Sergei Polunin - news and discussions

[SwissBalletFan]

Why bring Misty Copeland into it? There are lots of other dancers who are famous that are nowhere the most talented dancer.... Being the most talented dancer there is right now is somewhat a matter of opinion....

Simply because she is the most famous ballet dancer to the general public in the world at this time.

[LinMM]

I'd qualify that to general ballet going public there will be loads of general public who have never heard of Misty Copland!

[toursenlair]

I'd qualify that to general ballet going public there will be loads of general public who have never heard of Misty Copland!

 

That may be true in the UK but in North America Misty Copeland is a household name.

[Jacqueline]

That may be true in the UK but in North America Misty Copeland is a household name.

As perhaps you might expect. In the UK, I would say Darcey Bussell is a household name but that may have more to do with her post ballet career. I would guess that the majority of the general public would struggle to name a current dancer. Much as I have no interest in football say and would only be able to name any footballers, because I have seen them on the news for some reason. I am not accusing people of ignorance, just lack of interest. I work with people who are educated and with whom a variety of subjects are up for discussion, but they know nothing about ballet. I enjoy this forum as we have a common interest and know all the names. It can still be a surprise to me when I am talking to friends/colleagues about performances/dancers I have seen and they have no idea who or what I am talking about.

Is Misty Copeland the most famous ballerina in the world as far as the general public is concerned though? I would say not. But if she isn't, then who is?

Edited March 7, 2017 by Jacqueline

[Lindsay]

Probably Anna Pavlova.  Or Rudolf Nureyev.

[Jan McNulty]

As perhaps you might expect. In the UK, I would say Darcey Bussell is a household name but that may have more to do with her post ballet career. I would guess that the majority of the general public would struggle to name a current dancer. Much as I have no interest in football say and would only be able to name any footballers, because I have seen them on the news for some reason. I am not accusing people of ignorance, just lack of interest. I work with people who are educated and with whom a variety of subjects are up for discussion, but they know nothing about ballet. I enjoy this forum as we have a common interest and know all the names. It can still be a surprise to me when I am talking to friends/colleagues about performances/dancers I have seen and they have no idea who or what I am talking about.

Is Misty Copeland the most famous ballerina in the world as far as the general public is concerned though? I would say not. But if she isn't, then who is?

 

 

 

Interestingly enough when I was still gainfully employed my colleagues often used to mention to me if Darcey was on the TV or Carlos was appearing at the Lowry.  I would say that they were as close to household names as we would get.

 

(Oh, and all my colleagues knew who Chi Cao was!)

[CHazell2]

Darcey Bussell was always a household name throughout her career. She appeared on the Vicar of Dibley. She also wrote loads of ballet books for children.

[Yaffa]

When people overseas (several countries) hear that I'll be going to a ballet event in England, they still often ask if I'll be seeing Margot Fonteyn... Don't think I've ever been asked if I'll be seeing Darcey Bussell.

[Jacqueline]

I was thinking of current dancers rather than retired or sadly no longer with us. Perhaps names were known to our colleagues of old in proportion to how much we spoke of them or our interest in the art was respected. People I worked with at one time used to adopt a silly pose whenever I said I was going to a ballet. It was meant as a joke but it wore thin quickly and when asked I used to say oh you know, nothing of interest. Instead of admitting I had been to see some men in tights.

I remember Dame Monica Mason commenting on how many people contacted the ROH to ask which nights Natalie Portman would be dancing in Swan Lake, following her Black Swan masterpiece!

Who though,to the general public, is the most famous, living, current dancer in the world?

[LinMM]

I didn't know Misty Copland was a household name in North America Tours en l'air ......it's a very large land mass though!! But I'm sure she is!

[Jan McNulty]

I didn't know Misty Copland was a household name in North America Tours en l'air ......it's a very large land mass though!! But I'm sure she is!

 

 

 

Being on the links team I would say she is a huge household name in the States.  The number of articles about her that are syndicated...

[penelopesimpson]

I was thinking of current dancers rather than retired or sadly no longer with us. Perhaps names were known to our colleagues of old in proportion to how much we spoke of them or our interest in the art was respected. People I worked with at one time used to adopt a silly pose whenever I said I was going to a ballet. It was meant as a joke but it wore thin quickly and when asked I used to say oh you know, nothing of interest. Instead of admitting I had been to see some men in tights.

I remember Dame Monica Mason commenting on how many people contacted the ROH to ask which nights Natalie Portman would be dancing in Swan Lake, following her Black Swan masterpiece!

