#qa misc

This is probably insider level information but just in case I was wondering if you have any insight as to the retirement age for ballet dancers in Russia. Ruslan has retired from being a principal and idk if it’s on his own term, or was forced or because he’s passed retirement age he can’t dance anymore(?). Because arnt there dancers over 40 in Russia who are still dancing? I hope he stays at bolshoi in some capacity

The retirement age for dancers used to be around 38, but things appear to have changed since Russia’s recent pension reform. Google tells me that, at the moment, a soloist must have worked for 15 years in order to be eligible to receive a pension, while a corps member needs at least 25 years. Just to be clear, no one is forced to retire 15 or 25 years into their career; dancers are simply eligible to receive their pension at that age and can retire if they choose to. It has to be said that many dancers don’t make it to the “retirement” age and leave earlier, often due to injury or heath issues. Of course, people can also be forced out of a company and the profession if management decides to stop giving them roles. 

There are always exceptions. Diana Vishneva is still performing, Lopatkina danced into her 40s, and ballerinas like Ulanova and Plisetskaya danced well into their 50s. 

The question of when a dancer should retire is an interesting one. Tsiskaridze insisted that no danseur should perform classical repertoire past 40 – because it is a “sad sight to behold”. Also, by staying on past a certain age, dancers can block the way for younger generation (this was partly the reason Plisetskaya, Maximova, Bessmertnova, etc. were fired from the Bolshoi by Grigorovich).

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Melmoth, do you know what happened to russianballetvideos2? For a while the channel was deleted and I noticed some of his videos being stolen by a channel called Bailey World, and some others too. Now, he's back in full steam. Did someone hack his account, or did some copyright thing hit him, or did he just decide to take the videos down for personal reasons? On this topic, is he credible? I noticed he's very opinionated, but I can't help but agree with him most of the time.

No, sorry. No idea. I didn’t even know the channel was down. I don’t really follow russianballetvideos2 because I find that channel toxic. It’s entirely possible that the videos / channel got taken down for copyright violation. That’s what happened to balletflowers and another big channel (can’t remember the name) that was posting videos of the Bolshoi’s performances.

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Which are the biggest ballet companies in Russia after Bolshoi and Mariinsky?

You can see the full list of Russian companies here. 

My personal list (it will vary depending on who you ask) of biggest / major companies are:

Bolshoi (Moscow)

Mariinsky* (St Petersburg)

Mikhailovsky Theatre (St Petersburg) 

Stanislavsky Musical Theatre (Moscow)

Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre** (St Petersburg) 

Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre (Perm)

Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre (Novosibirsk)

Do you know anything about Zakharova’s daughter and if she trains at a high level in rhythmic gymnastics and if she’s done any big competitions etc and if Zakharova has ever mentioned plans of putting her into ballet or VBA?

Anna Repina trains at the Irina Viner’s Rhythmic Gymnastics Centre. Let me repeat that, Irina bloody Viner. At the moment, she’s training for five hours a day, six days a week. So, yes, it looks like she’s pursuing the sport professionally and regularly takes part in competitions. I don’t know why she chose sport over ballet for her daughter, but I know that Zakharova loves rhythmic gymnastics, and Anna’s obviously a fan too.

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Wow, Diana Vishneva’s apartment looks so luxurious.. is this the life every principal dancer of bolshoi or Mariinskii can afford? i don’t know anything about salaries in the companies so I’m curious about this aspect

I don’t know a great deal about salaries either, but principal dancers form the Mariinsky and the Bolshoi should be comfortable. Diana is one of the most thought-after dancers in the world, and she’s had a long and extraordinary career, dancing with several companies all over the world. I think it’s safe to assume that she’s accumulated considerable wealth. Plus, she married a very well-off man.

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I follow your instagram page about Tsiskaridze but I don’t speak Russian and have no idea what Rodkin is saying about Tsiskaridze in one of your last posts. Can you share ?

I don’t think you’re following my page, as I haven’y posted any videos of Rodkin recently. There are Tsiskaridze fan accounts out there, so you may be following one of them.

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Re the Russians vs Americans with a barre at home - I feel like American dancers do more cross-training, so working out at home might involve other types of exercising and less actual ballet.

