Leningrad is a huge step forward in terms of movement. Again, everything that follows is from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjvY2UoYU5M . The first 40 seconds are as eloquent as any dancing we are likely to see. The music is in sobs, each phrase is separated by a pause, as if to regain composure between the sobs. Notice how beautifully these pauses are integrated into motion. We don't feel the pauses as interruptions, she draws us in to the pain and sadness with characteristic Yulia- naturalness. Beautiful movement that naturally fits halting music is quite an achievement, but there is a lot more going on here. If we watch her movement, we will see about 6 distinct movements. Contrast this very deliberate set of movements with anything she has done before, or with the Elvis. Memorize them. Everything in Leningrad, with only a couple of minor exceptions, is based on these 6. We see them again and again, in different settings, slightly or sometimes greatly altered. The footwork (what a misleading term for Yulia) from 2:55 to about 3:30 is like a great cadenza, she combines the 6 basic movements on an emotional level never seen before. This is an incredible accomplishment. What we see is bound tightly by those 6 building blocks of movement, but what we feel seems without limit.
A most impressive example of a different kind is from 3:39 to 3:50. There is a sequence of 3 movements. First, arms in an L shape, followed by a stylized Bauer with one arm falling, followed by a spiral with one arm and one leg raised in a grand variation on the two-arms-raised from the basic set of movements, quickly followed by sequential arms falling also from the basic set of movements. These three spectacular movements are like a flashback to the original 40 seconds, a summary of that great introduction, and to the same halting, sobbing melody that we heard then.
So not only has Yulia presented a compact, emotional program, but she has given it structure. It is like a well-constructed paragraph, with introduction sentences, development sentences, and then summary sentences. Her program has the structure of a paragraph so that we can better see what she wants to say. This is a breakthrough. In the past her presentations often interpreted the music. In Leningrad she is completely focused on the message of the music. For me, this structure is even closer to a structure in music called sonata-allegro form. Sonata form provides structure by using three sections, exposition, development, recapitulation. Her program is a precise image of this musical structure. Her spins at the end can be considered a coda, a very common 4th part extension of the sonata form. Leningrad is an incredible accomplishment in terms of structure of movement. For the first time she focuses just on meaning, but without sacrificing musical content. Absolutely brilliant.
So what does it all mean? What do the basic movements refer to? I think that Yulia has made that clear. At the beginning she stands silent, at the end she extends her arm, slowly turning her palm upward. All the wonderful moments between describe this yearning, nothing more and nothing less.
