Theatre of the USSR
  • -  Dance
  • -  Dance--Study and teaching
  • -  Dancers
  • -  Goleizovsky, Kasian, 1892-1970
  • -  Vasilʹev, Vladimir Viktorovich, born 1940

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: 1 black and white photograph ; 35 millimeter negative.
  • -  Original resource at: The "Reborn Art" Charitable Foundation.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021669126

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

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Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Zhdanov, Leonid, Photographer. First among Equals. Vladimir Vasiliev. Russian Federation Moscow, 1968. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021669126/.

APA citation style:

Zhdanov, L. (1968) First among Equals. Vladimir Vasiliev. Russian Federation Moscow, 1968. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified] [Photograph] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021669126/.

MLA citation style:

Zhdanov, Leonid, Photographer. First among Equals. Vladimir Vasiliev. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified] Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021669126/>.