Congratulations from the Cultural Heritage Foundation to the rising star of Kazakh ballet, Torgyn Leben
Guiding Star: a happy debut, our Odette!
Dear Torgyn,
With all our hearts and great joy, we congratulate you on the most important and thrilling event of the beginning of the year — your debut as Odette in the legendary ballet Swan Lake on the stage of Astana Opera.
This New Year has become a time when your most cherished artistic dream came true. Bringing the image of the White Swan to life on stage is not merely a new role; it is an initiation into the highest league of classical ballet. You are standing at the threshold of the very path you have always dreamed of — dancing leading roles in world masterpieces such as Swan Lake.
We are proud to have witnessed your rapid rise. A journey that began in Aktau led an eight-year-old girl to the capital’s Academy of Choreography, where, overcoming homesickness, you forged your character and developed the iron discipline without which ballet is impossible.
You proved that true talent is perseverance: your victory at the prestigious Budapest Ballet Grand Prix in Hungary, where you competed with artists from 30 countries, loudly announced the birth of a new star of Kazakh ballet.
This debut — on the grand stage of the country’s main temple of art — is the natural result of your hard work and the beginning of a great journey.
Our heartfelt wishes to you, dear Torgyn:
· Be gentle and strong. As you yourself say, Odette embodies inner strength hidden behind fragility. May every gesture on stage be filled with this strength, and may your gaze convey that very “inner tension between fear and hope” that makes the image truly alive.
· Trust and inspire. Remember that ballet is a dialogue. Trust in your experienced partner, soloist Dias Kurmangazy, is the key that will allow you not to think about technique but to surrender fully to the image and the music.
· Enjoy the moment. You once said that nothing compares to the applause of the audience after a performance — proof that your work is valued and understood. On this evening, feel that gratitude in full. May the excitement before stepping on stage turn into energy that helps you focus and show your very best.
· Preserve your own intonation. Your desire to find your own interpretation of Odette, observing “how differently the same image can sound,” is a true sign of a genuine artist. Trust your instincts and live this story through yourself.
You are not alone on this path. Behind your triumph stands the wise guidance of the legendary Altynai Asylmuratova, for whom passing on experience to the younger generation is a true mission. And, of course, there is the support of your very first and most important team — your parents, who once recognized this gift within you.
Forward, our rising star! May today the Astana Opera hall, holding its breath, witness the birth of a new, pure, and incredibly talented Odette — the future of Kazakh ballet.
We believe in you!
With love and admiration,
Impresario,
President of the Cultural Heritage Foundation
Elbrus Zh. Imambaev
