#ludmilla kovaleva

[ballet-symphonie]

Vaganova Ballet Academy Asks

So there is official information of Koshkareva signing a solo contract with Bolshoi and Nikolay Tsiskaridze's close friend (devilonpointshoes on Telegram) and ballet enthusiasts on ballet forums stating that Koshkareva, Valiullina, and Kuprina going to Bolshoi. How do you feel about all the star students going to Bolshoi instead of Mariinsky like many expected? It isn't unexpected that Valiullina is going to Bolshoi given that she suits that company but with Koshkareva and Kuprina being Mariinsky's trainees for a year, and their dance style suiting Mariinsky more, I really do not understand why they chose Bolshoi (perhaps they were given soloist role straight away)? Anyways I'm also confused if Koshkareva is going to Bolshoi like Kuprina, why is her name not taken down from the trainee name list on the Mariinsky website... Honestly idk how to feel about this and ngl Im pretty disappointed that Koshkareva and Kuprina are not going to Mariinsky :(

The Bolshoi is the fast track. These girls have been promoted as stars and BT has likely made them big promises to keep treating them that way. With how the Bolshoi gives out roles at the speed of light to young prominent grads, plus the benefits that generally come with dancing in Moscow (read: money), the offers are likely very tempting. The corps life is tough, no one wants to do it if they don't have to lmao.

I thought with this reinvented MT and more publicized MT trainee situation that MT management would have managed to keep at least one of Koshkareva and Kuprina but I guess not. I am actually more surprised Valiullina is tagging along as I thought her body type might hold her back. While I agree with many that her dancing fits the broad movement and expressive style of the Bolshoi, that’s unfortunately not exactly what goes on stage all the time nowadays at BT, maybe its about 50/50 now depending which principals are cast.

Hi Ale! Any news on Daria Kulikova? How is she doing at the Academy? I think the 2023 class is a powerful one, and my opinion isn't based on who is better. But there's something about Kulikova??? I don't know... but I like her dancing and I'm rooting for her, there's just something special, artistic I see in her.

The 2023 class has just been everywhere and she hasn’t been one of the most hyped ones for obvious reasons. I don’t think I’ve seen where she’s going but I also haven’t been crawling through the TG channels looking for information about her you know? 

With the ‘big 3’ of this class heading to BT, there’s likely some MT spots available, which is theoretically what she would want after changing schools so late in the games.  

Do you think there will ever be a Kovaleva graduate to top Vishneva off? I honestly don't and it's not because there weren't other talented girls to graduate, but it's just that none of the ones who came after, could even compare to Vishneva, let alone surpass her. Koshkareva for example, is really talented, but it's already being called the 'next Vishneva', so... I will say though, after Vishneva, only Smirnova and Khoreva came a little close and probably Koshkareva will too.

I don’t think she will ever top Vishneva, she’s a once in a 100 years type of a dancer. I also don’t know how much longer she will continue to work. Her talent as a pedagogue is immense, she’s proven that she can train exceptional dancers with different body types, backgrounds and ambitions. Her training and her graduates, quite literally is defining the past, present and future of Russian ballet.  

how do the “classes” at vaganova work?? like if it’s class of kovaleva, does that mean that she’s taught them all 8 years at vaganova orrr 

No, if a ballerina is listed as ‘class of Kovaleva’ that means that she taught their graduate year. Generally, the teachers will change every 1-3 years as some teachers are especially skilled at working with different age groups. 

#ballet #ballerina #vaganova #vaganova ballet academy #russian ballet #ludmilla kovaleva #daria Kulikova #Maria koshkareva #Yaroslavna Kuprina #Sofia Valiullina

[ballet-symphonie]

Follow Up on Fethon Mizzoi's post

I'm not going to be giving my opinion about whether I think Russian students should be allowed to compete at PDL because that's a whole complicated situation that I'm honestly not prepared to discuss and I know I don't have the answers to. However, since so many people have asked, I will break down his statement a bit further.

Are there non-Russian ballet schools that produce highly capable dancers, absolutely. Do Russians have the tendency to discredit them and their students to hold up their own, absolutely. That being said, Vaganova Ballet Academy has been consistently reluctant in terms of sending its students to competitions, specifically competitions that are not in-house or held in Russia. Important to note: If someone wants to compete at a major ballet competition, they generally need to be officially 'sent' or nominated by the school itself, you can't just sign yourself up unless you want to compete as an 'independent' which is generally looked down upon.

