I was comparing videos of Kulikova, Khiteeva, and Tereshkina’s Medoras from this week’s Le Corsaire block and it was interesting to me that they performed this part with slight (but also noticeable) variances in choreography. Khiteeva seems to follows the music differently; Kulikova’s arms are placed differently too.
Tereshkina’s: https://t.me/c/1630789871/5339
Khiteeva & Kulikova’s: https://imgur.com/a/qdWBc31
(Not sure if the links will show up right!)
EDITED for typos and usage.
Hello Anon, THANK YOU for pointing out these differences! It really sent me down a Le Corsaire rabbit hole, which I appreciate because I end up watching with a more discerning eye. Still...Le Corsaire has one of the silliest librettos that ever existed so it can be hard for me to take it too seriously. I view it as an over-the-top pirate escapade of yore and a vehicle for bravado and personal flair….not so much for emotional depth. However, there's a fine line to balance. The characters cannot be cartoonish while trying to sweep you up in a “Pirates of the Caribbean” swashbuckling rom-com. Actually, as I assess the challenge, that's quite a feat to pull off!
And before I jump into the Medoras, I have to acknowledge Maxim Izmetsiev's Lankadem. The clip below is a couple of months old, but he similarly lit the stage on fire in this recent run. WOW!!!
The link to Khiteeva and Kulikova works, but I wish there were more excerpts from Khiteeva's debut. From this short clip, this moment seems very Khiteeva to me. And by that I mean she's theatrical with very beautiful arms. She even slips in a little nod to Nikiya. I like the big jump at the beginning. I've seen that flubbed sometimes, and I think it needs to be explosive as this is the "opening statement" in her plea. I'd like to see more "feisty defiance" in her clenched fist, but that's nitpicking.
Daria Kulikova seems very confident and has really grown into this role. I'm also seeing a bit of Bolshoi style to her approach, which I really like. She's stetching every inch of her body to reach these poses—it's a plea seen from the cheapseats—and she looks great.
The telegram link of Tereshkina only works for subscribers of that particular channel. I haven't found those snippets on YouTube yet (also not spending a ton of time looking.) What I noticed about Terehskina, is that her arms are so expressive and free, which is a contrast to her situation at this point in the story--recently kidnapped and about to be sold to the highest bidder.) That sense of physical freedom in captivity exudes defiance, and it’s in keeping with the flowing freedom she exudes from her first entrance ar the ballet. Try as you might, Medora cannot be constrained! She also sneaks in a little nod to Nikiya like Khiteeva does.
I believe Medora's introduction on the auction block is a place where an artist can find their own expression within the cheographic text and after you noted the differences, it doesn't seem like there's one canonical way of doing this.
As you pointed out, all three make distinctly different choices. As a point of reference, I looked up Altynai Asylmuratova's Medora, and she also has a different approach. Notably, she doesn't even bother with the renverses, but she does include an arabesque. The link should start around minute 22:50, but if not, you can advance to that moment.
Here's a clip from Maria Khoreva's Medora debut from the same moment in the ballet. What I noticed is that there is indeed a lot of variation between dancers. Khoreva's arms seem to be a hybrid of Kulikova/Khiteeva but she also adds an arabesque around 00:19 that's different. Again…a lot of variaton within this scene.
As a post-script, I wish clips of Victoria Tereshkina dancing Medora from this January 2026 performence were flooding the internet. It's hard to believe that she's 42? 43? and dancing such technically demanding roles at this level and with such relish and joy! She is absolutely marvelous to watch. More kudos to Roman Gudelev for making his Ali debut with such a legend.
