A monument to Maya Plisetskaya has been unveiled on Moscow’s Bolshaya Dmitrovka Street, not far from the Bolshoi Theater, on the day the great Russian ballerina would have turned 91.
The sculpture by Viktor Mitroshin, officially unveiled on Nov. 20, depicts Plisetskaya in one of her best-known parts, Carmen. It was with her appearance in that part on the international stage that Plisetskaya’s friendship with fashion designer Pierre Cardin began: “I saw her in Carmen and fell in love at first sight,” said Cardin.
Plisetskaya got to know Mitroshin during an exhibition of his sculptures in Paris. They became friends and the sculptor was preparing a Plisetskaya-Carmen statuette as a present for her 90th birthday last year.
Maya Plisetskaya: A life in art
However, the great ballerina passed away in Germany on May 2, six months before her birthday. According to the artist, Plisetskaya had seen sketches of the sculpture.The monument was unveiled by her husband, the composer Rodion Shchedrin, who was behind the idea to erect it, as well as Mariinsky Theater head Valery Gergiev and many others.
In his address, Shchedrin said he hoped that the little park near the monument to Plisetskaya would become a favorite meeting place for loving couples and there would be lilac bushes growing around it.