"summer ballet seasons" on the Ramta stage. Theater `Russian Ballet Seasons` Theater Russian Ballet Seasons

In this post I would like to talk directly about the “Russian Seasons of Diaghilev” themselves and their influence on world art, especially on the ballet art of the 20th century.

So, what were the Seasons - these were touring performances of Russian opera and ballet artists abroad. It all started in Paris in 1908, then in 1912 it continued in Great Britain (London), and from 1915 in other countries.

To be absolutely precise, the “Russian Seasons” began back in 1906 the year when Diaghilev brought an exhibition of Russian artists to Paris. It was an incredible success, so it was decided to expand its horizons and already 1907 year, a series of concerts of Russian music (“Historical Russian Concerts”) took place at the Grand Opera. Actually, the “Russian Seasons” began in 1908 in Paris, when Modest Mussorgsky's opera "Boris Godunov", the opera "Ruslan and Lyudmila" by Mikhail Glinka, "Prince Igor" by Alexander Borodin and others were performed here. Paris first heard the singing of Chaliapin and the music of Rimsky-Korsakov, Rachmaninov and Glazunov. From this moment begins the story of Diaghilev’s famous “Russian Seasons,” which instantly made everything Russian the most fashionable and relevant in the world.

Fyodor Chaliapin in the opera "Prince Igor"

IN 1909 The first joint opera and ballet performances took place in Paris. In subsequent years, he began to export mainly ballet, which enjoyed enormous success. From this moment the period of ballet seasons begins. Nevertheless, the opera still existed: in 1913 year the opera “Khovanshchina” was staged (Chaliapin performed the role of Dosifey), in 1914 The world premiere of Stravinsky's opera The Nightingale took place at the Grand Opera.

The fantastic success of the first seasons, the program of which included the ballets “The Firebird”, “Petrushka” and “The Rite of Spring”, made the European public understand that advanced Russian art is a full-fledged and most interesting part of the world artistic process.

Vaslav Nijinsky in the ballet "Petrushka"

Vaslav Nijinsky in the ballet "Scheherazade", 1910

Premiere performance program of the ballet "Scheherazade"

Success of the "Russian Season" in Paris 1909 the year was truly triumphant. There is a fashion for everything Russian. Performances on the stage of the Chatelet Theater not only became an event in the intellectual life of Paris, but also had a powerful influence on Western culture in its most diverse manifestations. The French appreciated the novelty of theatrical scenery painting and choreography, but the highest praise was given to the performing skills of the leading dancers of the Mariinsky and Bolshoi theaters: Anna Pavlova, Tamara Karsavina, Lyudmila Shollar, Vera Fokina, Vaslav Nijinsky, Mikhail Fokin, Adolf Bolm, Mikhail Mordkini and Grigory Rosaya.

Anna Pavlova and Vaslav Nijinsky in the ballet "Armida's Pavilion", 1909

Anna Pavlova

French writer Jean Cocteau spoke of the performances as follows:"The red curtain rises over the festivals that turned France upside down and that carried the crowds into ecstasy following the chariot of Dionysus".

IN 1910 year, Diaghilev invited Igor Stravinsky to write music for a ballet to be staged as part of the Russian Seasons, and the next three years became perhaps the most “stellar” period in the life of both the first and the second. During this time, Stravinsky wrote three great ballets, each of which turned Diaghilev's Russian Seasons into a global cultural sensation - The Firebird (1910), Petrushka (1911) and The Rite of Spring (1911-1913).

Interesting fact about the ballet “Firebird”: “The Firebird” is the first ballet on a Russian theme in the enterprise of Sergei Diaghilev. The director (choreographer) and performer of the main male part is Mikhail Fokin. Realizing that Paris needed to be “treated” to something natively Russian, he announced this name back in the poster for the first season in 1909. But they didn’t have time to stage the ballet. The clever impresario began juggling it - although the poster stated “The Firebird,” the pas de deux of Princess Florine and the Blue Bird from the ballet “The Sleeping Beauty,” unknown to Parisians, was performed on stage, moreover, in new oriental costumes by Leon Bakst. Only a year later, the real “Firebird” appeared in Paris - the first ballet score by Igor Stravinsky, which glorified the name of the then aspiring composer outside Russia.

