In December 2022, novice and already experienced librettists, composers, choreographers, and stage designers sent their works for appraisal by the competent jury within the I Republican Competition “Ashyq Sakhna”. The geography of the competition turned out to be wide: applications were sent from all over the country.
The grand awarding of the winners and the premiere of the choreographic miniature “Zheti Kazyna”, created by the winners of the competition, will take place on May 1, 2023 at the Astana Ballet Theatre.
“The Ashyq Sakhna competition is the brightest experiment of this season. We are always in search of new ideas that we are ready to implement, discovering new names in the field of theatrical art. I can say with full confidence that we have many talented stage directors with outstanding and original ideas. We hope that holding such competitions will become our good annual tradition,” the artistic director of the theatre Nurlan Kanetov shared.
The winners of the I Republican Competition “Ashyq Sakhna” are the following:
in the “Libretto” nomination - Madina Aldanova;
in the “Choreography” nomination - Ualitbek Siyazbek;
in the “Music” nomination - Shyryn Bazarkulova;
in the “Scenography” nomination - Alexandra Rychkova.
It is worth noting that the participants took this competition with great inspiration and dedication. The most interesting period is ahead - the creation of a new production in the theatre with the help of the experts of the capital theatre. The dancers of Astana Ballet will perform in the production.
The premiere of “Zheti Kazyna” will take place as part of the national divertissement “The Heritage of the Great Steppe”. The authors of the performance describe the culture and lifestyle of the Kazakh people through the lens of their traditions and customs. An ancient Kazakh legend, which became the basis of a new choreographic work, says that a real Kazakh nomad had seven treasures.
The theme of the performance was not a coincidence: the concept of “Zheti Kazyna” (seven treasures) takes a special place in the worldview of the Kazakh people. Treasures mean seven necessary components of a real man’s life: “er zhigit” (the masculinity of a man), “sulu akyldy ayel” (a beautiful and intelligent wife), “zhuirik at” (a swift-foot steed), “kyran burkit” (a hunting golden eagle), “kumai tazy” (a devoted dog of the Tazy breed), “beren myltyk - almas kezdik” (a dirk), and “bilim” (comprehensive knowledge). In that way, according to legend, if a man has all these seven treasures, then his life is full of happiness and good luck.
The founders of the competition are the “Fund for Development and Support of Ballet and National Dance” Private Fund and the Astana Ballet Theatre with the assistance of the General Partner “Samruk-Kazyna” JSC represented by the single operator of the charity of the group of companies – “Samruk–Kazyna Trust” Social Development Foundation.