In art, there are special, “stellar” personalities who, in addition to outstanding talent, are endowed with incredible hard work, creative power, charm and some kind of inner light. Undoubtedly, one of these outstanding ballet dancers was Maris Liepa. His career was fantastic - she knew a dizzying rise, and worldwide fame, and the fall, and an unexpected early death for everyone.
Marisa Liepa's biography: childhood
On July 27, 1936, a boy was born in the family of the stage master of the Riga Opera House, Eduard Liepa, and his wife Lilia. The second child in the family, who was named Maris, was weak and painful. He was chased by colds, and quite often found himself in a hospital bed. Doctors recommended that parents introduce the child to the sport, for example, write him to a section.
Little Maris told his parents that he would like to swim in the pool or play football, but his father made a different decision - the boy will attend a specialized ballet class at the Riga Choreography School. Maris was dissatisfied with his father's choice, he did not like classes in the ballet class and he began to skip classes. But mother managed to find the right words for her son. She explained to the boy that it was impossible to quit the case halfway, she should prove her worth not only to others, but also to herself.
Ballet school
Initially, Maris Liepa was no different from other students in the class. But when work began on the development of a characteristic dance, ballet dancer and teacher Valentin Blinov drew attention to it. It was already clear to Valentin Tikhonovich that before him was the rising star of the ballet.
Exhausting daily activities gradually formed the body and soul of the future star. In addition, Maris began to realize the imperfections of the body, given to him by nature, and therefore he increased the load every day. Going to school, he took not only the necessary textbooks, but also added the hardest ones to them - in order to develop the strength of his hands. He played racing with cars and trolleybuses, trying to be the first to run to the appointed point. For Maris of that period was characterized by constant rivalry with himself, with the capabilities of his body.
First performances
By the age of thirteen, the young dancer not only took part in children's performances, but also danced in Don Quixote, performed mazurka and Cracoviac in the Bakhchisarai Fountain, brilliantly played the jester in Romeo and Juliet and the Polovtsian boy in Prince Igor on the stage of the Riga theater. In addition to studying at the ballet school, Maris also attended sports sections. He achieved good results in gymnastics, in freestyle swimming became the champion of Latvia.
Invitation to Moscow
A significant event in the biography of Maris Liepa took place in 1950, when the young dancer, among other students of the ballet school, was sent to the capital to watch the country's choreographic schools. The Riga school together with the Leningrad, Moscow and Almaty collectives was recognized as the most promising.
Three years later, Maris Liepa received an invitation to continue his studies in Moscow, which he accepted with pleasure and gratitude. However, in the metropolitan school he was not given scholarships, so his parents were forced to sell a country house so that his son could study at a prestigious metropolitan university. He studied brilliantly, and graduated from college with honors. At the final exam, Maris Liepa performed the main role in the ballet The Nutcracker.
A young and talented dancer dreamed of performing on the legendary, main stage of our country and becoming a member of the famous troupe, but in the Soviet Union the cadres were distributed among the Union republics, so Marisa was sent to Riga.
Return to Moscow
The young man returned to the capital a few months after graduation. He was invited to participate in the decade of Latvian art and literature. Fortunately, it was at this time that the great Maya Plisetskaya noticed him. At her recommendation, Marisa was invited to tour in Budapest as part of the Bolshoi Bolshoi Troupe. But the unexpected happened - at the dress rehearsal, the artist sprained ligaments on his leg. Management urgently began to look for a replacement. But Maris was not going to give up, knowing full well that fate would not present him with such a second chance.
Bandaging his leg tightly, he went on stage. It should be recognized that the press reviews of that speech were very supportive. Participation in some tours as part of the troupe of the main theater of the country could not radically change their fate, and Maris was forced to return to Riga again.
Musical Theatre
In the summer of 1956, a young artist went on a trip to Sochi to heal an injured leg. Walking around the city, Maris saw a poster of the Musical Theater named after Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko. The theater came to the city on tour. Maris knew that after graduating from college he was paid attention not only at the Bolshoi, but also at the Musical Theater. He decided to stay in Sochi to try to meet with the theater management. By that time, the ticket had already ended, there was money at the end. But the dancer was not going to leave.
On the outskirts of the city, he took a corner, found a temporary job to pay for housing and food. Maris helped the owner of the house in which he was staying to make firewood. As a result, he managed to meet with the director of the theater, who accepted him into the troupe.