Costume sketch for the ballet "Firebird" by the artistLeona Baksta,1910

Mikhail Fokin in the costume of the Blue Bird, ballet "Sleeping Beauty"

In the same 1910, the repertoire included the already staged ballets “Giselle” and “Carnival” to the music of Schumann, and then “Scheherazade” by Rimsky-Korsakov. Anna Pavlova was supposed to perform the main roles in the ballets “Giselle” and “Firebird”, but for a number of reasons her relationship with Diaghilev deteriorated, and she left the troupe. Pavlova was replaced by Tamara Karsavina.

Tamara Karsavina and Mikhail Fokin in ballet "Firebird"

Tamara Karsavina

Dancers. Ballet by Igor Stravinsky "Sacred spring" on the Champs Elysees. May 29, 1913

Poster for the play "Russian Seasons", sketch by Leon Bakst with Vaslav Nezhinsky

And again a resounding success with the Parisian public! However, this success also had a downside: some artists who became famous thanks to Diaghilev’s seasons left the troupe for foreign theaters. And after Nijinsky was fired from the Mariinsky Theater with a scandal, Diaghilev decided to recruit a permanent troupe. Many dancers of the Imperial Ballet agreed to enter into permanent contracts with him, and those who decided to remain at the Mariinsky Theater - for example, Karsavina and Kshesinskaya - agreed to continue their cooperation. The city in which Diaghilev's company was based, where rehearsals and preparation of future productions took place, was Monte Carlo.

Interesting fact:Monte Carlo occupied a special place in Diaghilev's heart. It is here in 1911 "Russian Ballet" was transformed by him into a permanent theater troupe, here he first showed a number of his most significant productions, and here he invariably spent his winters, starting in 1922. Thanks to the generosity of the ruling house of Grimaldi and the fame of the Casino, which made such generosity possible, Mote Carlo became Diaghilev's creative laboratory in the 1920s. Former ballerinas of the Imperial Theaters, who had already left Russia forever, shared the secrets of their craft with the rising emigration stars invited by Diaghilev. In Monte Carlo, he succumbed for the last time to the temptation of his life's dream - to live, devoting himself entirely to art.

IN 1911 year, 5 new ballets were staged: “The Underwater Kingdom” (from the opera “Sadko”), “Narcissus”, “Peri”, “The Phantom of the Rose”, which is an exquisite pas de deux Karsavina and Nijinsky, and the main novelty of the season - the dramatic ballet "Petrushka" by Stravinsky, where the leading role of the fairground jester who dies in the finale belonged to Nijinsky.

Vaslav Nijinsky as Petrushka

"Sadko", set design by Boris Anisfeld, 1911

But already in 1912 Diaghilev began to gradually free himself from his Russian associates, who brought him world fame. The charismatic leader Diaghilev did not tolerate opposition. A person is important to him as a bearer of a creative idea: having exhausted the idea, Diaghilev ceases to be interested in him. Having exhausted the ideas of Fokine and Benois, he began to generate ideas from European creators and discover new choreographers and dancers. The disagreements in Diaghilev’s team also affected the productions: unfortunately, the 1912 season did not cause much enthusiasm among the Parisian audience.

All the ballets of this season were staged by Mikhail Fokine, except for one - “The Afternoon of a Faun”, at the suggestion of Diaghilev, was staged by his favorite Nijinsky - this performance became the debut in his short career as a choreographer.

ballet "Afternoon of a Faun"

After the failure in Paris, Diaghilev showed his productions (plus ballets from the earlier repertoire) in London, Berlin, Vienna and Budapest, where the public received them more favorably. Then there were tours in South America and again a resounding success! It was during these tours that a conflict arose between Diaghilev and Nijinsky, after which Sergei Pavlovich refused the services of a dancer, but for some time they continued to work together, but then there was a final break.