Thank you for the insight. This was in response to this post.

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Do you know what happened to Margarita Frolova by any chance? Sorry if obscure. I believe she was in the Mariinsky corps a couple years ago. I see people discussing her from time to time on forums and comment sections, but her page on the Mariinsky site doesn’t say whether she is still with them or not.

Sorry, no. I tried looking into her, but there isn’t much info out there and her social media pages are private. She’s still listed in the Mariinsky website though.

Why did Angelina Vorontsova leave Bolshoi for Mikhailovsky? I’m sorry if you’ve answered this before and I missed it.

She was forced to leave. Her life was made unbearable after the 2013 scandal and the attack on Filin. Because her ex (Dmitrichenko) and her teacher (Tsiskaridze) were at the centre of the scandal, Angelina became embroiled in it as well. The press cast her as a femme fatale who inspired the whole thing and she was generally defined entirely by the men around her. It was disgusting and still makes me angry when I think about it. The good news is, Angelina found love and a fulfilling career at the Mikhailovsky. I’d like to think that she came out on top.

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I believe that some students who get a 2 in exams are eligible to retake... and only a 2 in classical ballet results in expulsion. Also physique comprises part of the exam mark, so a student who gets a 2 and therefore fails the exam might in fact have performed well but was judged to have developed an unsuitable physique.

You’re right. In Elya’s interview (if that’s what you’re referring to), she says that “2″ is get you expelled, but that isn’t necessarily true. As you said, some students are given an opportunity to retake the exam a months or two later, but not everyone takes this opportunity. And, yes, there is the matter of “form” – a controversial subject...

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Omg Elya’s virtual animal ahahah so cute

Low-key the best “pet” in that series.

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Don’t Elya and Denis have a cat?

Denis has two cats, but I think they live with his parents?

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Had Nikolai gotten an opportunity to dance Spartacus, do you think he would have danced the title role or Crassus? Same question for Ivan the Terrible (title role or Kurbsky?)

Nikolai is a firm believer in emploi, and it’s always been my understanding that the absence of “Spartacus” and “Ivan the Terrible” from his repertoire was a conscious choice on his part. I think that Crassus and Kurbsky are heroic roles, whereas Nikolai was a lyrical danseur, so it wouldn’t have been a good fit. I would’ve liked to see him as Ivan the Terrible though. I think it would’ve been interesting. 

Do you know if Renata and Kimin are still together?

No, and I don’t know whether they were ever together or if those were just rumours. She’s been with Aleksei Timofeev, Mariinsky soloist, for a few years now.

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Who is Evgeny Chernyavsky, a brother of Maria?

I’m not sure who Evgeny Chernyavsky is eiather... There’s a Russian youtuber by that name, but I don’ think he’s related to Maria Chernyavskaya, the Vaganova Academy student.

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What do you think of the ballet education system in the United States?

My brain now, whenever anyone asks me about anything to do with education:

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Seriously though, I haven’t had any ballet training, let alone in the US, so I can’t really answer this question. I can tell you what the great Irina Kolpakova thinks of the ballet education system in the US though. According to Kolpakova (who’s been with ABT for many years now and works with American dancers all the time), the issue with ballet training in the US is that, unlike in Russia, there isn’t a unified training system. This means that students in different parts of the country are taught differently, and if you were to get them all together and try and form a corps de ballet, you wouldn’t be able to because they would all be performing each movement differently. So you’d have to retrain them. I think that it’s an interesting and fair observation. I wonder if it would be possible to introduce a unified training system in the US. 

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Hi, love your blog! Perhaps you have seen this already but I think the insta live between Igor Kolb and Prof Kovaleva is on youtube. Can't seem to embed a link but the title of the vid is Игорь Колб + Людмила Ковалева (часть 1 прямого эфира)

Thank you! I’ve got a copy of that interview too. It is on my list of things to translate!

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Melmoth can you please translate the interview with Denis Rodkin on pianist Varvara Kutuzova Instagram page ? It’s in direct in her ig stories of yesterday. It would be interesting

Yes, will do. I downloaded the interview after it went live.

