Russian beauties

[John-Michael]

Does anyone know if the Kirov and Bolshoi choose their female principal dancers partly for their beauty? Looking at pictures of principals in the past one hundred years I'm always surprised at how many of them (not all, I admit) are stunningly attractive. Currently, I find Yuliah Makhalinah, Nadia Grecheva, and Diana Vishneva especially breathtaking and they're just the tip of the iceberg. Looks has nothing to do with talent but it helps the illusion when a dancer is both lovely and talented.

[Ari]

I've always thought that a dancer's beauty comes more from her dancing than her mere physical looks. I don't mean this in a sanctimonious way, but in a practical one. I have stared at photographs of Suzanne Farrell and Natalia Makarova in an attempt to determine if they are indeed beautiful women or whether I was just responding to the power of their dancing, and I've never been able to tell. Whenever I look at them I see them in performance, and they are two of the most glorious creatures I've ever seen. On the other hand, I've looked at photos of Margot Fonteyn, whom I never saw dance classically (live), and concluded that she was just ordinary looking, but a friend who saw her dance many times told me that to her, she's always been a goddess. So I think it's a matter of association. A great ballerina is a beautiful woman, whatever she looks like.

[vrsfanatic]

Yes, indeed the soloists of the Kirov are also chosen because of their beauty. They must be able to dance very well of course, but they must also have that extra special "look". This is a prerequisite for the ladies as well as the men. While I was in St. Petersburg studying, the stars of today were already being groomed as the soloists of tomorrow. The "kids" seemed to know their destiny. They all are where they said they would be when I met them in their 6th year of study. They were already dancing Giselle, Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake and Bayadere as soloists in the school performances in Mariinsky and in the small theatre in Vaganova Academy. They are very carefully prepared to take on their future roles.

[Mel Johnson]

I was always struck with the Kirov's ability to find glamour, if not actual facial beauty in their soloists and principals. I can recall quite a number of them whose stills did them no favors, but when they were seen in the flesh, dancing or not, there is a certain sparkle...

[Alexandra]

Surely there are exceptions! Mezentzeva springs to mind.

[vrsfanatic]

Perhaps I should have been less dramatic and stated that generally the Kirov soloists are also chosen for their beauty. There are indeed exceptions! There are discussions often in the school amongst the teachers and the Direction of the school about a particular students facial appearance as well as their physical appearance.

[Alexandra]

I don't think it's a frivolous quest, by any means. If any art form is about beauty, surely it is ballet! People with interesting, rather than beautiful, forms and faces, if they also have artistry, have a place too, of course, but Solor isn't dreaming of 32 plug uglies going down that ramp

[Juliet]

There is very little excuse for *not* looking beautiful on stage, given the abundance of stage makeup and techniques available currently.

Professional ballet schools do take this into account. It may not be PC to say so, but it is a fact.

[John-Michael]

Well, I seem to remember Gauthier saying that ballet dancers should be beautiful. Figuratively true if not literally true. Of course, he also made the comment that it's a woman's first duty to be beautiful or something to that effect which is kind of a nice idea but also rather mean.

[glebb]

Gauthier lived in a time when Ballerinas were considered almost other worldly. People wanted to believe they could really float above the ground. I not too long ago posted about the vast difference of Fanny Cerrito's image from lithograph to photograh.

I think I remember reading in Karsavina's 'Theatre Street', that she would refrain from eating and even drinking water for several days before a performance.

Senators drinking champagne out of a famous ballerina's pointe shoes? I can hardly see that happening today.

Today our ballerinas are real people. Yes, they are not quite like the person next to you on the bus, but still they are earthly beings.

Krya, my tour guide in Saint Petersburg was very beautiful and told me that she had seriously studied ballet in her youth.

Because of her high marks in school, she was advised to learn several languages and become a translator/tour guide.

I was glad she did. Her tour was so interesting, I didn't want to leave The Hermitage!

[cindy]

My Russian dance teacher friend (who is very attractive) graduated in 1996 from the Saratov Choreographic College. She laughed when I asked her about this. She said the first cut during the admission process at any serious Russian dance academy was based on good looks. They wouldn't even consider you if you weren't reasonable attractive.

[felursus]

Well, there is at least one character soloist/principal in the Kirov today who is certainly no beauty - although she is an excellent dancer. There is another girl in the corps with a face that, while probably not unattractive on the street, seems unattractively long on stage (probably because of the pulled-back hairdo). So the Vaganova school can't be choosing them purely based on looks (for the first cut).