In the years First World War Diaghilev's ballet troupe went on tour in the United States, since at that time interest in art in Europe subsided. Only charity concerts remained, in which they nevertheless took part.

The Swan Princess's Maids in the ballet "Russian Fairy Tales", 1916

Set design sketches by Natalia Goncharova for one of Diaghilev’s most outstanding productions – “Les Noces”, 1917

The full return of the Diaghilev seasons to their former positions began in 1917 year. Returning to Europe, Diaghilev formed a new troupe. The young Bolshoi Theater corps dancer Leonid Massine took a strong place as a choreographer in the troupe. The performances he staged were full of innovative spirit and were well received in Paris and Rome.

In the same year, Diaghilev invited Pablo Picasso to design the ballet “Parade”; a few years later, the same Picasso designed the scenery and costumes for the ballet “The Tricorne”. A new, final period of the Russian ballet seasons begins, when French artists and composers begin to prevail in Diaghilev’s team.

The ballet “Parade”, staged in 1917 by Leonid Massine to the sarcastic music of Erik Satie and in the cubist design of Picasso, marked a new trend of the Diaghilev troupe - the desire to demythologize all ballet components: plot, location, acting masks (“Parade” depicted the life of a traveling circus ) and in place of myth he put another phenomenon - fashion. Parisian household fashion, pan-European style fashion (in particular, cubism), global fashion for free (to a greater or lesser extent) dance.

Olga Khokhlova, Picasso, Maria Shabelskaya and Jean Cocteau in Paris on the occasion of the premiere of the ballet "Parade", May 18, 1917

Sketch by Pablo Picasso for the ballet Parade, 1917

Set and costume design for the ballet "The Tricorne", Pablo Picasso, 1919

Lyubov Chernyshova as Cleopatra, 1918

The aggravated political situation in Europe made it impossible to come to France, so the Paris season 1918 there wasn’t a year, but there were tours in Portugal, South America, and then for almost a whole year in the UK. The years 1918-1919 became difficult for Diaghilev: the inability to stage ballets in Paris, a creative crisis, the departure of one of the leading dancers, Felix Fernandez, from the troupe due to illness (he went crazy). But at the end 1919 The seasons in Paris were resumed. The scenery for one of this year's ballets, Stravinsky's The Nightingale, was created by the artist Henri Matisse to replace lost works by Benois.

The period 1920-1922 can be called a time of crisis, stagnation. Choreographer Leonid Myasin quarreled with Sergei Pavlovich and left the troupe. For this reason, only 2 new productions were released during that period - the ballet “The Jester” to the music of Sergei Prokofiev and the dance suite “Quadro Flamenco” with decorations by Picasso.

In the autumn of 1921, Diaghilev brought The Sleeping Beauty to London, inviting ballerina Olga Spesivtseva to perform the leading role. This production was well received by the public, but at the same time it put Diaghilev in a catastrophic situation: the profit from the fees did not offset the expenses. Diaghilev found himself on the verge of ruin, the artists began to flee, and his enterprise almost ceased to exist. Fortunately, an old friend of Diaghilev’s, Misya Sert, came to the rescue. She was very friendly with Coco Chanel, who was so inspired by Diaghilev’s work that she donated significant funds to restore his troupe. By that time, Bronislava Nijinska, the younger sister of Vaslav Nijinsky, had emigrated from Kyiv, whom Diaghilev decided to make the new choreographer of his seasons. Nijinska suggested updating the troupe with her Kyiv students. During the same period, Diaghilev met Boris Kokhno, who became his personal secretary and author of the libretto for new ballets.

In the spring of 1923, Bronislava Nijinska choreographed one of Diaghilev's most outstanding productions, Stravinsky's Les Noces.

Set design sketches by Natalia Goncharova for the ballet “Le Noces”

IN 1923 year, the troupe was immediately replenished with 5 new dancers, including Diaghilev’s future favorite - 18-year-old Serge Lifar. As Diaghilev said about him: “Lifar is waiting for his own right hour to become a new legend, the most beautiful of ballet legends”.

