"I am against the war with my whole soul," said Olga Smirnova, until a few days ago the prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow and as of this week a member of the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam, explaining why she is resigning from the theater where she is a star.
As soon as the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, Smirnova wrote that she expected civilized societies to resolve political differences peacefully in modern times, and that she never thought they would be "ashamed of Russia."
"I have always been proud of talented Russian people, of our cultural and sports achievements. But now I feel that the line between before and after has been drawn. It hurts me that people are dying, losing their roofs over their heads or being forced to leave their homes. And who would have thought a few weeks ago that all this would happen? We may not be at the epicenter of a military conflict, but we cannot remain indifferent to this global catastrophe," wrote Smirnova, as reported by the Dutch National Ballet.
86b2de_670fe052527d4df7bdc96ae4c55971d5_mv2_d_5001_5001_s_4_2Olga Smirnova / Photo: photo Jack Devant
The director of this Amsterdam ensemble, Ted Brandsen, described Smirnova as an "extraordinary ballerina" and said that "it is a privilege to have her in the company, regardless of the incredibly sad circumstances under which she came." The Dutch welcomed Smirnova with open arms, explaining that she work in the country from which he comes is prevented because of its stance against the Russian invasion.
Olga Smirnova's first role in the Dutch National Ballet will be in Raimondi, a classical ballet to music by Alexander Glazunov and choreography by Marius Petipa. The premiere is on April 3.
Olga Smirnova says that she is one quarter Ukrainian because her grandfather is from that country. She is originally from St. Petersburg, she is 30 years old. After graduating from ballet school, she became a member of the Bolshoi Theater as a soloist. After five years, she became a prima ballerina. She won many awards. She performed as a guest performer in Monte Carlo, the American Ballet Theater, in Vienna, in Hamburg, on many world stages.
After Olga Smirnova, other artists were encouraged to publicly express their disagreement with the Russian aggression against Ukraine. Choreographer Alexei Ratmansky, who grew up in Ukraine, publicly announced that "Putin must end this war immediately" and canceled the premiere at the Bolshoi Theater. The champion of the Mariinsky Ballet Theater, Vladimir Shkliarov, posted an anti-war message on social networks, as did Diana Vishneva, the former champion of the Mariinsky Ballet. Brazilian Victor Caxeta, who was in the Marine Ballet for five years, transferred to the Dutch Ballet.
Last week, Brazilian soloist David Mota Soares and Italian principal dancer Jacopo Tisi left the Bolshoi Theater ensemble.
The law that was established in Russia on March 3, which carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years for spreading "false" information about Russian military operations, and which primarily applies to the media, has contributed to punishing anyone who thinks otherwise. This is how people protesting in the cities of Russia are brought in. During the protests last week in Moscow alone, 4363 demonstrators were arrested, and the number of those who were fired because they dared to say something against Russia's current policy is unknown.
One of them is Valery Kudinov, an official of the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency in charge of aircraft maintenance. He was fired for publicly stating that Russia was negotiating to get parts from Turkey and India after failing to do so from China. The information was published by the Russian "Kommersant".
S.Ć./BBC/Al Jazeera
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