French riding troupe for sensational Moscow first night

The Zingaro, known French-based riding company, will premiere its "Windsteeds" in Moscow, May 23.

An open-air site has been chosen in Kolomenskoye, museum-preserve in the city's southeast, which is hosting a 5th international Anton Chekhov stage festival up to June 12.

Bartabas, Zingaro founding manager, chose Moscow for his world premiere after an enthusiastic public acclaim of his latest guest performances, he said to a news conference.

It is hard to tell what "Windsteeds" are about. Each understands the production in his/her own way. It focuses on Tibetan life and religion, and portrays genuine Buddhist rites in Tibetan monks' performance. Bartabas is equally after the philosophical and stagy aspects of those rites.

The producer hired the monks in the Guotu monastery. He describes them as "men in wine-red and yellow robes". They sing in voices the Western world has never heard, which he compares to buffalo roar.

Trained geese appear in the show side by side with horses, and stunt riders side by side with the monks.

Bartabas established the Zingaro in 1984, and named it after his favourite horse whom he rode on stage for seventeen years.