In subsequent years, the years of the revival of the Russian Ballet troupe, Picasso and Coco Chanel collaborated with Diaghilev, the troupe toured a lot, presented not only ballet, but also opera productions, symphony and chamber concerts. George Balanchine became the choreographer during this period. He emigrated from Russia after graduating from the theater school at the Mariinsky Theater and, collaborating with Diaghilev, greatly enriched the choreography of his seasons.

George Balanchine (aka Georgy Balanchivadze)

Despite his apparent prosperity, Diaghilev again encountered financial difficulties. As a result, Diaghilev took out a loan and, having overcome depression, began a new season in Paris and London. This is how I spoke about the season 1926 Serge Lifar: " I will not remember a more brilliant, more triumphant London season in all the years of my life in Diaghilev’s Russian Ballet: we were literally carried in our arms, showered with flowers and gifts, all our ballets - both new and old - were greeted with enthusiasm and gratitude and caused an endless storm of applause ".

Soon Diaghilev began to lose interest in ballet, devoting more and more time and energy to a new hobby - collecting books.

IN 1928 year, the most successful production of the season was Balanchine’s production of “Apollo Musagete” to Stravinsky’s music, a masterpiece in Diaghilev’s opinion, with sets by Beauchamp and costumes by Coco Chanel. The audience gave Lifar, the soloist in this ballet, a long ovation, and Diaghilev himself also highly appreciated his dance. In London, "Apollo Musagete" was shown 11 times - out of 36 productions in the repertoire.

Alexandra Danilova and Serge Lifar in the ballet Apollo Musagete, 1928

1929 The year was the last year of existence of the Diaghilev Russian Ballet. In the spring and early summer the troupe actively toured Europe. Then at the end of July and beginning of August there were short tours in Venice. There, Diaghilev’s health suddenly deteriorated: due to worsening diabetes, he suffered a stroke, from which he died on August 19, 1929.

After Diaghilev's death, his troupe disbanded. Balanchine left for the USA, where he became a reformer of American ballet. Massine, together with Colonel de Basile, founded the Russian Ballet of Monte Carlo troupe, which preserved the repertoire of Diaghilev’s Russian Ballet and largely continued its traditions. Lifar remained in France and headed the ballet troupe of the Grand Opera, making a huge contribution to the development of French ballet.

Possessing a brilliant artistic intuition to anticipate everything new or to discover forgotten art of past eras as new, Diaghilev was able to realize each of his ideas with fantastic persistence. Putting his name and his fortune on the line, captivating his friends, Russian merchants and industrialists with his ideas, he borrowed money and invested it in new projects. For Sergei Diaghilev, there were only two idols that he worshiped all his life - Success and Glory.

An extraordinary personality, owner of a unique gift for discovering talents and surprising the world with novelty, Sergei Diaghilev brought new names of outstanding choreographers to the world of art - Fokine, Massine, Nijinska, Balanchine; dancers and dancers - Nijinsky, Wiltzack, Woitsekhovsky, Dolin, Lifar, Pavlova, Karsavina, Rubinstein, Spesivtseva, Nemchinova, Danilova. He created and united a wonderful troupe of talented corduroy artists.

Many contemporaries, as well as researchers of Diaghilev’s life and work, agree that the main merit of Sergei Pavlovich was the fact that, by organizing his “Russian Seasons,” he actually launched the process of reviving the art of ballet not only in Russia, but throughout world. The ballets created in his enterprise are to this day the pride of the largest ballet stages in the world and are successfully performed in Moscow, St. Petersburg, London, Paris and many other cities.

Description:

A professional ballet troupe whose repertoire is based on classical ballet. The company also offers dance accompaniment for events - weddings, exhibitions, concerts, birthdays, presentations, advertising, fashion shows, filming, etc. A wide professional range of artists allows you to perform a composition both in the classical style (ballet), and in neo-classical, modern style, etc. The repertoire includes short concert numbers (from 2 minutes) to ballet fragments of 15-20 minutes, it is also possible to order a full-length performance (1.40 minutes) or staging a number/program/performance specifically for a specific project, an adapted fairy tale ballet for children (accompanied by a narrator). Own extensive costume room, scenery and professional mobile flooring are also available.