Who though,to the general public, is the most famous, living, current dancer in the world?

Good god!  That was one awful film

[Amelia]

Is this topic about Polunin? He is not mentioned in the last 16 postings.

[LinMM]

I think has gone off topic a bit and probably suggests that there is not really much more to say just at present about him .....this may well change after his SW performances next week of course.

[Jacqueline]

Good god! That was one awful film

Not 'arf! I have never been able to sit through the whole thing. Nevertheless, some were convinced Miss Portman was a real ballerina and wanted to see her live. Wow!

 

I think has gone off topic a bit and probably suggests that there is not really much more to say just at present about him .....this may well change after his SW performances next week of course.

I agree. The subject, in my opinion, was entering the realm of nothing more to say at this point. As LinMM says, his forthcoming appearances at SW will no doubt attract discussion. I for one, hope that any further debate could be confined to his dance related performances.

Meanwhile, my question of who, to the general public, is the most famous, current dancer has been started up elsewhere.

Edited March 9, 2017 by Jacqueline

[penelopesimpson]

Sergei Polunin - news and discussions

 

It strikes me that the title of this thread rather neatly sums up Mr. Polunin at present

[Jan McNulty]

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/09/arts/sergei-polunin-ballet-dancer-film/

[penelopesimpson]

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/09/arts/sergei-polunin-ballet-dancer-film/

Hmm.  Horribly sad to disfigure ones body in that way

 

And 'driven to distraction by his art and fame'  What, at 21?  

 

I think he will look back in years to come and think what a waste, what a mess

[A frog]

It seems he has been serious about wanting to work as an actor, once you go past the self-aggrandising pull-quotes in interviews, he does have parts in a couple of Hollywood films.

He's apparently been cast to play Nureyev around the time of his defection in a film directed by Ralph Fiennes. He's currently filming Murder On The Orient Express where he plays Count Andrenyi (played by Michael York in the 70s film). He also has a part (which will likely be quite small, but a part still) in an espionage film starring Jennifer Lawrence by the director of The Hunger Games films.

 

It could be the start of a nice little career.

[toursenlair]

It seems he has been serious about wanting to work as an actor, once you go past the self-aggrandising pull-quotes in interviews, he does have parts in a couple of Hollywood films.

He's apparently been cast to play Nureyev around the time of his defection in a film directed by Ralph Fiennes. He's currently filming Murder On The Orient Express where he plays Count Andrenyi (played by Michael York in the 70s film). He also has a part (which will likely be quite small, but a part still) in an espionage film starring Jennifer Lawrence by the director of The Hunger Games films.

 

It could be the start of a nice little career.

 

He is in the Nureyev film but not as Nureyev. That is Oleg Ivenko, another Ukrainian currently dancing in Kazakhstan, I believe.

[Mummykool]

I believe he has been cast as Soloviev.

[Lilian88]

Hmm.  Horribly sad to disfigure ones body in that way

 

And 'driven to distraction by his art and fame'  What, at 21?  

 

I think he will look back in years to come and think what a waste, what a mess

 

Disfigure? The "disfigured" body of Sergei Polunin is considered one of the sexiest bodies in the world and it has been portrayed and photographed by world-renowned artists and photographers such as David LaChapelle, Gus Vas Sant, Mario Sorrenti, Jacob Sutton...

Also I remind you that Polunin is not yet thirty and he is an international ballet star with a repertoire that rivals any dancer, his name is synonymous with sold out, he created his own project which will debut at Sadler's Wells, he has a documentary about his life, he has a very successful model career and he has starred in three major Hollywood productions; not to mention all the love and the admiration, all the demonstrations of esteem and affection he has received from people in this years: in short, he has achieved so many successes and awards, that if tomorrow he retired to private life and spend the rest of his days watering begonias, he still would have made more than what most humans normally made or gets in a lifetime

[MAB]

Polunin isn't the only dancer with tattoos, but most we won't know about as they are hidden under costumes.  I find it an extraordinary fashion, for those of us of an older generation tattoos are disfiguring in the extreme.  It is very much a generational thing, ironically spending so many years watching male dancers means perhaps I've developed a keener appreciation of the male body beautiful than most.  Tattoos on dancers are to me the equivalent of daubing graffiti on a Michelangelo.

[LinMM]

I'm not keen on very large ones .....or too many but I suppose discreet is okay.

