From the history of the ballet "Boomerang"

What was so revolutionary about this production? How did the troupe overcome censorship? We'll tell you now! In the meantime, we recommend stocking up on tickets to the Sheremetev Palace for the exhibition "Eifman Ballet Theater. Only Love".

The famous rock ballet is based on the motifs of Bertolt Brecht's "The Threepenny Opera" - a play that enjoyed sensational success in Germany in the 1920s. The ballet stirred the minds of the audience no less than its literary source.

As Boris Eifman himself said, this ballet speaks about the problems of human existence in today's world, about the meaning of life, about the sometimes tragic reassessment of values. According to him, in creating such a complex performance, the team tried to use the achievements of today's ballet theater, but through their own perception.

It seemed that the choreographer had accomplished the impossible and composed a ballet that the artistic council would never accept. The production used rock music by British guitarist John McLaughlin - an unthinkable choice at that time. The dancers wore flashy, provocative costumes. The main character's clothes provoked dangerous associations.

"Boomerang" challenged society with its set of dance means of expression. The performance intertwined movements of classical, jazz, modern and even sports: in order to realistically show the clash between gangs, the dancers trained with a karate trainer.

The revolutionary ballet could not break through the censorship for a long time. As Valery Mikhailovsky, the performer of the main role, recalls, the most dramatic story was about the artistic council of "Boomerang". It was not allowed to pass three or maybe even more times. They did not allow it, they bombed it, they said that it was sex, that it was debauchery. They said a lot, without understanding either the meaning or the essence. Only by changing the ending did they manage to break through the thick wall of censorship.

The first performances created a real sensation and attracted attention to the troupe. As Olga Kalmykova admits, it was this performance that determined her fate. The performance eventually became one of the troupe's calling cards and was present in the repertoire until 1991, winning the hearts of viewers in many countries.

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