He has the aura of George Balanchine, the legendary Russian choreographer. Perhaps because the last five years he has spent directing the Stanislavski in Moscow, where he was received as the first Frenchman at the head of a Russian company since Marius Petipa revolutionized the romantic ballet in that nineteenth-century Saint Petersburg.
“Yes, they received me saying that I was the next Petipa and I said, ok, ok, you can’t compare. He was a great choreographer and I am not a choreographer. He will endure and I don’t think he will and, frankly, I don’t care”, smiles Laurent Hilaire, his dancer’s ego well sated.
When Vladimir Putin’s war broke out in the Ukraine, this former étoile of the Paris Opera decided to return to Europe, where he has now been appointed director of the Bavarian Ballet in Munich (Bayerisches Staatsballett in its original German). At 69 years old, he arrives at the Peralada Festival (this Friday and Saturday) with plenty of expertise.
He danced for thirty years, from 17 to 47: Nureyev elevated him to Olympus, he danced his Roméo and worked with the greats of the 20th century: Jerome Robins, Roland Petit, Maurice Béjart, Jiri Kylián, William Forsythe… And together with divas like Sylvie Guillem, Alessandra Ferri, Isabelle Guérin or Altynai Asylmuratova.
And yet you refuse to be called a legend.
Nureyev is a legend, Nijinski, Baryshnikov, Gillen… I am not. I had a great time but I never look back.
Did you accidentally start dancing as a child?
Yes. In my family no one was interested in dancing or music, only on TV. I started with gymnastics but we moved. I heard of a small conservatory on the outskirts of Paris. Eye, it was 1965 and I was the only boy. Luckily my parents were open, they didn’t force me to play football. And, well, I decided to become a star. When Nureyev appointed me it was incredible.
What was it like dealing with Nureyev?
He was an amazing personality but not easy at all. We fought. If you could with him, you could already with a lot of people. He was my mentor and we spent thousands of hours in the studio, where he used to tell me ‘don’t talk, work’. Emotionally he was sometimes rough and other times very sensitive. I have memories that bring me to tears, because he said some things… Every moment with him was important, the way he looked at you and spoke to you, what counted. Very charismatic.
When in 2017 they called you from Stanislavski, did you think you were going to live in Nureyev’s Russia?
It could be very symbolic, yes. Think that the great ballet in Russia, from Petipa at the beginning of the 20th century, corresponded to a country that from my point of view was part of Europe! But as a dancer you have to be pragmatic, you have to concentrate on the work: if you want to jump you have to use the ground.
He came to the Stanislavski when former Mariinski star Igor Zelensky stepped down, just as he has now in Munich. What did he find in terms of style?
I came from the quality of the foot and leg work and the stage presentation of the French school. But I was at the service of a Russian company, with its port-de-bras, the work behind it and the quality they have in everything. We could mix it up and learn from each other. Too bad now nobody comes to Russia from outside. There will remain the great ballets of the classical repertoire that will endure over time. I think you have to try not to lose communication by using a language that is too archaic and codified. You have to be able to seduce the younger audience. Contemporary dance is very important for a company, because it feeds their spirit and body, and allows them to interpret classical repertoire much better. For me there is no opposition between contemporary and classic. In fact, I brought Israelis Sharon Eyal and Ohad Naharin to Moscow for the first time. And it was unusual to have a Russian company doing Western repertoire. In the end, it is the quality of the work and the fact that the dancers manage to interpret it in style that makes the piece a success.
Did they warn you that you were going to a very conservative scene?
Yes. The first program was Suite en Blanc by Serge Lifar, plus Kylián and Forsythe. They warned me that maybe I should end the classic and I said, nooo, let’s go to the future… And it worked. The public must be given the key step by step.
And being in a state ballet, did you have dealings with politicians?
The truth is that I was not in contact with them. If I accepted the position, it was because there was a general director (an ex-Bolshoi) who was in charge of it. I concentrated on creation and work. The public loved it, it was a constant sold out. Until I decided to leave.
The bomb, yes. You and Alexei Ratmansky were leaving Moscow because of the war.
But not because I felt insecure. It was arriving at the class that morning and noticing that the work seemed to continue without changes. It didn’t seem normal to me. I felt bad for the troupe but I couldn’t go on.
Did you get it?
There are those who have been separating art and politics for decades. Whatever happens, they keep going. But my position was not only as a dancer, but as a director. He had no choice as a citizen. I am not a patriotic person, but if war comes to your country… what will you do? Stay watching Netflix? It is a matter of philosophical values.
It seems that he takes over the companies that Zelensky is leaving, who, as much as he shares a last name with the Ukrainian president, is Putin’s chosen one to run the new Sebastopol Opera and Ballet Theater in Crimea.
It’s curious, yes. I met him, we share some work, but we have no relationship. His wife is still a ballet master at the Munich company. They came from the Mariinsky together and she continues to do her job. No problem, she is not responsible for anything.
In Munich, if there is something, it is money. Would you say that Serge Dorny, the superintendent of the Bavarian theater, cares about ballet as much as opera or does it happen like in so many other European theaters?
If he wanted me to come it will be for a good reason, he knows what I have done at the Stanislavski and I am sure he will support him. I want the best future for the company, of course, and I think I have a good relationship with Dorny. I want progression.
What is the key in Munich about what an opera house company should or should not offer? The Royal Ballet of London finds it difficult to cross the border of doing an entire ballet without points. At most an act.
That must be a reflection of society. It’s not about pointe shoes or not, but about how it connects with society and how the public can get involved. You have to be daring. And there are choreographers who perceive in the public what the future may be. We have part of the responsibility in pushing for people to keep an open mind. That’s what I did at the Stanislavski. The public was ready for new experiences. And here in Munich I think it has to work too. Always with educational programs, talks with people, open rehearsals…
The first season designed by you in Munich will be 2023-24.
Yes, and I am working on a creation with a young choreographer who is the future. Personalities interest me. In the end, life brings you opportunities: this is happening because leaving Moscow because of the war and now being in Munich is the right context.
