Carmen Suite and Arcana of Fate at Astana Ballet

«Carmen Suite»

Music: Georges Bizet - Rodion Shchedrin

Libretto and Choreography: Alberto Alonso, based on the novella by 
Prosper Mérimée

Production Director: Timofey Lavrenyuk

Set Designer: Zhandos Omarov

Costume Designer: Natalia Protasova

Lighting Designer: Evgeny Tikhonin

Carmen Suite is a dazzling gem of 20th-century ballet art. The story of Carmen - a fiery, free-spirited, and passionate woman - continues to captivate choreographers and inspire the world’s greatest ballerinas, all of whom dream of performing this role.

This choreographic interpretation of Georges Bizet’s famed opera Carmen was created especially for the legendary Maya Plisetskaya. Composer Rodion Shchedrin reimagined the score with extraordinary enthusiasm, transforming Bizet’s themes into a virtuosic ballet suite. Through his music, he achieved a remarkable depth in conveying the subtle psychological nuances of both Prosper Mérimée’s novella and Bizet’s opera.

Thanks to the vivid and unconventional choreography of Cuban ballet master Alberto Alonso—whose movements express the intense emotions and desires of the characters - Carmen Suite has become a beloved work of dance art and a treasure of the world’s finest theatrical stages.

«Arcana of Fate»

Authors and Creators:
Music and Libretto: Karina Abdullina, Honoured Artist of Kazakhstan
Choreographer-Director: Mukaram Avakhri, Honoured Artist of Kazakhstan

The Tarot - mysterious, enigmatic, and as boundless as the Universe itself. The symbols encoded within it are rooted in secret knowledge accessible only to the initiated. It is a true treasure trove, concealing within its archetypes the timeless truths and sacred wisdom that serve as keys to humanity’s eternal search for self-understanding.

For over five centuries, the mystical and allegorical symbolism of the Tarot has fascinated historians, artists, poets—and now, choreographers. The arcana form a vivid and complex vision of the world, where metaphorical images reveal the essence of human nature.

Arcana of Fate unfolds as twenty-two mesmerizing vignettes, each inspired by a Tarot card and embodied through contemporary choreography. Together, they form a unified stage composition - a poetic journey into the soul and spirit of destiny.