Hi Melmoth! I recently came up with a video of the 3 shades of la bayadere in which Daria Ionova's variation (first shade) was cut off; the YT Channel owner commented that it wasn't good enough to be posted; do you have this clip? was it really not good? I think it was her debut. Thanks!!

Unfortunately, no, I don’t. However, if the uploader decided not to share the variation online because it’s not very good, I think it’s a good and kind decision. People can get very nasty very quickly.

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@euphoricandephemeral Hi Melmoth, I was wondering if you have any knowledge on Svetlana Zakharova. Ive been following her and watching her since i was really young. I had plans to go to Russia and hopefully see her preform but many things happened as life does at times so i havent been able to go. I hope i can go next summer but who knows. Do you know when she will retire or what plans she has for her career. I’d be crushed if she retires before i can see her preform Thanks in advance :)

That’s a million dollar question: when will Zakharova retire? No one knows at this stage and I don’t think she’s spoken about her post-retirement plans a great deal. I think she’ll keep dancing for some time, but will slowly move from classical into contemporary. I hope you’ll get to see her perform live!

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Misha debuted as Friends to the Prince in SL earlier this season but hasn’t gotten much more. Juusela also debuted something similar at the beginning but I don’t quite remember what. I know Juusela does corps stuff but I haven’t a clue what Barkidjija is up to. Horowitz hasn’t done much either.

...and no they’re all in quarantine. This situation is really messing with dancers. By the way, I recently heard that Barkidjija is injured. So that answers that question.

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Egor Gerashchenko married! He is so young, can’t believe! What do you think of his development as a dancer? He’s been assigned main roles lately. I would like to know your opinion

I wrote about marriage in Russia here. By Russian “standards”, they’re right on  schedule to get married, so not too young. Oksana used to date Denis Rodkin. The ballet world is so small, I imagine most people dated each other 😅. If I’m brutally honest, I don’t think Egor is ready for the roles he’s getting. I wish he would’ve taken more time and care to prepare these parts. His Crassus wasn’t good. 

do you know what Gisele Bethea is up to? i remember her being a huge deal a few years ago, but haven’t heard much recently.

I don’t know anything beyond what’s on her instagram.

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i Melmoth, this may seem like a weird question but is Ilya Kuznetsov from the Pro Ballet channel's wife from an East Asian country like Korea? I'm just curious because it seems like Russia is quite a homogenous society (with the exception of ppl from ex Soviet states)

Sol is from South Korea.

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In your answer about Bulanova you said Sevenard was also criticised for weight, what happened? To me Bulanova looks perfectly skinny, not Khoreva-like, but still very skinny. Sevenard looks more muscular, and I think this is why she has those gorgeous rotations, but I might be wrong. I would like to know for what was/is she criticised about when it comes both to her body and her dancing.

When people fixate on a dancer (in a negative way), the first thing they criticise is the dancer’s weight. To them, the dancer is either too fat or anorexic, there’s no in-between. The technique also gets pulled apart but, as you can imagine, none of this feedback is constructive. Basically, it’s just bashing.

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Why do you think Elya Sevenard was overexposed? She was amazingly talented and the other good girls in her year were injured so obviously her workload was major..

I mean she was overexposed in the media. Tsiskaridze kept shouting her name from rooftops, which put a target on her back. People were really nasty about her and to her for several years because of this.

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Why do you say that Lopatkina wasn’t expected to get so far? Was it because she’s not very flexible? I thought she epitomized everything about the old Vaganova school. She danced in the old fashion, the way that the dancers in the 70’s did. Was the ballet world’s preference already leaning toward the more flexible type of ballerina?

According to Ulyana’s teacher, she had a lot of issues with her technique. That being said, she was still a very talented student and one of the best in her class. I’m sure people thought she’d do well at the Mariinsky, but no one knew she was going to be, you know, LOPATKINA.

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Is it my impression or the incredible admiration Sevenard has for Rodkin has made him become more peacock-y? I’m sure having great beauty and lots of fans is already enough but the fact she considers him perfect( he said so) and dedicates her life to him basically, made his confidence boost. Maybe it’s just me anyway n I do really like him btw

I think she’s just made him very happy and you can see that in his attitude, behaviour, etc.