Special Conditions (Rider):

It is discussed directly for each specific order (as it depends on the nature of the selected number/performance).

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“Russian Seasons” by Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev

“And what are you, dear, doing here? – King Alfonso of Spain once asked Sergei Diaghilev during a meeting with the famous entrepreneur of “Russian Seasons”. – You don’t conduct an orchestra or play a musical instrument, you don’t paint scenery or dance. So what are you doing? To which he replied: “You and I are alike, Your Majesty! I don't work. I do nothing. But you can’t do it without me.”

The “Russian Seasons” organized by Diaghilev were not just propaganda of Russian art in Europe, they became an integral part of European culture at the beginning of the twentieth century. and an invaluable contribution to the development of ballet art.

History "Russian Seasons" by Diaghilev and many interesting facts read on our page.

Background of “Russian Seasons”

The combination of legal education and interest in music developed in Sergei Diaghilev brilliant organizational skills and the ability to discern talent even in a novice performer, complemented, in modern terms, by the streak of a manager.

Diaghilev’s close acquaintance with the theater began with the editing of the “Yearbook of the Imperial Theaters” in 1899, when he served at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg. Thanks to the assistance of the artists of the “World of Art” group, to which the official on special assignments S. Diaghilev belonged, he transformed the publication from a meager statistical compilation into a real art magazine.

When, after a year of working as the editor of the Yearbook, Diaghilev was commissioned to organize L. Delibes’ ballet “Sylvia, or the Nymph of Diana,” a scandal arose over the modernist scenery, which did not fit into the conservative atmosphere of the theater of that time. Diaghilev was fired and he returned to painting, organizing exhibitions of paintings by European artists and “World of Art” artists in Russia. A logical continuation of this activity was the landmark art exhibition at the Paris Autumn Salon in 1906. From this event the history of the Seasons began...

Ups and downs…

Inspired by the success of the Autumn Salon, Diaghilev did not want to stop and, having decided to establish a tour of Russian artists in Paris, he first gave preference to music. So, in 1907, Sergei Pavlovich organized “Historical Russian Concerts”, the program of which included 5 symphony concerts of Russian classics, held in the Paris Grand Opera reserved for the “Seasons”. Chaliapin's high bass, the Bolshoi Theater choir, Nikisch's conducting skills and Hoffmann's delightful piano playing captivated the Parisian audience. In addition, a carefully selected repertoire, which includes excerpts from "Ruslana and Lyudmila" Glinka, "Christmas Nights" "Sadko" And "Snow Maidens" Rimsky-Korsakov, " Enchantresses " Tchaikovsky, " Khovanshchiny " and "Boris Godunov" by Mussorgsky, created a real sensation.

In the spring of 1908, Diaghilev again went to win the hearts of Parisians: this time with opera. However "Boris Godunov" The theater was far from full and the proceeds barely covered the troupe's expenses. Something urgently needed to be decided.

Knowing what the public of that time liked, Diaghilev compromised with his own principles. He despised ballet, considering it primitive entertainment for equally primitive minds, but in 1909, an entrepreneur sensitive to the mood of the public brought 5 ballets: “Pavilion of Armida”, “Cleopatra”, “Polovtsian Dances”, “ Sylphide " and "Feast". The amazing success of the productions performed by the promising choreographer M. Fokin confirmed the correctness of Diaghilev’s choice. The best ballet dancers from Moscow and St. Petersburg - V. Nijinsky, A. Pavlova, I. Rubinstein, M. Kshesinskaya, T. Karsavina and others - formed the core of the ballet troupe. Although after a year Pavlova leaves the troupe due to disagreements with the impresario, “Russian Seasons” will become the springboard in her life, after which the ballerina’s fame will only grow. The poster by V. Serov, made for the 1909 tour and containing an image of Pavlova frozen in a graceful pose, became a prophecy of fame for the artist.