Musical Theatre
Maris Liepa on the stage of the Musical Theater became famous, it was during his performances that people bought tickets, waited for their idol at the front door, hoping to get an autograph. But having received such popularity, Maris did not forget about his cherished dream. Once again, a talented dancer was invited to tour the Bolshoi Theater in 1960 in Poland. After this trip, Maris had a conversation with Leonid Lavrovsky - the main choreographer. He invited the artist to the troupe of the Bolshoi Theater.
Lavrovsky recalled that in a conversation Liepa asked the only true question in this situation: “What will I dance?” The fact is that on the same day Lavrovsky had a conversation with two more applicants from Leningrad for a place in the troupe. One asked about the opportunity to get an apartment, the other - a salary, and only Marisa was interested in his future repertoire.
A dream come true
Finally, the dream of a talented dancer came true, and he began performing on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater. Very soon, he was already occupied in almost all the most famous and illustrious productions, starting with Don Quixote and ending with Spartacus.
Four years passed and personnel changes took place at the Bolshoi Theater. The main choreographer of the famous group was Yuri Grigorovich. He is trying to bring his vision to the performances. For example, in Spartak, Maris always played the main role, but Grigorovich offered him the role of another character - Crassus. The success of the performance exceeded all expectations. The troupe was awarded the Lenin Prize. On foreign tours, artists expected a warm welcome and rave reviews.
But such a successful start of cooperation unexpectedly for all ended in collapse. In an interview with the newspaper Pravda, Liepa allowed himself to criticize the level of skill of Yuri Grigorovich as a choreographer. The choreographer did not forgive. The dancer was given roles only in old performances, and in new productions he could not find a place. Over the next fourteen years, Liepa was only four times involved in new productions.
Last performance
For the last time, on March 28, 1982, he appeared on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater in the role of Crassus Maris Liepa (photo you can see below). The audience standing ovation to him, but the triumph ended with the announcement of the incredible decision of the artistic council, which announced the unsuitability of the dancer. Since then, the most talented dancer appears on the stage only in entreprise performances and on creative evenings. And they still gathered huge audiences.
However, Maris decided to try to find himself in a new field. He went to the cinema.
Movie work
On the set Maris Liepa was not a beginner by that time. In 1959 he made his debut as an actor in the melodrama "Ilse" of the Riga film studio. And ten years later, his role as Hamlet in the film-production caused a real sensation not only in the Soviet Union, but also in the world.
After that, Maris played the role of Jack Wheeler in the film about the spies "The Fourth", Prince Vseslav in the historical film "The Lion's Tomb". The works of Maris Liepa in the fairy tale films “Youth of Bambi” and “Childhood of Bambi”, where he played the role of the father of a deer, the romantic comedy “Galatea”, in the crime drama “Road to Hell, ” turned out to be vivid and memorable.
Specialists, critics and spectators warmly spoke about the role of Valentine Walter in the popular detective story “The Twentieth Century Begins”. Liepe also succeeded in the image of Emperor Nicholas I in the drama "Lermontov". When the new film “Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes” (2006) was released, fans again saw their idol. At the same time, two documentaries about Liep were released - Maris and “The Duel with Fate”.
Maris Liepa: personal life
Fans were always interested in the details of the life of this magnificent dancer, and he always tried to protect her from prying eyes. However, this was not always possible to do. There were spiteful critics who did not miss the chance to reproach the artist for having four wives. Maris Liepa made his first marriage with stage legend Maya Plisetskaya in 1956. At that time he was 20 years old, and she was 31 years old. But the family union lasted only three months.
Actress Margarita Zhigunova became the second wife of Marisa Liepa (photo you can see below). They met her on the set of the movie Ilse. They began a stormy romance, and soon the young people formalized their relationship. Children Marisa Liepa - daughter Ilze and son Andris were born in this marriage. Parents gave names to the children in honor of the characters of the picture, on the set of which they met. Both son and daughter became world famous ballet dancers.
Liepa goes on tour in the late seventies. On the trip, he is accompanied by budding ballerina Nina Semizorova. They began an affair, and Maris leaves his family and marries this girl, who is 20 years younger than him. This family, Marisa Liepa, on the initiative of a ballerina broke up in 1985, although by this time the couple did not live together.
The fourth (civilian) wife of Liepa was Eugene Schulz, who worked as a costume designer. From this union, a daughter Maria was born, but since in those days, recognition of an illegitimate child as a celebrity was tantamount to a career collapse, Liepa for many years did not advertise the existence of the youngest daughter.