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Soobin Lee was just promoted to second soloist at Boston Ballet!

I’m happy for her but I’m still bitter she’s not at the Mariinsky. She belongs at the Mariinsky goddamnit!

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Hi Melmoth, this is quite a random question but is it just me or do the more famous Bolshoi dancers tend to act more like celebrities than dancers and those at the Mariinsky, even though they are famous, act as dancers rather than celebrities?

I think some dancers definitely act more like celebrities than artists. And you’re right, I think the Bolshoi dancers tend to do this more than the Mariinsky ones... Maybe it’s because the Bolshoi is considered Russia’s “main stage”. Or maybe it’s because St Petersburg is just more aristocratic and the dancers’ behaviour reflects that. It really annoys me, even though I understand that media presence and commercial partnerships are necessary in this day and age.

what's going on with Oscar Frame? He posted on his facebook page he has to leave his residence within 2 weeks? He hints he is stil with Bolshoi, but I wonder.

I’m not friends with Frame on Facebook, so I can’t see the post you’re referring to. My last update on Oscar was two weeks ago, he appears to be doing fine at the Bolshoi.

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Would you know what happened to Orine Anzai? She hasn't posted on IG in a long time. I hope all's OK.

I have no updates, I’m afraid. She’s still listed as a member of the Mariinsky corps de ballet, though, so she hasn’t left the company and will hopefully come back once she’s recovered.

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Dear Melmoth, I remember Amelishko and Tshvitaria left Mariinsky for Ballet Theater in Samara, however, it looks like they are not there anymore. Do you know where they are dancing? Thanks.

Nika and her husband have gone freelance, so they’re dancing all over the place.

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Has Ksenia Sevenard recovered from her injury?

No updates on that front, I’m afraid...

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Any idea where masha petukhova is now? She seemed to have great potential but I haven’t heard anything about her since she left VBA... heard she was with the Estonian National Ballet but haven’t seen any clips or anything... any updates?

I don’t think Maria is at Estonian National Opera anymore, she’s not listed as a member of the company on their website. Unfortunately, she’s not been very active on social media since last year, so there are no updates on her current situation.

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I’m a bit sad about Bogdashkina, I expected her to have some soloist roles after joining Mikhailovski but apparently nothing still.

It’s not very common for graduates to get soloist roles after they join a company as a corps dancer. For every Bulanova, Nyukina or Iliyushkina there are dozens upon dozens of dancers who don’t get the same opportunities or exposure. That’s the unfortunate reality of ballet. 

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Can you ordinate these recent vaganova graduates based on your preference ? From the one who is the best to bottom ( of course they are all dedicated and hardworking people, it’s just I’m curious about your taste). Alena Kovaleva, Daria Ionova, Eleonora Sevenard, Vlada Borodulina, Maria Khoreva, Maria Bulanova.

I don’t like comparing dances because they are all very different and have individual traits that one shouldn’t and can’t compare. The list below is based  purely on my personal taste and the very important fact that I am more familiar with some of these dancers than others:

Khoreva

Sevenard

Kovaleva

Ionova

Bulanova

Borodulina

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I may have missed it but, do we have any idea where the likes of Kristina Legacheva (beautiful lines), Ksenia Andreenko, Zoya Frolova, etc from the 2019 class ended up? (I assume K. Sevenard still injured.) It blows my mind that a ballerina could get that far in her training and not be taken by a company! I hope they find work.

Unfortunately, I’m still not sure where these graduates ended up at. 

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Do you think it is possible that Khoreva, Bulanova, Nuikina, Ionova, Khiteeva, Savelieva, and Petukhova (I forgot where she is) could all become primas or first soloists with Mariinsky (or where Petukhova is)? These girls all seem supremely talented, and were the toppers of their classes. The past few Vaganova top graduates all seem to be doing really well in theater. Ionova needs a promotion soon, and Savelieva I hope will get more and more solist roles. Top graduates part 2: Ever since 2009, the top graduates either do really well in theater or are completely sidelined. Stepanova is finally a prima, although I think that she was better when she was younger, and in Mariinsky. Bateova is doing well. Marchuk got completely put aside, for some unknown reason. Smirnova and Shapran are both doing very well. Strebko isn't even at Bolshoi anymore, where is she? And what about Olga Makarova? What a talent wasted. I see Lukina will debut in Giselle.