It was ballet that brought “Russian Seasons” great fame, and it was Diaghilev’s troupe that influenced the history of the development of this art form in all the countries where they had to tour. Since 1911, the “Russian Seasons” contained exclusively ballet numbers, the troupe began to perform in a relatively stable composition and received the name “Diaghilev’s Russian Ballet”. Now they perform not only at the Paris Seasons, but also go on tour to Monaco (Monte Carlo), England (London), USA, Austria (Vienna), Germany (Berlin, Budapest), Italy (Venice, Rome).

In Diaghilev's ballets, from the very beginning, there was a desire to synthesize music, singing, dance and visual arts into one whole, subordinated to a common concept. It was this feature that was revolutionary for that time, and it was precisely thanks to this feature that the performances of Diaghilev’s Russian Ballet caused either storms of applause or storms of criticism. In search of new forms, experimenting with plastic arts, decorations, and musical design, Diaghilev’s enterprise was significantly ahead of its time.

As evidence of this, one can cite the fact that the premiere of the “The Rite of Spring” – a ballet based on Russian pagan rituals , - was drowned out by whistles and screams from the indignant audience, and in 1929 in London (Covent Garden Theatre) its production was crowned with enthusiastic exclamations and frantic applause.

Continuous experiments gave rise to such unique performances as “Games” (a fantasy on the theme of tennis), “The Blue God” (a fantasy on the theme of Indian motifs), the 8-minute ballet “The Afternoon of a Faun”, called by the public the most obscene phenomenon in the theater because openly erotic plasticity of the luminary, the “choreographic symphony” “Daphnis and Chloe” to the music of M. Ravel and others.

Diaghilev - reformer and modernist of ballet art

When Diaghilev's troupe came to the ballet, there was complete rigidity in academic conservatism. The great impresario had to destroy the existing canons, and on the European stage this, of course, was much easier to do than in Russia. Diaghilev did not take a direct part in the productions, but he was the organizing force thanks to which his troupe achieved world recognition.

Diaghilev intuitively understood that the main thing in ballet is a talented choreographer. He knew how to see the organizational gift even in a novice choreographer, as was the case with M. Fokin, and knew how to cultivate the qualities necessary to work with his troupe, as happened with 19-year-old V. Myasin. He also invited Serge Lifar to his team, first as a performer, and later made him a new star in the galaxy of choreographers of the Russian Ballet troupe.

The productions of “Russian Seasons” were powerfully influenced by the work of modernist artists. The sets and costumes were created by artists from the association “World of Arts”, which tends to symbolism: A. Benois, N. Roerich, B. Anisfeld, L. Bakst, S. Sudeikin, M. Dobuzhinsky, as well as avant-garde artists N. Goncharova, M. Larionov, Spanish monumentalist H.-M. Sert, Italian futurist D. Balla, cubists P. Picasso, H. Gris and J. Braque, French impressionist A. Matisse, neoclassicist L. Survage. Such famous personalities as C. Chanel, A. Laurent and others were also involved as decorators and costume designers in Diaghilev’s productions. As you know, form always influences content, as the audience of “Russian Seasons” observed. Not only the scenery, costumes and curtains amazed with their artistic expressiveness, shockingness, and play of lines: the entire production of this or that ballet was permeated with modernist trends, the plastic gradually displaced the plot from the center of the viewer’s attention.

Diaghilev used a wide variety of music for the productions of the Russian Ballet: from world classics F. Chopin , R. Schumann, K. Weber , D. Scarlatti, R. Strauss and Russian classics N. Rimsky-Korsakov , A. Glazunov, M. Mussorgsky, P. Tchaikovsky , M. Glinka to the Impressionists C. Debussy and M. Ravel, as well as contemporary Russian composers I. Stravinsky and N. Tcherepnina.

