“Spartak” in St. Petersburg is well received only if it is not a football team, but a ballet team. Or, for example, an ice program with ballet music – figure skaters take this classic quite often.
With the free program “Spartak”, Pyotr Gumennik completed his first senior Olympic season, placed fifth in the Russian Championship, and in the Channel One Cup it was with this production that he attempted for the first time to collect four quadruples in competition.
Two years later, viewers saw “Spartacus” again in its interpretation, but in the show version. Aram Khachaturian’s music was performed at Ilya Averbukh’s show in St. Petersburg, and artistic lights, fire and a metal chain were added to the choreography.
Choreographer Nikolai Moroshkin spoke about the return of the show: he organized it in 2021 and also came up with the idea that “Spartak” could return and be reworked:
“I suggested it in passing, I remembered Peter had that program. When we rode him, we were a little ahead, because only now he has matured and can show everything fully. There was also a request from Peter’s fans: they wanted to see Spartak again. “We want to show parts of our culture on the ice, it was a good idea, Ilya Averbukh approved it and we are happy to implement it.”
The chain-shaped accessory also appeared at the suggestion of the choreographer: “I suggested the chain, we were inspired by Sergei Polunin and his interpretation of Spartacus, there was a part with chains and we decided to make our own version. . Pedro found him in a square and brought him. “With these tools, creative impulses are enhanced.”
Sergei Polunin plays the role in the ballet “Spartacus”
Photo: frame from the video.
The chain Gumennik traveled with is not a mannequin, so it took some time to adapt: “It is a very heavy chain. I was the first to start practicing with it and a couple of times I choked myself a little. “When they tried to unwind and rewind it, it somehow got pushed a couple of times and traces were left.”
With the new attribute new functions were added, for example, a wheel without hands and jumping with a chain in your hands. “Overall it was great. He knows how to group correctly, he just needs a little more concentration. Okay, I think if we expand the routine we will add a couple more jumps,” Moroshkin said. Getting rid of the chain mid-program was born from the famous tie (or scarf) trick, which the skater remembered during training.
Piotr Gumennik works on a program during training
Until now, the updated “Spartak” could only be seen in St. Petersburg, and on the “Champions on Ice” tour by Eteri Tutberidze they chose two more programs: “The Picture of Dorian Gray” and “The Russian Avant-garde.” .
Moroshkin noted that taking such an unusual idea for the “Russian Challenge” was not scary, and he and Peter were not afraid that they would not be understood. “Personally, I and, as far as I know, Peter too, we don’t think about whether they will understand us or not, we try very hard to get our message across. We don’t want to convey something completely simple. Knowing the whole of Peter, his thoughts, his mind, we do not want to fall into offering the viewer a simple image. We found an answer, we found our audience, we attracted new people from the field of art,” said the choreographer.
There is still no talk of competitive programs for next season, we have to breathe after last season. “I don’t want to think about it yet, I want to give it a break. The skating test isn’t coming soon, we won’t force it and we haven’t talked to Peter about it yet. He is now on tour, we will discuss it later, when he has rested,” noted the choreographer.
How was Averbukh’s show in St. Petersburg?
“We can’t dance today.” Averbukh still performed the show in St. Petersburg, but changed the program.
