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| Rudolf Nureyev? We're taking it back! | |
| 2023-03-18 | |
| Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Elena Karaeva [RIA] Today, on the day of the 85th anniversary of the [birth of the - Ed.] great dancer, who broke the canons of classical male choreography in order to create, bit by bit, bit by bit, the ballet that the West knows today (and which still earns millions in various currencies), Russia is regaining Rudolf Nureyev. He himself said, being a very closed person, that he experienced panic, excitement and horror before each performance, dreaming of running away and hiding in his mother's arms. Where there is home, warmth, care. Nureyev, in contrast to those who methodically and carefully prepared "leaving for the West", never even thought of becoming what the then propaganda (on both sides) called a "defector." The only "sin" that was blamed was the violation of the "Basic Rules for the Conduct of Soviet Citizens Traveling to Capitalist Countries," a once-secret document that explained in 15 pages what one could not do or afford. Nureyev did not follow a single point of the instruction, so those who compiled such papers decided to punish him. Having cut off the opportunity to perform in London . And following his decision to stay in the West, they deprived him - voluntaristically and lawlessly - of his homeland. Such are the petty Pontius Pilates, who were afraid of the supreme authorities. The twenty-three-year-old dancer remained in France . Without housing. Without money. Out of employment. Without documents. It was in the Kirov Ballet that he was a star and, acting as a soloist of a famous troupe, made both the stalls and the gallery of the Grand Opera go crazy in a fit of "rudimania", and at that moment he himself represented nothing and no one. A name - one's own, a separate one - had only to be earned, and a place in the ballet galaxy to win. Legs, arms, shoulders, every muscle, every tendon, every drop of blood and sweat. Slowly. Shopkeepers who measure everything that exists by money, fame and other external benefits, calling all this "the freedom of creativity that the West gave to Nureyev", do not know or do not want to know that a gift, talent, genius, especially in ballet, is slavery. And that there is certainly no freedom, except for the freedom to spend dozens of hours at the barre, and then rehearse, and then go on stage, despite the pain, does not exist. Pain is relieved by passion. For the work you are doing. Nureyev turned out to be so successful in the West because for every act in life, artistic decision, pirouette and jump, he paid with his own life. Complete destruction seriously - it's about him. And so - almost on a daily basis, all three and a half decades that he danced, worked as a choreographer, taught others and learned from others. This is a very Russian character trait of a guy in whose veins (he was incredibly proud of it) the blood of the descendants of Genghis Khan flowed. Tireless, sharp, demanding. And of course, absolutely disinterested. He gave himself to the world in a way that no one before him or after him gave. And he was betrayed. He was betrayed by the sirs and peers of the Royal Opera in London, refusing a contract, having previously earned millions on his name alone. He was betrayed in the same way at the Grand Opera, because he, being its chief choreographer, forced the troupe to plow in Russian. That is, with full dedication. When it came to labor, he heard no objections. “You don’t talk here, you work here,” he said to those whom he forced for hours correctly, that is, as is customary in Russian ballet, to dance on half-fingers,
And then, when there was no stage left in his life, that is, at home, he came to Russia. Where no one betrayed him. Although for the act "I choose freedom" his friends were kicked out of the university, deprived of the opportunity to tour, blackmailed in such a way that it seemed to no one. A little earlier, he was allowed to say goodbye to his dying mother. But now he was allowed to touch the stage again, to which in the end he owed everything. He remembered the cracks in her parquet. He remembered the dimples on the floor of the rehearsal room. He was finally home. Among their own. Those who have been waiting for him for almost 30 years. Nureyev danced for them. Last time. He was answered with love. The one, maternal, in which there is protection, and warmth, and admiration, and pride. His productions at the Grand Opera remain top-grossing. The Paris Opera, like an old kept woman, cuts coupons from the fortune given to her by Nureyev. And soloists are appointed there according to the principle of diversity and inclusion. Talent, fury, passion and self-sacrifice? No. They didn't hear it there. Rudolf Nureyev? We're taking it back! | |
| Posted by:badanov |
| #2 A bit of fun: |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2023-03-18 13:48 |
| #1 Saw him dance long ago. Magnificent. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2023-03-18 07:25 |