Anything is possible, but if we were to look at things realistically... The number of principal and leading soloist positions at any given theatre is limited and every year VBA and BBA graduate incredible young talent. The competition is intense and not every dancer - no matter how promising and talented - makes it through. Olga Makarova, for example, now works primarily as a ballet teach and figure skating coach, though I believe she is also a freelance dancer.

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Laura Fernandez just signed a soloist contract with the Stanislavsky Ballet. I was trying to get a feel for what that company is like by watching videos. What is their style/reputation? They seem to be more flamboyant than the Mariinsky - more like the Bolshoi.

The Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Musical Academic Theatre was formed in 1941, when Stanislavsky Opera merged with Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theatre. The theatre was supposed to be more experimental and innovative than the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky (these theatres were supposed to remain “classical”). For example, as I see it, “Nureyev” would’ve been right up its alley, though it was staged at the Bolshoi

According to STANMUS website:

The Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre was founded in 1941 when two companies directed by the legendary reformers of twentieth-century theatre — Konstantin Stanislavsky and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko — merged. The new theatre followed the artistic principles of its founders, who applied the system of the Moscow Art Theatre to opera and ballet. Both Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko rejected the current conception of opera as «costume concert». They wanted to bring it closer to drama and comedy, revealing the main idea of the plot through psychologically motivated action. 

Just to write a balancing comment here about all the uproar of certain dancers being "buried in the corps"-- from what I've seen of Marchuk, both online and live (I went to Russia to watch ballet a year ago and she did a small solo in one of the performances), her technique is inconsistent and IMO probably won't be able to carry a full-length ballet. RBV2 has a lot of favorites, but that doesn't mean that they are better than other competitors. Nobody is stealing opportunities from others.

Thank you for contributing a level-headed view. 

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Why is Mariinsky’s repertoire so restricted? Shows like Marco Spada, La Fille du Pharaon, Winter’s Tale and Esmeralda would bring some variety to the theater, I think.

I don’t think Mariinsky’s repertoire is nessesarily restricted; the Bolshoi is simply, well, bigger. The Bolshoi simply offers more opportunities, which has been cited as the reason for moving there (or choosing to work there) by several ballerinas, including Zakharova, Obraztsova, and Smirnova.

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Wasn't natasha furman the little girl who was on that TV show a while ago dancing bluebird, where tsiskaridze encouraged her to join an academy and to stop competing? Seems like she took his advice lol

Yes, that’s her! It’s the second (if not the third) time a contestant from Blue Bird ended up at Vaganova. For those of you wondering what the anon is referring to, read this. I’m actually really glad she followed through.

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Is it common for students to be dismissed *before* the final exams of the year? I thought dismissals were normally done after the exams, especially after the 3rd and 5th year exams. (Excluding injuries of course.)

I think it’s far more common for them to drop out or be dismissed after the end-of-year exams than at any other time. I’m sure there are other cases of dismissals, but I’m not personally aware of any. There have been rumours about Tsiskaridze dismissing students for “behavioural issues” but I’m not sure if he just threatened to do it or actually went ahead with it. 

It is also my understanding that students who fail end-of-year exams often get an opportunity to take them again at some point in June / July. So some of them get a second chance. 

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Have you seen "Strictly Bolshoi" on YouTube? It's a one hour documentary about British dancers who come to choreograph something for the Bolshoi, with Tsiskaridze as one of the lead dancers. They seemed to have trouble communicating, but obviously the doc only shows the British choreographers perspective so I was wondering if you had any thoughts to share. Tsiskaridze came off a little bit, you know, "extra", but he also seemed very nice and inviting when the choreographer came to his flat.

Yes, I have. I actually get asked about that little gem pretty often. Yes, Tsiskaridze was definitely being... extra in it. I reviewed my old response to a similar question and while I don’t feel as strongly about the whole thing as I used to, my answer still stands, so have a read.