Thoughts on Why Vaganova Ballet Academy isn't Winning:

Generally, VBA's 'top' students either don't go or have pulled out at the last minute with injury or some other issue. I'm thinking about that now *iconic* year of Ludmilla V. Kovaleva grads in 2018, where they had 4 girls who are now MT soloists (Khoreva, Ionova, Bulanova, Nuikina). Yes, Khoreva got injured and didn't end up going, but they certainly could have sent someone in her place? Or even two of them from the start (the 'favored' school(s) that Mizzoi alludes to generally send several competitors yearly) Or any of them the next year?

Similarly, Lizi Avsajanishvili was sent to compete but pulled out at the last minute. Her classmate Anastasia Smirnova was never sent. The same applies to Ksenia Zhiganshina who had done zillions of competitions as a young student. Yet they were willing to send someone like Laura Fernandez-Gromova twice? Now, why is that?

Nikolai M. Tsiskaridze, Rector of the Academy, for all he has done to foster a relationship with the competition, never sent his own students. A major missed opportunity IMO as he has graduated a LOT of foreigners recently that could likely have benefited from the exposure to European companies. In fact, the VBA students who have been the most successful in recent times are foreigners, perhaps this is because they know they're not 'guaranteed' MT contracts in the same ways their Russian classmates are and often have limited opportunities for growth comparatively. Now, most of Tsiskaridze's guys are sitting in MT corps, walking around holding swords in the background, and generally doing nothing. So no, VBA isn't winning, but they're generally not sending their "best and brightest" onto that stage.

The 'biggest' name that has been sent recently is Alena Kovaleva, but she wasn't 'supposed' to be a star. She was in a desperate situation, having already been told that MT wouldn't be taking her because she was too tall. And she didn't even make finals, was that politics? Who knows? I'd argue not, because she was quite weak in contemporary and perhaps didn't choose the best variation.

Thoughts on Why VBA Doesn't Send their Stars:

Now part of me knows why they don't send their top students: they want to keep them for MT. Arguably, VBA students don't 'need' the benefits of PDL to have a great career due to the pedigree and connections that come with a VBA diploma. Now I personally think that VBA still wants the attention and wants everyone to acknowledge "Russian Ballet" as the best. But you can't have it both ways, either VBA management sends more students which gives them chances to be recognized/acknowledged by the western audience but also opens the door for their students to head elsewhere. The school would have to be ok with some of its best talents choosing to leave Russia and not dance for Russian theaters. Keep in mind, that VBA is responsible for producing government-employed dancers to fill the government-funded, highly respected theaters. How foolish do they look if their best students start jumping ship to go abroad?

About PDL Favoritism:

This is where Fethon's argument has a bit more merit, there is favoritism all over this competition. You can see it in their preselection events, the jury, and certain schools they partner with, especially when you look at the top winners from the past decade. There are certainly... common schools that appear a lot and that are known to have influence. There are schools that have shifted their curriculum to prepare their students for this competition. PDL is a big deal, and it can open lots of doors.

And if I'm going to be honest sometimes I've watched, checked the results, and thought hmmm would *this person* really have gotten that high of a prize (or any prize at all) if they were from a different school? But it's not like VBA hasn't had a working relationship with PDL in the past. The two have been explicitly connected. The PDL literally hosted pre-selection events at the Vaganova Academy during the Vaganoxa Prix (pre-pandemic, has not been repeated since). VBA scholarships are consistently offered and accepted to candidates. Of course, Mizzoi doesn't mention this, it doesn't fit the narrative. There absolutely is a lot of favoritism going on, and certain schools benefit more than others but VBA certainly isn't exempt from it.

#Fethon's own comment about his student being the only relevant #recent prize-winner is a bit iffy #considering his student received the scholarship from one of the Prize Winners who did not use his prize #he was not directly awarded it. #fethon mizzoi #vaganova ballet academy #prix de lausanne #nikolai tsiskaridze #vba #vaganova #ballet #ballerina #ballet post #ballet text post