Gala 1979 performance by the Bolshoi of Prokofiev’s final ballet, starring Ekaterina Maximova and Vladimir Vasiliev. The strong supporting case includes Svetlana Adirkhaeva as The Mistress of the Copper Mountain and Vladimir Levashov as Severyan. The Bolshoi Theater Orchestra is under the direction of Alexander Kopilov. Bonus: Pas de Deux from Anyuta with Maximova and Daukayev.. Color, mono, 116 minutes. In 1959, Yuri Grigorovich recreated his successful 1957 Kirov staging of The Stone Flower for the Bolshoi Ballet. The new version became the acclaimed centerpiece of the Bolshoi’s first U.S. tour in that same year, featuring the stars of the premiere, Vladimir Vasiliev and Ekaterina Maximova as the lovers Danila and Katerina. Set to Prokofiev’s last score for the ballet, The Stone Flower is regarded by Russian dancers, choreographers and critics as one of the greatest of Russian ballets. The compelling libretto, set by the composer’s wife, derives from the book The Malachite Casket by P. Bazhov who based his stories on miners’ tales from the Ural Mountains. The tale of The Stone Flower is fittingly melodramatic, replete with seduction, near-rape and a monstrous end for the villain who, in a theatrical tour de force, is literally sucked into the earth at the bidding of the Mistress of the Copper Mountain. In 1979, Maximova and Vasiliev were reunited for a gala performance at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theater. Fortunately, the event was preserved for posterity and is seen here in its first home video release.