In his day Vlastimil Harapes was one of the premier dancers of the international ballet scene. He was a star who shone on the stage of the National Theater for twenty years, and for thousands of balletgoers in dozens of countries his name was a synonym for dance. Ballet is the most fragile of arts, fading with the dancer’s youth, but recordings of Harapes’ artistry in the greatest works of the classical and modern ballet repertoire were preserved in the archives of Czech Television. They provided the material for this indisputably unique collection of performances immortalizing this personable, graceful dancer. Included are scenes from such famous ballets as Romeo and Juliet, Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Achilles, Pulcinella, La Boutique Fantasque, and Spartacus, as well as works choreographed to music by Josef Suk (Radúz and Mahulena), Georges Bizet (Carmen), Leoš Janácek (The Kreutzer Sonata), Charles Gounod (Faust and Markéta), Johann Sebastian Bach (Prelude in C minor), and Petr Hapka (Denim Blue)… His partners in these scenes include soloists Marta Drottnerová, Hana Vlácilová and Ivanka Kubicová. Bonus scenes from the television shorts Runner (Bežec) and We Can Go On (Mužeme dál) round out the selection.
Throughout these performances Harapes shines with the captivating charm of his artistry and the contagious joy of life. These are recordings of an art which is fleeting, but whose beauty is eternal. The legendary dancer in roles from classical and modern ballet! First time on DVD.