European ballet, which was experiencing a crisis of its development at the beginning of the 20th century, was gifted with the young talents of Diaghilev’s Russian Ballet, refreshed by its new performance techniques, new plasticity, an unsurpassed synthesis of various types of arts, from which something completely different from the usual classical ballet was born.

Interesting Facts

• Although “Historical Russian Concerts” are considered to be part of the “Russian Seasons”, only the 1908 poster contained this name for the first time. There were 20 more such seasons ahead, but the 1908 tour was the last attempt of the entrepreneur to do without ballet.
• To stage “The Afternoon of a Faun,” which lasted only 8 minutes, Nijinsky needed 90 rehearsals.
• An avid collector, Diaghilev dreamed of getting A. Pushkin’s unpublished letters to Natalya Goncharova. When they were finally handed over to him in June 1929, the entrepreneur was late for the train - he had a tour to Venice coming up. Diaghilev put the letters in the safe to read them after arriving home... but he was never destined to return from Venice. The land of Italy accepted the great impresario forever.
• While performing the solo part in the ballet “Orientalia” in 1910, V. Nijinsky made his famous jump, which made him famous as a “flying dancer”.
• Before each performance of the ballet “The Phantom of the Rose,” the costume designer re-sewed rose petals to Nijinsky’s costume, because after each performance he tore them off and gave them away to the dancer’s many fans.

Films about S. Diaghilev and his activities

• In the film “The Red Shoes” (1948), Diaghilev’s personality received an artistic reinterpretation in a character named Lermontov. In the role of Diaghilev - A. Walbrook.
• In the feature films “Nijinsky” (1980) and “Anna Pavlova” (1983), attention was also paid to Diaghilev’s personality. His roles are played by A. Bates and V. Larionov, respectively.

• Documentary film by A. Vasiliev “The Fate of an Ascetic. Sergei Diaghilev" (2002) tells the story of the founder of the World of Arts magazine and the entrepreneur of Russian Seasons.
• A very interesting and exciting film “Geniuses and villains of a bygone era. Sergei Diaghilev" (2007) talks about little-known facts related to Diaghilev and his production activities.
• In 2008, the “Ballet and Power” cycle dedicated films to Vaslav Nijinsky and Sergei Diaghilev, however, their controversial relationship and the talent of the young dancer became the focus of many films that deserve a separate review.
• The film “Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky” (2009) touches on the relationship between the entrepreneur and the composer who wrote the music for many of his performances.
• The documentary film “Paris of Sergei Diaghilev” (2010) is the most fundamental film work about the life and work of a talented entrepreneur.
• The first of the films in the series “The Historical Travels of Ivan Tolstoy” is dedicated to Sergei Diaghilev – “A Precious Bunch of Letters” (2011).
• One program from the series “The Chosen Ones” is also dedicated to Sergei Diaghilev. Russia. Century XX" (2012).
• The documentary film “Ballet in the USSR” (2013) (Series of programs “Made in the USSR”) partially touches on the theme of “Russian Seasons”.
• The TV episode “Absolute Pitch” dated 02/13/2013 tells about Diaghilev and the art of the 20th century, and from 01/14/2015 – about the first productions of the ballet “The Afternoon of a Faun”.
• As part of the series of programs “Riddles of Terpsichore”, two films were released - “Sergei Diaghilev - a man of art” (2014) and “Sergei Diaghilev - from painting to ballet” (2015).

He can rightfully be considered the founder of domestic show business. He managed to play on the shocking nature of his troupe’s performances and purposefully imbued the performances with various modernist techniques at all levels of composition: scenery, costumes, music, plastics - everything bore the imprint of the most fashionable trends of the era. In Russian ballet of the early twentieth century, as in other art movements of that time, the dynamics from the active search of the Silver Age for new means of expression to the hysterical intonations and broken lines of avant-garde art were clearly visible. " Russian seasons“raised European art to a qualitatively new level of development and to this day continue to inspire creative bohemians to search for new ideas.

Video: Watch a film about Diaghilev’s “Russian Seasons”