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Sergei Polunin


Alexandra

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My least favorite ballet of all time was set to Mahler's Third Symphony, which runs over 1.5 hours. To add salt to the wound, it was danced to a recording that would have sounded better on any mp3 player with earbuds.

I wonder if it is technologically possible and feasible to transmit recorded sound in a theater to people's phones.

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I thought he'd retired as a professional classical dancer and was focused on becoming an actor.

If he's fallen out of love with ballet, how good can he continue to be?

He has stage presence and loads of charisma. I was looking forward to seeing him try his hand at acting.

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Very interesting and gifted person Polunin...but I wouldn't put money on anything he says about himself or his career.

Within weeks--or was it days?--of announcing he was done with classical ballet, he turned up dancing big roles in Novosibirsk.

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Not that it is at all surprising that a male dancer from Ukraine with Russian training would be welcomed with open arms by a Western school -- particularly one whose reputation as a feeder of great talent into its main company was diminished -- and whose prodigious talent was so obvious I recognized it as he tendued back behind his prologue fairy partner in "Sleeping Beauty," and that a 5'6" American female dancer would not be embraced by a Russian company with more prodigious talent than it could cast, but to imply that Polunin, described as having spent twice as much time as his schoolmates in the studio because he wasn't in regular school as well, somehow had everything handed to him as if he hadn't done the work or had talent she can only dream of while poor she isn't a star at the Bolshoi is on the delusional side. News alert: men have an easier time being recognized for their work and talent than women in ballet. News alert: the West embraces dancers from the East as company members while the East doesn't embrace Western dancers. News alert: every year someone graduated at the top of his or her class, but that isn't a guarantee of anything except, usually, an offer for a corps position, joining other first-in-one's-class corps members. This was the reality she chose, as Polunin pointed out.

A "Spiegel" online article on their opposite journeys:

http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/the-story-of-ballet-dancers-sergei-polunin-and-joy-womack-a-1059837.html

99 lb target weight for a 5'6" ballerina...

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One of the things I always admire about Polunin is that he always finds a way to talk about the generally unfair conditions for ballet dancers. He never makes it a story about his own personal hardships - as easy as that would be to do since he's obviously had many. He comes off sounding very intelligent and savvy. I hope that his message is heard loud and clear.

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Sergei Polunin Documentary

Dancer (2016) - On International movie database site http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5097070/?ref_=nv_sr_2

 

Release Dates:

USA     16 September 2016     (limited)
Switzerland     25 September 2016     (Zurich Film Festival)
UK     8 October 2016     (London Film Festival)

 

The imdb site says: This movie has been released on amazon.com, for "Watch Now From $3.99 (SD) on Amazon Video".


《Dancer》 Official Trailer 1 (2016) -

 

Exclusive clip from 《DANCER》 with Sergei Polunin

 

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I find the following brief quote regarding Sergei Polunin so poignant and memorable that I feel compelled to share it on Ballet Alert: "Among the staff on the audition panel was Tatiana Mihailovna Martynena. 'Usually in the third round when the children improvise a piece, you will see very simple things, but when Sergei (Polunin) began dancing to a Pavarotti aria, it was something truly outstanding. He had an extraordinary feeling for music and such rare natural coordination. It was the first time I'd ever seen a boy with such gifts and I had tears in my eyes as I watched him' ".

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33 minutes ago, Mashinka said:

Rather unwise in the current political climate. 

Unwise or not, I do find his reasoning for his tattoo "obsession" to be fascinating. In interview clips I've watched, he alludes to the concept of freedom over his own body in the ballet world. One might say that all of his tattoos are unwise choices for employment in traditional ballet companies.

Edited by howpureisivory
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21 hours ago, canbelto said:

A number of ballet dancers have tattoos that are hidden by costume. I think Polunin's tattoos are more unusual in that they are in areas (his hands have "Natasha" tattooed on them -- oops) that are harder to hide by costume.

They also use makeup to cover the tattoos.  Here is a link to a Washington Post article on this subject:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater_danc/ballet-dancers-with-skin-in-the-game/2016/11/23/2328c264-af96-11e6-ab37-1b3940a0d30a_story.html?utm_term=.7a6d15c2b0bc

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I noticed a tattoo on Herman Cornejo's arm when he reappeared topless at the end of In the Upper Room last month.

Something I've never understood: don't tattoos interfere with the body's ability to sweat at those locations? It just seems like too many would be a health issue, especially for athletes, but that doesn't seem to discourage people.

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