"Bolero" by Maurice Béjart
On February 17, 2013, Diana Vishneva appeared in the legendary "Bolero" by Maurice Béjart in Lausanne. 40 years after Maya Plisetskaya's performance, Diana was the first Russian dancer invited to perform in this production.
Diana's performance of Bolero in Mariinsky Theater witnessed by Maya Plisetskaya and Rodion Shchedrin was another momentous experience. Diana also performed this part at the Maya Plisetskaya commemoration event in Bolshoi Theater.
On February 7, 2014, Diana Vishneva took part in the Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Sochi. She danced "The Dove," based on Moses Pendleton's "Water Flower" that was a part of her debut solo project "Beauty in Motion."
Participation in the Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Sochi
"Diana Vishneva. XX" themed evenings were held on May 5, 2015, on the new stage of the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg and on May 11 on the historic stage of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow. These projects were dedicated to the 20th anniversary of her artistic career at the Mariinsky Theater and her first appearance on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater.
The jubilee gala events were truly unique because never before had one ballet dancer managed to gather the troupes of two legendary theaters at her featured evening. The program included pieces from "Cinderella," choreographed by Alexei Ratmansky and performed by the soloists and corps de ballet of the Mariinsky Theater; "Onegin," staged by John Cranko for the soloists and corps de ballet of the Bolshoi Theater; and a scene from "The Old Man and Me" by Hans van Manen, in which Diana Vishneva appeared with Vladimir Malakhov, a great dancer of the 20th century and her longstanding and favorite partner.
Participation in the filming of Rustam Khamdamov's "Diamonds. Theft"
In 2011 Diana Vishneva took part in the filming of Rustam Khamdamov's "Diamonds. Theft." Rustam Khamdamov is a unique figure in the Russian and global cinema community. Besides being a filmmaker, he is also a designer and an artist. His creative work is referred to as "the world of Rustam Khamdamov," which is the best characterization for an artist. Getting into his world is a special creative experience.
For Diana, this was her first time to participate in shooting a film. The short black-and-white film "Diamonds. Theft" debuted at the Cannes Film Festival as part of the "Horizons" program. It was very well received by Russian and foreign film critics.
In June 2017 the Metropolitan Opera in New York hosted Diana Vishneva's farewell party with the troupe of the American Ballet Theater (ABT) as the principal guest. She performed in the regular repertoire of ABT for thirteen seasons and was now saying goodbye to this stage, though not forever. As she wrote in her address: "Life is cyclic, and I'm sure I will keep meeting my friends from the ABT both on and off stage. This is why today doesn't feel like parting ways. How could one forget all the love and warmth of those thirteen beautiful years? No farewells, then. Fair winds!"
The evening was a dignified affair, with shades of both joy and sadness. Together with her regular partner Marcelo Gomes, Diana Vishneva appeared in one of her most profound roles: Tatiana in "Onegin," staged by John Cranko. The performance ended with a grand farewell ceremony. According to the established tradition of ABT, all members of the troupe walked out onto the stage of the Metropolitan Opera to greet and thank Diana for her thirteen years. Principal dancers and repetiteurs, including the famous Russian-Soviet ballerina Irina Kolpakova, resident choreographer Alexei Ratmansky, and artistic director Kevin McKenzie, held a fifteen-minute ovation and showered Diana with flowers and colorful confetti. After the curtain fell, an emotional Diana once again went out to thank the audience for their love and support.
Farewell evening with the American Ballet Theater
On September 28, 2018, Diana Vishneva took part in the opening of the ballet season at the Paris Opera. Fashion house Chanel was the patron of the event. Together with Aurélie Dupont, the artistic director of the ballet troupe, Diana Vishneva performed B/olero to the music of Maurice Ravel, staged by famous Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin. The two dancers performed this duet for the first time at the gala evening during the "Context. Diana Vishneva" festival in 2016.
Original costumes for this production were designed by Karl Lagerfeld. The production process and costumed photo session on the roof of the Paris Opera building were later published in a Vogue China article.
Gala opening of the ballet season at the Paris Opera
"Cast: Diana Vishneva and Ulyana Lopatkina," a project by Studio Context, debuted on February 25, 2019, on the main stage of the Tovstonogov Bolshoi Drama Theater. The Studio's first theater project brought together onto one stage the two ballet dancers who symbolize a distinct epoch in the history of the Mariinsky Theater: Diana Vishneva and Ulyana Lopatkina. Here, they performed in unusual roles: on the stage of a drama theater, they talked to each other for an hour and a half about their profession, education, childhood, motherhood, families, fears and joys... about life. The production director was Alexey Kononov, a choreographer and the artistic director of Studio Context.
"Cast: Diana Vishneva and Ulyana Lopatkina"
Gala concert "Diana Vishneva. Tribute to a Teacher" at the Mariinsky Theater, April 2016, St. Petersburg
In celebration of the jubilee of Lyudmila Kovaleva, her teacher and a renowned professor of the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, Diana Vishneva set up a featured evening on the historic stage of the Mariinsky Theater. The program featured Kovaleva's graduates from various years: Ekaterina Borchenko, a principal of the Mikhailovsky Theater; Olga Smirnova, a principal of the Bolshoi Theater; Alisa Petrenko and Sofia Gumerova, soloists of the Mariinsky Theater; and many others. Diana Vishneva appeared in two one-act performances choreographed by Hans van Manen: "The Old Man and Me" with Vladimir Malakhov and "Live." A live broadcast of the event was available on the official website of the Mariinsky Theater.
"Diana Vishneva. Tribute to a Teacher"