Laurent Hilaire resigns

[volcanohunter]

In response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Laurent Hilaire has resigned as AD of the Stanislavsky and is leaving Russia immediately. 

https://www.francetvinfo.fr/sports/danse/laurent-hilaire-le-directeur-francais-de-la-troupe-de-ballet-du-theatre-stanislavski-a-moscou-annonce-sa-demission_4984161.html

[Mashinka]

I've just heard on the news that Makhar Vaziev has signed a petition against the war.

[aurora]

2 hours ago, Mashinka said:

I've just heard on the news that Makhar Vaziev has signed a petition against the war.

Is there a source? I gather you heard it on tv or radio, but I can't find anything in print online.

Was it in relation to the Bolshoi's London season being cancelled?

Edited February 27, 2022 by aurora

[naomikage]

Not Vaziev, but Vladimir Urin, director of the Bolshoi Theatre, has signed an appeal opposing to war against Ukraine.

http://oteatre.info/teatralnye-deyateli-mir/?fbclid=IwAR1FVT_5TPcwwaI4gw8xkR7splWZ8Eu1OPT5x7XNu8M-ghKqQLO10MMJURc

 

[Drew]

4 hours ago, naomikage said:

Not Vaziev, but Vladimir Urin, director of the Bolshoi Theatre, has signed an appeal opposing to war against Ukraine.

http://oteatre.info/teatralnye-deyateli-mir/?fbclid=IwAR1FVT_5TPcwwaI4gw8xkR7splWZ8Eu1OPT5x7XNu8M-ghKqQLO10MMJURc

 

It's a call to "all parties to the conflict" to sit down and negotiate for peace--as if "all parties" were in a symmetrical relation to each other--and the opposition to war remains generalized. It may still be understood as a critique of Putin's policies--probably (?)--but I find myself unsure how exactly to interpret this kind of statement. Russia experts may feel more confident and wish to weigh in....(I do not feel Russian artists are under automatic obligation to fall on their swords to protest Putin's war--that is, I feel uncomfortable being moralistic about that...)

What Hilaire has done seems to me something very strong and very clear.

Edited February 28, 2022 by Drew

[volcanohunter]

13 hours ago, aurora said:

Was it in relation to the Bolshoi's London season being cancelled?

It's too late to save that tour, but the Bolshoi Theater now does many co-productions with other opera houses, and with many of them saying that they are cutting ties with pro-Putin artists, Urin is probably trying to save some of those agreements. In the past Urin has signed pro-Putin statements, and this spared his subordinates (chief conductor, AD of the ballet company...) from having to do the same. Perhaps now those signatures are coming back to haunt him.

[volcanohunter]

The new AD of the Stanislavsky is 25-year-old Maxim Sevagin, a graduate of the Vaganova Academy who joined the company in 2016 and staged a new production of Romeo and Juliet earlier this season. By local standards it was considered radical.