MOSCOW, December 25. Tonight at the Bolshoi Theater there will be a festive show dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the State Academic Choreographic Ensemble “Beryozka” named after N.S. Nadezhda. For the world-famous group, this is the first solo performance on the Historical Stage of the Bolshoi Theater of Russia. All tickets for the gala concert have long been sold out, a full house and the participation of famous guests are expected.
What “Beryozka” will show at the Bolshoi
The “Berezka-75” program will include numbers loved by millions of viewers around the world. Among them are “Chain”, “Northern Round Dance”, “Sudarushka”, “Rechenka”, “Bells”, “Coachmen”, “Kalinka” and many others.
The productions of Nadezhda Nadezhdina and Mira Koltsova from the ensemble’s golden fund became a discovery in the stage embodiment of Russian folk dance and delighted audiences of different generations and many countries. Now they will be presented on the main stage of Russia.
The renowned choreographic ensemble will perform accompanied by the Orchestra of Russian Folk Instruments (chief conductor – People's Artist of Russia Leonid Smirnov). Honored Artist of Russia Alexey Bychin will take the conductor's stand. In addition to the artists of “Beryozka” itself, their colleagues, famous performers and groups will take part in the gala concert.
How it all began
In 1948, the founder of the ensemble, Nadezhda Sergeevna Nadezhdina, showed the famous round dance to the public for the first time. The girls performed at the Hermitage summer pop theater in long red and white sundresses with birch branches in their hands.
Then it was as if a miracle happened: the dancers literally “floated”: it seemed to the audience that the stage was moving, but not at all not artists – and all this to the tune of “There was a birch tree in the field.”
An amazing step, the magic of a Russian round dance: the dance was mesmerizing literally from the first seconds.
“Beryozka” was certainly doomed to success. However, at that moment the ensemble did not yet have an official name – it appeared precisely thanks to the first dance choreographed by Nadezhda.
The credo of “Beryozka” was clearly formulated by its founder:
“”At the center of any of our work, be it a lyrical round dance or a merry dance, is the poetic image of a Russian girl… We want to express and reflect the purity and greatness of Russian art as clearly as possible. This is a source of inspiration for our ensemble.”
International triumph of “Beryozka”
The repertoire of “Beryozka” steadily increased: a few years after the creation of the ensemble there were already more than a dozen professionally staged numbers. Each of them had its own “zest”, its own creative solution. But the classic Russian round dance remained the crowning number of “Beryozka”.
The troupe was initially exclusively female, but gradually, with the expansion of the repertoire, it was supplemented by a male troupe, as well as an orchestra of Russian folk instruments. 
So the ensemble’s program included paired dances and entire large-scale choreographic cycles, one of which was the famous production of “The Seasons.”
Naturally, “Berezka” enjoyed enormous popularity all over the world: it seems impossible to imagine a more accurate and vivid expression of the original Russian choreographic art, connecting folk tradition with the scale of modern stage productions.
The legendary group performed on tour in more than 90 countries. And everywhere – admiration, sold-out houses, success.
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The European press wrote about the ensemble's tour:
“”Don't read two hundred volumes about Russia, just watch one concert of “Berezka”, and you will see what Russian morality, Russian character, Russian origin are.”
The purity of the choreographic genre and the Russian art being placed at the forefront – this is the credo of Nadezhda Nadezhdina. in the ensemble and after her death. 
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In 1979, “Beryozka” was led by her student and leading soloist Mira Koltsova. She continued to lead the group literally until the last day (the choreographer died on August 1, 2022).
“Beryozka” today
Now “Beryozka” is a federal state budgetary cultural institution (since December 23, 2006, the ensemble was taken over by the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation). The team is led by Tatyana Valerievna Selgmäe. The choreographic ensemble continues to tour Russia and the world.
The audience of the anniversary concert at the Bolshoi Theater on December 25 will be treated to a triple celebration.
In 2023, the Beryozka ensemble named after N.S. Nadezhda, the Office of the President of the Russian Federation celebrates three anniversaries at once. This is the 75th anniversary of the group itself, the 115th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding choreographer of the 20th century, the founder of the world-famous ensemble, People's Artist of the USSR Nadezhda Sergeevna Nadezhdina, whose name the group bears since June 2000, as well as the 85th anniversary of the birth of People's Artist of the USSR Mira Mikhailovna Koltsova, who worked as artistic director and chief choreographer of the ensemble from 1979 to 2022. 
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The musical accompaniment of the program will be composed of works by Evgeny Kuznetsov, Viktor Temnov, Vladimir Kornev, Evgeny Derbenko, Philip Koltsov and other composers.
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