Valery Gergiev and the Kirov: A Story of Survival
This is a big, handsome, fascinating book. Written at the suggestion,  indeed the insistence, of its artistic director, Valery Gergiev, it  chronicles the history, trials, tribulations, and triumphs of the Mariinsky  Theater in St. Petersburg from its opening in 1860 until today, in the  context of the city's and the country's political and cultural history from  Imperial through Soviet to post-Soviet times. The late John Ardoin spent the 1995-96 season in St. Petersburg, attending innumerable concerts, rehearsals, and performances of opera and ballet, and talking with countless people connected with the Theater. He tells the story of the Mariinsky's destructions and rebirths, its name change to Kirov and back again; the stories of its star  singers and dancers, composers, conductors, choreographers, ballet masters,  designers, architects, administrators, of the music and ballet schools it has  generated, and its struggle to maintain its traditions while moving ahead. Ardoin describes the internal and external intrigues, scandals, and rivalries, the artistic, economic, and political problems that led to the defection of  leading artists. He quotes from books and memoirs, such as Stravinsky's,  whose father was a renowned bass.An excellent interviewer, the author lets his subjects speak for themselves in sections that are among the book's highlights. The most fascinating portrait is that ofValery Gergiev, who emerges  as an inspired, charismatic conductor and a man of extraordinary,  multifaceted gifts, inexhaustible energy, unshakable determination and  self-confidence, high ideals, and unwavering dedication to his work. Ardoin  clearly idolizes Gergiev and credits him with restoring the Mariinsky to its  present greatness, yet he remains aware of the problems inherent in Gergiev's  overextended lifestyle and compulsive work habits.Most of the chapters alternate between past and present, and readers may find the frequent references to people and events mentioned in much earlier chapters a bit bewildering. They may also be somewhat overwhelmed by Ardoin's admirably  prodigious research and insistence on including everything he knows: he lists  everyone who ever worked at the Theater, and gives a blow-by-blow account of  every performance past and present--its date, cast, composer, conductor,  designer, success or failure. Of the resulting multitude of names, many are  totally unknown outside Russia, but the excellent pictures, arranged by  periods, bring them to vibrant life.--Edith Eisler