FionaM Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 Announcement of Xander Parish joining Norwegian National Ballet as principal … with a short video https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ch2vNBep7eZ/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= https://www.instagram.com/tv/Ch2J4TvKUM3/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaM Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 His first performance with them is on Saturday 3rd September … Albrecht partnering Whitney Jensen https://operaen.no/en/Productions/giselle-ballet-oslo-operahouse/ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaM Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 (edited) Xander’s wife Anastasia Demidova has also joined the same company. She was in the corps of the Mariinsky. Edited August 30, 2022 by FionaE 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaM Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 Anastasia gave a master in Bristol earlier this summer to pupils of the Bristol Russian Ballet School https://www.instagram.com/p/CgzC99MIHoc/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurningPointe Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 2 hours ago, FionaE said: Announcement of Xander Parish joining Norwegian National Ballet as principal … with a short video https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ch2vNBep7eZ/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= https://www.instagram.com/tv/Ch2J4TvKUM3/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= I was so very pleased to hear that Xander and Nastya were able to find a new ballet company that they can call “home” (Xander’s words). Thank you Ingrid Lorentzen (AD Norwegian Ballet) for facilitating that 💕. Doing daily classes, of course, is an integral part of being a dancer, but a dancer needs to dance and be on stage regularly to keep up their technical and artistic fitness. Since Xander left Russia, please do correct me if I am wrong, I think that he only danced on stage in Denmark recently (with Steven MacRae and Team), and will be dancing in London as part of the Nureyev gala on five performances in September. On reflection, if I may, there is a part of me can’t avoid feeling extremely sad. At least on the face of things, Xander was not offered a contract with a large British ballet company, not even as a ‘guest principal’. I am saying a ‘large’ ballet company simply because during the past 12 years he trained at the Mariinsky to do the big classics on the stage where they were created and therefore his experience and style of dancing would be more suited to those of a larger ballet company that stages those ballets. Whilst I am also understanding that UK ballet companies should protect their ‘home grown’ talent, I also understand that Xander was initially also a ‘home grown’ dancer. He left London because, after a number of years still in the corps de ballet, he was deployed to hold spears and stand around on stage. Yuri Fateyev saw him in London in class and noticed his potential. Yuri encouraged Xander to come and work with him at the Mariinsky. Yuri was willing to invest, coach, and nurture Xander, and Xander was hungry to develop as a dancer and was very willing to put in the effort and the hard work. Just thinking how much learning, and experience, could have been gained by having Xander in a local ballet company…. I look forward to seeing Xander dancing with Iana Salenko on a British stage on 5th September at the Nureyev gala. Thank you Nehemiah and Team for inviting him to dance on a UK stage 🙏🏻. UK audiences would like to, and want to, see Xander dancing here too. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest oncnp Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 (edited) 17 minutes ago, TurningPointe said: . Just thinking how much learning, and experience, could have been gained by having Xander in a local ballet company…. Another thing to consider is that by joining a smaller company he may (probably will) get more opportunities to perform. The RB principal men are already only getting two shows a piece (3 at most if I counted correctly) per run next season. Edited August 30, 2022 by oncnp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 (edited) 5 minutes ago, oncnp said: The RB principal men are already only getting two shows a piece (3 at most if I counted correctly) per run next season. Which must be a huge issue for them. BTW - for Mayerling, Ryoichi Hirano has 5 Rudolfs and Steven McRae 4. This must be as a result of giving more Mary’s etc a ‘go’, but it is surely a factor in the weak ticket sales. I am very happy to see that Xander Parish has found a home. Some while back, he guested in Giselle with ENB but maybe the time wasn’t right for them to hire him. Edited August 30, 2022 by capybara 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophoife Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 It's also possible there might have been room for Mr Parish as a principal in a British company but perhaps not room or political will to employ his wife in the same company? Very happy they've found jobs at the same company. Life's hard enough without having to separate involuntarily. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaM Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 1 hour ago, TurningPointe said: ISince Xander left Russia, please do correct me if I am wrong, I think that he only danced on stage in Denmark recently (with Steven MacRae and Team), and will be dancing in London as part of the Nureyev gala on five performances in September. There have been other performances by Xander since leaving Mariinsky: - two performances of Romeo & Juliet with State Ballet of Georgia (thank you Nina Ananiashvili). Partner was Laura Fernandez-Gromova, and conductor Gavriel Heine. Both also war exiles - the ‘Covent Garden Dance Company’ galas at Hatch House. He partnered Anastasia. - four performances of a new creation by ex-Mariinsky dancer/choreographer Ilia Jivoy (another war exile) commissioned post invasion for the Origen Festival Cultural, thanks to Giovanni Netzer. 5 dancers : Ilia, Xander, Anastasia, Kate Chebykina and Oscar Frame. Costumes by Sonya Vartanyan. All war exiles from Russia, all from Mariinsky except Oscar. - plus the two week tour (13 locations) with Verdensballetten as you mention 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 4 hours ago, TurningPointe said: On reflection, if I may, there is a part of me can’t avoid feeling extremely sad. At least on the face of things, Xander was not offered a contract with a large British ballet company, not even as a ‘guest principal’. We don't know where he may or may not have been offered a contract. Given how far through the European seasons we were at the time of the Russian invasion of Ukraine there may not have been any posts readily available. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaM Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 5 hours ago, FionaE said: Anastasia gave a master in Bristol earlier this summer to pupils of the Bristol Russian Ballet School https://www.instagram.com/p/CgzC99MIHoc/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= this should say masterclass (error is thanks to autocorrect!!) … a class, a variation, and a Q&A session Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BalletcoForum Moderators Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 May we please remind people that when they register as a member of this forum, they agree to abide by our AUP as stated in the document pinned to this site. Amongst other things, it is made clear that neither rudeness, nor personal insults, nor overtly political postings are tolerated here. If people persist in posting such content they will be suspended or banned from this site. Thank you. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabine0308 Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 I'm very happy that they both have a secure job now. I have been to a talk here in Berlin where Ingrid Lorentzen participated, and she was very open, friendly and determined to stand for her opinion. Maria Kotchetkova and other top dancers are often guest artists in Norway. So it seems to be a good atmosphere to work there. I wish Xander and his wife the best. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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