Yuri Soloviev

[Alexandra]

Soloviev's death was reported as suicide, at least here. I've never read another cause or theory.

[Paul Parish]

Lobenthal also reports that some thought he had been killed. His brother thought so. Lobenthal is careful not to speculate. He does say that it would have been a propaganda disaster for the Soviets for a heroic dancer to kill himself -- it would be seen as a public loss of faith in communism -- and coming so soon after (I can't remember, was it Baryshnikov's defection?) it caused the director of the Kirov to lose his post.

Soloviev was never a member of hte Communist Party. But several of his partners were. His first rise was as the partner of a dancer with powerful protection.

If he had political enemies -- he DID get summoned more than once for long interrogations, especially after Nureyev's defection, which was aggravated by Soloviev's rejecting a homosexual advance from Nureyev when they were room-mates on tour -- Lobenthal does not go into detail at all. He doubtless knows more than he is telling, but he probably does not know enough to make any kind of case. And he does not mention any personal enemies.

[Mel Johnson]

Lobenthal's article would seem to owe a lot to materials relating to Boris Chavrov, Soloviev's teacher, who discovered his student's body, and a note with it that he gave to the police and which has not been seen since. The increasing access to information in the New Russia has obviously led to much progress in the fields of history and biography, and in this case, would seem to have reduced the scope of the very real questions that remain in this sad case.

[Thalictum]

No, the BR article states that it was Sasha Chavrov, the son of Boris Chavrov, who discovered the body.

[Mel Johnson]

I do apologize to the board, as it is indeed Sasha Chavrov who came to the scene first. I was reading the article with the magazine tucked inside a rather large volume of reference (American Archives) at work. Naughty, and besides it promotes too-fast reading.

So, access to Chavrov the younger would be more possible and probable than access to his father's papers. I still applaud the openness of the writing, and now even more the candor of the sources used by Lobenthal.

[Thalictum]

And I apologize because when I went back to the article the sentence mentions only "Chavrov," so it was an easy mistake to make; earlier it mentions Chavrov the younger as a friend of Soloviev's with whom Soloviev discussed his future in ballet. Chavrov's father was gone by then, I believe.

Edited November 20, 2003 by Thalictum

[Mel Johnson]

Yes, if Boris joined the Maryinsky in 1911, I guess he would have been gone by then.

[Paul Parish]

Actually, I must apologize also for jumping to a conclusion -- Lobenthal does not explicitly allege that Belsky lost his position as head of the Kirov due to the scandal of Soloviev's death, coming after Baryshnikov's defection -- he leads you right up to that conclusion, and he points out the sequence of events, but he does not say that this was THE cause, nor even that it was the cause.

[Fraildove]

I am sorry to bump this thread up, but it is so interesting and i have been talking with a former member of the Kirov (much later) and he knows none of this. very interestin. But has anyone come across the copy of the Documentary that was mentioned earlier? I would do anything (OK almost) to get my hands on a copy. Any ideas?