 

Yes Polunin is playing a dancer called Soloviev .....apparently a dancer whom Nureyev admired a lot and thought was better than himself.

[LinMM]

Lilian 88 I do appreciate you must be a real Polunin fan and that's lovely ...but to be honest from where I'm sitting he has achieved not that much! And unless things change in the next few years...which I sincerely hope they will ...He will not be remembered 20 years from now ....and certainly not if he starts watering begonias right now...though realise this not meant seriously.

None of my non ballet going friends has ever heard of him but they certainly know Nureyevs name ....though we are all in our 60's now!!

[Jan McNulty]

From Today's Links:

 

Documentary Reviews - Dancer:  

Kate Muir, Times

Peter Bradshaw, Guardian

 

Features - Sergei Polunin:

Helen Barlow, Irish Examiner

 

 

 

Who does Sergei Polunin have to fulfil?  Himself or the expectations of his audience?  As long as he achieves contentment in his life and perhaps entertains people along the way then he will have achieved great things for himself.

[LinMM]

It doesn't bother me one bit!! Especially as I don't know him as a dancer.

 

However he appears to want fame etc etc and for a wide audience to appreciate him ......from that perspective just at the mo he may get his "fifteen minutes" as they say but on what he has done SO FAR he won't be remembered down the line in my view.

 

When you get into your 60's you can see that even people who were extremely famous at the time for one reason or another are just completely forgotten 20-30 years later ( for good or bad) unless their achievements are longer lasting and reach more than one generation.

 

The fulfilment thing is tricky. Many great artists ( not just in ballet) have fulfilled their audiences wonderfully but they never feel that happy with themselves and what they have done.

[Lilian88]

Lilian 88 I do appreciate you must be a real Polunin fan and that's lovely ...but to be honest from where I'm sitting he has achieved not that much! And unless things change in the next few years...which I sincerely hope they will ...He will not be remembered 20 years from now ....and certainly not if he starts watering begonias right now...though realise this not meant seriously.

None of my non ballet going friends has ever heard of him but they certainly know Nureyevs name ....though we are all in our 60's now!!

Well, also all my non ballet lovers friends know Nureyev, but they know Polunin too, in fact he is the only classic dancer of our days who they know and remember. 

The fact that you quote Nureyev is interesting, because for me Nureyev perfectly summarizes all the reasons why Polunin will be remembered: Nureyev was fiercely criticized and often shunned by critics and ballet lovers of his era, but eventually all remember Nureyev , few remember many of his colleagues and no one remembers who criticized him. So it was for many other artists and so it will be for him, but he is only thirty, and we cannot compare him to Nureyev, now...

I believe that Polunin will be remembered for much more than twenty years, while on the contrary in twenty years no one will remember most of his colleagues and their career as loyal employees, apart from some ballettomane and I would think this even though I hated him because his success is a fact, not a personal opinion: is a fact that he is the youngest principal of the Royal Ballet's history, a fact that he has played some of the most coveted roles of ballet, a fact that there is a documentary about his life, a fact that he has worked with renowned photographers and artist and even more concrete, are the results of these collaborations, which have been included in famous magazines, books, art exhibitions around the world, even museum exhibitions. Not to mention the virtual world: we can be so naive to ignore the direction taken by the concept of communication today, but from an entirely pragmatic point of view, it's a fact that in Internet, a song, an image, a video can be endlessy played and replicated, so he could really retire tomorrow and would have done enough to remain virtually the young and talented dancer / model / actor who is now, forever. (Yes, maybe we'll be dust, but our Pinterest boards will still be there to shock our grandchildren that under the innocent title "Ballet and dancers", discover a disproportionate number of photos of this half-naked tattooed guy and what meant their granny when she talks about her roaring years of ballet).

In any case, say that a career of Nutcracker at Christmas and Swan Lake with perhaps a jump in the contemporary dance and a charity gala toward the end, is a successful life while the thirty years of Polunin are a failure, is arrogant and basically ignores the history of any art from...I don't know, from the creation to the present.

Of course I not to say that you said this, I speak in general...

[Scheherezade]

The fact that you quote Nureyev is interesting, because for me Nureyev perfectly summarizes all the reasons why Polunin will be remembered: 

 

Not for me, Lilian88. Nureyev was obsessively committed to ballet and an out and out workhorse, neither of which epithet can remotely be applied to Polunin.

