Tarana Muradova celebrates anniversary with fascinating dance evening

A fascinating evening of art has taken place at Heydar Aliyev Palace, a celebration of dance dedicated to the 60th anniversary of People's Artist Tarana Muradova, well-known dancer and choreographer, Vice-Rector for International Relations at the Baku Choreography Academy and an Associate Professor at the Department of Folk and Modern Dance, as well as President of the Azerbaijan Dance Union, Azernews reports.

The festive evening, organised with the support of the Azerbaijan Culture Ministry and the Baku Choreography Academy, opened with warm and heartfelt messages addressed to the honoree.

For more than 45 years, Tarana Muradova has represented Azerbaijani dance art on the world’s greatest stages—La Scala, Aspendos, the Bolshoi Theater, the Kirov Theatre, and UNESCO. Her artistic legacy has long become a symbol of Azerbaijan, and her students have grown into bright stars of choreographic art. On behalf of the Azerbaijan Culture Ministry, the Baku Choreography Academy, and numerous distinguished guests—prominent dance figures from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkiye, Georgia, Hungary, and Russia, congratulatory messages were read and international awards were presented. The evening was hosted by well-known TV presenter Saleh Baghirov.

The stage of the Heydar Aliyev Palace featured masterpieces of Azerbaijani dance culture and dances of the world performed by the country's leading ensembles. The audience enjoyed performances by students of the Baku Choreography Academy, the Azerbaijan State Dance Ensemble, the State Song and Dance Ensemble, and the ballet company of the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. Special guests—multiple world champions Eldar Jafarov and Anna Sazhina, Denis Tagintsev and Anna Melnikova sparked particular excitement. The hall erupted in applause after every performance. The program included works by Gara Garayev, Uzeyir Hajibayli, Fikrat Amirov, and Eldar Mansurov, along with contemporary and traditional music.

This day became truly exceptional: for the first time in 11 years, Tarana Muradova returned to the stage, and she did so at the Heydar Aliyev Palace, the very place where she once began her ascent in choreography. This stage is native, special, and symbolic for her.

The culminating moment of the evening was her original choreography, "Black and White" to the hit "Azerbaijan" by People's Artist Emin Agalarov. It was an elegant and bold fusion of modern ballroom choreography with subtly woven elements of national dance. The audience witnessed a new Tarana Muradova—dynamic, daring, contemporary, yet faithful to her roots. Each of her movements sounded like a declaration of love to art, like a story of an entire creative life. The philosophy of the dance unfolded as a metaphor for life itself: morning and evening, light and darkness, triumphs and trials. The black-and-white concept was not merely an artistic device—it was the honoree's confession, her candid story of the years lived, of struggle and inspiration, of the bright and dark paths of fate that merge into a single whole in dance.

A special place in the program was given to the composition "Uzundere", an ancient Azerbaijani dance, once performed in a new arrangement by a chamber orchestra and an ensemble of folk instruments, which greatly impressed the national leader, Heydar Aliyev. At his initiative, in 1997, Tarana Muradova created her own choreographic interpretation, presenting a unique synthesis of classical and folk dance. This dance became one of the leader's favourites. With "Uzundere," Tarana Muradova represented Azerbaijan on the international stage. Its performance at the anniversary evening served as a tribute to history, tradition, and the memory of the National Leader, Heydar Aliyev.

The audience rose to their feet to welcome Tarana Muradova, offering endless applause, flowers, and heartfelt smiles. The celebration carried on behind the scenes, where everyone wished to congratulate her and capture a photo with an artist who has devoted her life to national dance, its preservation, growth, and promotion on the world stage.

Once again, Tarana Muradova demonstrated that art has the power to captivate hearts and stages in any era, and that one can continue to dance at any age—so long as each movement is filled with love.