Formed at the height of the Cold War, the history of the groundbreaking Marxian socialist-era ice-show troupe, Moscow on Ice, is far from frosty. The first, and only such troupe to be formed while Russia stewed under the autocratic rule of Stalin's successor, Khrushchev, the troupe premiered in 1959.
Under the guidance of its founder, choreographer and chief ballet master at the Bolshoi Ballet, Leonid Lavrovski, the troupe began its days performing traditional Russian folk stories on ice rinks across the Soviet Union.
With the gradual thawing of anti-Western sentiment in the 1980s, the group branched out and began to include snippets of Western fairy tales and well-known routines from Disney movies.
Receiving national acclaim just before the Soviet Union crumbled, the troupe was named "The People's Artist of the USSR" in 1989. By this time the troupe was including pop ballet, comedy and acrobatics in its programs and had sparked interest on the opposite side of the Iron Curtain.
The addition of elaborate costumes and set designs in the early 1990s, meant that Moscow on Ice shows were, while still lacking in some respects, heading in a direction which would put them on par with those of its behemoth US rival, Disney on Ice. Since then the show has undertaken successful tours of Australia, Mexico, the US, Israel and much of Western Europe.
Comprising 50 dancers/skaters ranging from classically trained ballet dancers to those skilled in the less graceful art of ice hockey, shipping Moscow on Ice around the globe is no easy task. Along with its 50 full-time dancers, it employs a backstage crew nearly equal in number and requires three 20-foot containers to store and ship the props, costumes and sets.
Under the expert guidance of artistic director, Igor Shapovalov, the group's Taiwan shows are set to include routines based on well-known Western fairy tales such as Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood as well as the very un-Russian oddity entitled "Cowboy."
In addition to the more Western-styled routines, Moscow on Ice stars will also be performing a smorgasbord of more localized Russian/European routines which include "Russian Winter," "Russian Cube," "The Rhine Wheel" and the show's breathtaking finale, "Russian Legend."
Moscow on Ice will be skating its merry way around the Taipei County Hsinchuang Sports Stadium (新莊體育館) from Jan. 29 until Feb. 5 and then moving to Fengshan Sports Stadium (鳳山體育館) in Kaoshiung. Tickets cost from between NT$400 and NT$1,200. Show times and further information can be found at www.kham.com.tw or by calling tel (07) 740-3466.
RSS