"Rus" in Milan

It so happened that on the State Vocal Choreographic Ensemble’s "Rus" performance, their artistic leader Nickolay Litvinov celebrated 65 years anniversary.

He made a great gift to Milan, showing the guests and residents of the city a piece of original Russia from Vladimir, with songs, dances and plays on a variety of folk musical instruments. The audience responded with a storm of enthusiasm, ovations and love, and the last song "Russia" ("I take with me a few handfuls of earth, let it save me in a foreign country ...") caused sincere tears.

Nickolay Litvinov and Evgeny Utkin, photo © Evgeny Utkin

The concert was part of the "Russian Seasons", which are held in Italy this year. There are 70 Italian cities involved, from Milan to Bari. You can see performances of the Bolshoi and Mariinsky theaters, the  Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet and many other collectives from all over the country.

Exhibitions were successfully held in May: from the Russian Museum "Revolution. From Chagall to Malevich, from Repin to Kandinsky "in Bologna, Alexander Rodchenko in Mantua, "Russian icon: Prayer and Mercy" (continues now) in Bari, and in Genoa - graduates of the I. Glazunov Russian Academy of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. A couple of weeks ago, Milan hosted the Kuban Cossack Choir. Moreover, the Italians are expecting hundreds more interesting events in the framework of this program.

 The "Russian Seasons" are held in Italy this year, photo WEB

After a wonderful performance, we went to congratulate the team with success, and his artistic director Nikolai Litvinov with the anniversary.

- Happy Birthday, Nickolay! Thank you for the wonderful performance. How did you end up on the "Russian Seasons" in Italy?

- Thank you so much. The Ministry of Culture organizes this performance. Of course, I did not choose the day, it just happened, although it's very nice to meet Birthday on stage in Italy.

The Ministry of Culture organized concert of the ensemble, photo © Evgeny Utkin

- How long have you been working in "Rus" and what is the peculiarity of this collective?

- I am here from the very beginning, since 1974. I started with Yakov Khokhlov, and then with Mikhail Firsov (now the Ensemble bears his name). You probably noticed the peculiarity of our team. Our performers sing and dance at the same time. In addition, this is very difficult and it is our identity. We also know how to play different folk musical instruments - everyone plays on 3-5 different: bagpipes, reed pipes, ocarinas, zhaleykas, Vladimir hornlets, and, of course, bayan, accordion, domras and balalaika. We combine the ancient sound of these instruments with modern processing - and this is very popular with viewers around the world.

Performers of the Ensemble sing and dance simultaneously, photo © Evgeny Utkin

- Where did you perform, and what are the most interesting or unusual countries that you visited?

- All countries are interesting in their own way. We were also in such "rare" countries as North Korea or Lebanon. Or, for example, in Zimbabwe, it has just changed its name from Southern Rhodesia, in 1979 or 1980. Moreover, we certainly traveled almost all of Europe, even in Strasbourg, in the European Parliament.

Nickolay Litvinov celebrates his 65 anniversary, photo © Evgeny Utkin

- Did you performed in Italy before?

- Yes, we even played together with the Italian carabinieri. We like Italy, we are always welcomed here warmly.

- Where else would you like to go?

- Everywhere where we will be invited. The main thing is to find time in our schedule, because it is quite dense. We perform a lot in Russia. However, for Christmas we usually go to Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

The Ensemble "Rus" is always greeted with warmth in Italy, photo © Evgeny Utkin

- Do you participate in the 2018 Russian Football Championship?

- Yes, of course, we will participate in the cultural program. You know that Vladimir is recognized as the cultural capital of the World Championship, and, of course, we have a lot to show to the visitors of this ancient city. Besides, our governor, Svetlana Orlova, is very active, she holds many unique events. We are hosting our own economic forum, the World Plowing Championships, then Gorokhovets will celebrate 850 anniversary, and we participate everywhere. That is because it is not easy to find time for a foreign tour. However, when it turns out, we are happy to show Russian culture in other countries.

- Thank you, good luck to your team.

Evgeny Utkin, Milan, Italy

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