 

Nureyev's wider appeal, outside of dance, was exoticism, generously fed, I will admit, by his extraordinary looks, intoxicating arrogance and the danger and glamour of his defection, added to which, few people in the West had ever seen anyone dance as he did.

 

Whilst Polunin's talent cannot be denied, his commitment to nurturing that talent certainly can and if what is written about him is correct (and I am the first to admit that I have no means of knowing whether or not it is), he would seem to lack any sort of concerted work ethic beyond the belief that his natural ability (admittedly extraordinary) is all that is required.

[penelopesimpson]

Not for me, Lilian88. Nureyev was obsessively committed to ballet and an out and out workhorse, neither of which epithet can remotely be applied to Polunin.

 

Nureyev's wider appeal, outside of dance, was exoticism, generously fed, I will admit, by his extraordinary looks, intoxicating arrogance and the danger and glamour of his defection, added to which, few people in the West had ever seen anyone dance as he did.

 

Whilst Polunin's talent cannot be denied, his commitment to nurturing that talent certainly can and if what is written about him is correct (and I am the first to admit that I have no means of knowing whether or not it is), he would seem to lack any sort of concerted work ethic beyond the belief that his natural ability (admittedly extraordinary) is all that is required.

Well said, Scheherezade.  The huge difference between Polunin and Nureyev is that the latter had staying power and was prepared to put in the grunt work that goes with being a dedicated dancer.  You are quite right that Nureyev also had other things going for him:  he defected, he was exotic and his pairing with Margot Fonteyn gave him a new dimension.  

 

I appreciate that there are many fans of Polunin out there and, indeed, I used to be one of them.  I was at ROH on the night his departure was announced and I remember saying to a friend that RB should have done everything they possibly could to accommodate him, he was so fabulous.  But time has changed my view somewhat and I cannot help but feel that what he really wants is fame and fortune but without the hard work.  This is very much in tune with the times when people want to be famous for being famous, but Polunin was and is so talented that he would genuinely have deserved it and it is in sorrow that I write that I think he has wasted his talents.  And yes, I stand by everything I said about disfigurement.  The human body is a beautiful thing, the more so when it has the athleticism and muscle structure of a trained dancer.  To cover it with writing and ugly drawings (which he says himself he does to give himself a high which lasts two days) is, for me, sacrilege.  I think it looks absolutely hideous and is more unattractive in a dancer whose body is on display more than most.

 

And yes, I agree with those who say he has done little in the way of developing himself since he left RB.  Its all a project here, a start appearance there and, most ridiculously, his life story.  Mostly these works are not lauded for their dance content; people go because he has cultivated the image and I doubt that that will last.  

[Mary]

I'm not keen on very large ones .....or too many but I suppose discreet is okay.

 

Yes Polunin is playing a dancer called Soloviev .....apparently a dancer whom Nureyev admired a lot and thought was better than himself.

There is a fabulous youtube clip of Soloviev dancing Sylphides with Makarova- he is so lyrical and musical -dances like a woman.  A truly special dancer and I can see why Polunin is playing him, Look forward to seeing that....I hope there is a lot of dancing in this film!

[toursenlair]

There is a fabulous youtube clip of Soloviev dancing Sylphides with Makarova- he is so lyrical and musical -dances like a woman.  A truly special dancer and I can see why Polunin is playing him, Look forward to seeing that....I hope there is a lot of dancing in this film!

 

for me, "dances like a woman" is not a commendation for a male dancer...

[now voyager]

for me, "dances like a woman" is not a commendation for a male dancer...

Nor for me!  But I DID see Soloviev on stage and he was not at all like a woman!

 

I also agree with penelopesimpson's comments above, both re tattoos and re any comparison with Nureyev.  Perhaps its my (relatively advanced) age--well, after all, I'm old enough to have seen Soloviev dance!--but tattoos to me are ugly and defacing.  I very recently watched another dancer perform Bolero, and for me his half dozen or so highly visible tattoos destroyed any appeal not only distracted, but destroyed for me personally any appeal and any belief in his appeal to the corps.  

Having watched Nureyev many, many times, and loved him for many, many years, what I perhaps valued most was his palpable love of dancing (in stark contrast to some of those danseurs who followed).  Polunin, it seems clear, has no such passion.

  

Instead, Polunin reminds me of Gelsey Kirkland.  I think that a talent like his (or hers) is a gift from the gods, one so many kids (and adults, too) hoping and struggling to make a career out of doing something they love, would kill for (no, I don't mean that literally), and he's just throwing it away.