The China Mail - Russian ballet banned for 'gay propaganda' gets new life in Berlin

"Nureyev", created by Russian film and stage director Kirill Serebrennikov, premiered in Moscow in 2017, but after Russia tightened its anti-LGBTQ laws, the ballet was banned in 2023 due to its open portrayal of same-sex relationships.

Serebrennikov, who left Russia in 2022 and now lives in exile in Germany, will present the ballet for the first time outside his home country at the Berlin State Ballet on March 21, with former Bolshoi dancer David Soares in the title role.

Bringing the ballet back to life is "very special to my heart and a big responsibility", said Brazilian dancer Soares, 28, who also left Moscow in 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"Nureyev" tells the story of the man widely regarded as the leading male ballet dancer of the 20th century, who fled the Soviet Union for France in 1961 and died there in 1993 due to complications from AIDS.

Christian Spuck, the director of the Berlin State Ballet, has insisted on keeping the production as close to the original as possible, Serebrennikov said.

The message for Western audiences is "the same" as that intended for Russia, Serebrennikov told AFP, "because we are living in a time of lack of freedom, lack of common sense".

- High heels and drag -

With his "disruptive art" and "rebel mood", Nureyev is someone "who doesn't belong to any time", Serebrennikov said.

"He is kind of above everything. That's why this figure... will be always a magnet for other artists and will be a big example how to fight against the boring grey normality," he said.

The ballet highlights Nureyev's relationships with men and his enjoyment of the gay scene in Paris, where he is shown surrounded by dancers in high heels and drag.

When it premiered at the Bolshoi in December 2017, "Nureyev" was well received by critics.

But Serebrennikov himself was unable to attend, as he was under house arrest on allegations of stealing state funds.

The premiere had initially been scheduled for July 2017, but was cancelled after Russian officials objected to the male nudity visible onstage.

The show was supposed to feature a large, full‑stage backdrop of a completely nude photograph of Nureyev taken by the famous photographer Richard Avedon, removed for the eventual premiere later that year.

In Berlin, the image will be reinstated in all its glory.

- 'Extreme expressions' -

Serebrennikov, 56, is one of tens of thousands of Russians who have fled to Berlin since 2022, the year the Ukraine war broke out, making the city the unofficial capital of the Russian opposition.

The director has gathered a team of fellow exiles around him for the new production, including choreographer Yuri Possokhov.

For Soares, who left Brazil at the age of 12 to fulfil his dream of dancing in Moscow, it is "quite impossible" to fully embody Nureyev.

"He is not just a ballet star. He is a character, a very, very powerful person," said the dancer, who immersed himself in interviews with Nureyev and others close to him in preparation for the role.

Soares, who will share the role of Nureyev with several other soloists during the production run, lauds the dancer's unique style, characterised by "explosive jumps", "extreme expressions" and "artistic freedom in every sense".

"He was one of those artists who teach the audience how to see ballet in a new way," he said.

"When he came with his way of dancing, he taught the audience, sit and watch what I do."

N.Lo--ThChM