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Skorik


Birdsall

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Interesting that she expects her post to be "banned" by authorities, rather than deleted by her.

Skorik's post doesn't specify whether she was entering or leaving, but Russia is just about the only country in my experience that asks more questions of people upon exiting than upon entering. Exit visas went the way of the Soviet Union, but evidently some habits die hard, and oddly this one extends to foreigners as well. The way Adrian Blake Mitchell described leaving Russia with Andrea Laššáková was quite terrifying, even though you'd think an American and a Slovak would be entitled to leave Russia whenever they pleased. Perhaps the border guards were suspicious because they couldn't imagine a Black man and a White woman traveling together. He deleted text messages that could be seen as anti-Russian, and pretended not to understand Russian well. (I've done that too.)

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/arts/2022/04/07/two-ballet-dancers-recount-their-journey-fleeing-russia

Edited by volcanohunter
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2 hours ago, volcanohunter said:

Interesting that she expects her post to be "banned" by authorities, rather than deleted by her.

Skorik's post doesn't specify whether she was entering or leaving, but Russia is just about the only country in my experience that asks more questions of people upon exiting than upon entering. Exit visas went the way of the Soviet Union, but evidently some habits die hard, and oddly this one extends to foreigners as well. The way Adrian Blake Mitchell described leaving Russia with Andrea Laššáková was quite terrifying, even though you'd think an American and a Slovak would be entitled to leave Russia whenever they pleased. Perhaps the border guards were suspicious because they couldn't imagine a Black man and a White woman traveling together. He deleted text messages that could be seen as anti-Russian, and pretended not to understand Russian well. (I've done that too.)

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/arts/2022/04/07/two-ballet-dancers-recount-their-journey-fleeing-russia

Those adventures to get out of the country sound harrowing.

I kind of like to picture you pretending not to understand Russian well...

:offtopic:During the cold war a college friend was traveling in the Federal Republic of Germany ("West Germany" for anyone who might be confused) and somehow didn't know she needed a visa to take the train to West Berlin because it passed through the German Democratic Republic ("East Germany").  She was/is a smart woman--but at the time she was about 20 and just made a silly, albeit serious mistake.

She ended up arrested by East German police who did not know any English.  They were clearly not amused nor were they treating the situation lightly. She later told me she had never been so frightened in her life and since she DID know Russian and communication with the East Germans was proving impossible, she kept actively reminding herself "do NOT let them know you can speak Russian; speaking Russian in this situation would be a bad idea." (Of course probably they wouldn't have known Russian either, but in a less fraught situation it might have been worth a try. In that one...not so much.) They did let her go. After all these years I can't remember if she made it to West Berlin but I don't think so.

Edited by Drew
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It was advice I was given informally when applying for a Russian visa. "If an American, born in the United States, speaks Russian too well, it's suspicious." Not that my Russian is spy-level, because it isn't, but it's true. Stand mute before a border guard and they see an stupid tourist and say nothing. If automatic civility kicks in and you say hello, then the questions and the super-close inspection of your passport begin.

These days, though, I'm sure the crossing can be seriously unpleasant. Some have told me they're afraid to make the attempt to leave the country, for fear of having their passports taken away at the border. I don't know whether this is actually happening, but I can understand the anxiety.

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The BBC has reported on a massive exodus of young people leaving Russia in the first couple of weeks of the war, though this is the continuation of a trend first noted some time ago.  Initially the authorities were happy to see them go as they were considered 'free thinkers', people the present regime prefers to do without.  Perhaps there has been a clamp down.  

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For those of you from the old days who recall discussion about her ability with fouetté’s, someone just posted a video of her recent Odile where she does a fine series with seven doubles, the finishing one very secularly ended. Victory !

She’s always had the ability to produce fireworks. I’m sure I’ve seen her do triple fouetté turns, for instance, and other very impressive accomplishments. And if she did have hesitations, she could make breathtaking recoveries. She seems remarkably in control at the top of the final Odile lift.  Consistency and security no longer seem to be an issue at all.

For an added feature….she might be one of the most beautifully refined dancers ever.

 

Here for a comparison are the two perhaps finest ballerinas in the world today.

“The Swan”

Oxana Skorik -- wonderful grace and refinement

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bf9AqDajr_0&t=60s

Olga Smirnova -- compelling expression and fine gracefulness

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck3N5xlo38W/?hl=en

(both videos were officially posted)

 

 

 

Edited by Buddy
typo correction
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