About the work
Qara Qarayev composed this four-act ballet to a libretto by Ismail Hidayetzade, Yuri Slonimsky and Sabit Rahman based on Nizami Ganjavi's narrative poem 'The Seven Beauties', developing it from a symphonic suite he had written for the poet's 800th birthday. The choreography was by Pyotr Gusev; it premiered on 7 November 1952 at the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre in Baku, with Gamar Almaszade and Yuri Kuznetsov in the lead roles. A Prague National Theatre production followed in 1960.
Plot
Caught in a storm while hunting, Shah Bahram takes shelter in an old castle, where a hermit shows him faded portraits of seven beautiful women who come alive in his vision that night. He later falls in love with the humble Aisha, whose brother Manzer he has beaten in an archery contest; when he leaves for war, his vizier secretly seizes power and plunges the land into injustice. After Bahram's return, Aisha and Manzer rise up against the tyranny; the people overthrow the vizier, but the proud Shah ultimately loses both his beloved and his throne.
Cultural significance
'Seven Beauties' is considered the first full-length Azerbaijani ballet and established Qarayev's international reputation as a composer who fused European orchestral technique with Azerbaijani musical tradition.