Pointe Politics: Russian Ballet's Soft Power and Modern Impact
Advisor: Brady
Internship Location: Silicon Valley Dance Academy
Onsite Mentor: Kitty Xu, Artistic Director, Silicon Valley Dance Academy
The project hypothesizes that despite political shifts, Russian ballet maintains global dominance because training lineage and state-sponsored talent pipelines outweigh politics in artistic legitimacy. Research is expected to consist of interviews with professional dancers, observations, and internet research. Archival footage demonstrates how iconic ballets such as Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, with renowned composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, shaped global standards of technique and performance. This study explains how artistic authority in ballet outlasts governments and replicates in training academies internationally. The final product of this project is a documentary containing interview footage and performance clips, using commentary from industry professionals to effectively portray the athleticism, artistry, and cultural significance of Russian ballet.
Project Blog
Week 1: The Show Begins
Background & Research Question:
I took my first ballet class at four and joined my first competitive dance team at ten. Even while I trained recreationally in classical ballet, I often heard about the prestige of pre-professional academies that teach using the Vaganova method. Exposure to these institutions, along with the polished performances of their dancers on social media, sparked my interest in understanding why Russian ballet remains globally revered despite ongoing political controversies.
This project examines how the Soviet Union historically wielded ballet as soft power. Additionally, it addresses how modern ballet companies replicate Russian excellence through pedagogy, performance, and prestige. To ground this question in professional insight, I consult Kitty Xu from Silicon Valley Dance Academy, a seasoned choreographer and instructor.
Hypothesis:
This project hypothesizes that Russian ballet maintains global dominance because training lineage and state-sponsored talent pipelines outweigh politics in shaping artistic legitimacy. My research includes interviews with professional dancers, performance observations, and internet research. Historical footage, particularly of canonical works from Russia such as Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, enduring global standards of technique and performance quality.
Week 1: "Collector's Paradise"
This week, I scoured the internet for performance footage, documentaries, and interview clips with professional ballerinas. Zotero will be my best friend for the foreseeable future as I continue gathering material from Anna’s Archive, the Internet Archive, YouTube, and more. Rather than analyzing each source in depth, I focused on collecting as much relevant footage as possible.
I will not only use this material in my documentary, but also in developing questions for my own interviews. Rest assured, the “data collection" does not end in the first week. I will continue searching for footage as my research evolves and new questions emerge.
Next week's task, seeing the hours and hours of footage sitting in my Zotero library, is to decide which are more valuable than others. I will continue searching for dancers and instructors to send interview requests to. Ultimately, this next phase will shift from simply gathering material to critically evaluating it.
Works Cited:
Arirang News. “ Russian Dancer Shares Childhood Memories and Her Views on Ballet′s Future 발레리나.” YouTube, YouTube, 1 Nov. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfkAmVrY-WA.
Marquee TV. “ Swan Lake: 4 Little Swans [Bolshoi Ballet].” YouTube, YouTube, 27 Feb. 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9viv_A60Mk.
Week 2: Rehearsal Cuts
Welcome back to my blog! This week, I held my very own audition rounds: I reviewed all of the collected footage and filtered out which would make the final cut and which would be... cut. Continuing last week's work, I researched and emailed dancers, instructors, as well as professors nationwide for potential interviews.
Rehearsal Cuts
Sources that had promising titles but irrelevant content were the easiest to eliminate. I kept clips where I could see full body movement to actually analyze technique; some footage was too grainy or heavily edited while others only showed short fragments of the choreography. I put a particular emphasis on selecting iconic variations with different productions for a comparative analysis in the final product. Thus, geographic diversity among sources is paramount in showing the global Russian influence of ballet's "gold standard." Watching each video in its entirety was, by far, the most time-consuming part of this filtration process, ranging from two minutes for variations to two hours for performances.
Interviews and documentaries were evaluated on another set of criteria based on the content of the sources themselves. For interviews, I tried to include varying perspectives on Russian ballet as a whole, from stylistic analyses to the experiences of aspiring students. I filtered out the documentaries that broadly restated well-known facts and focused more on deep-dives of specific events. While most documentaries are related to historical contexts, some explain the lifestyles of students training at Russian and/or Vaganova schools.
Casting the Voices
Documentaries would be incomplete without interviewing people with lived experience or expertise. I knew that I wanted to approach my research question through multiple lenses: historical implications, technical pedagogy, and cultural integration, to put it broadly. I wanted to hear from professional dancers and instructors who are essentially immersed in training every day. Aside from just those in the performing arts, I reached out to several history professors to better understand how Russian ballet built (or "manufactured," some would argue) their elite reputation.
To better anticipate the perspective that each individual could add to my project, I extensively researched his or her background. For the dancers, I learned as much as I could about their training backgrounds. For the professors, I read their featured works on their university profile. Each interview request was curated to the individual's area(s) of expertise; for example, I asked an international history professor, whose research centered around Cold War contexts, for insight on the Soviet-American cultural exchanges facilitated by both governments.
Next week, I expect to put together a more cohesive literature review beyond annotations for each source. I expect several library trips during this time to search for additional sources and refine my existing ones.
Works Cited
Glenco, Alexandr. "Bolshoi Ballet Academy. One day of life." YouTube, YouTube, 20 Mar. 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3kEts6Y-2I.
“История России в фотографиях.” Russiainphoto.ru, russiainphoto.ru/.
Week 3: Pointe of View
Guess what.... we finally got our first interview!
But it's not time for us to celebrate yet. For me, because I wrote this one-thousand-word literature review. For you, because you are now going to read it, and enjoy it at that.
Context
Ballet has long been associated with elegance, artistry, and discipline. Originally a form of aristocratic entertainment during the Italian Renaissance (c. 1400-1600), ballet was codified in France under King Louis XIV and later "perfected" in Russia under the Tsarist Imperial Court. During the twentieth century, Russian ballet emerged as the most prestigious in the world. The international success of ballet companies like Ballet Russes introduced Western audiences to Russian productions that continue to reshape modern ballet.
This literature review has been divided into what I like to call "The Three P's of Russian Ballet": pedagogy, performance, and prestige.
Pedagogy
Russia's global recognition in ballet is built on rigorous training methods reflected in the Vaganova method. An Imperial Ballet Theater graduate and artistic director of the Mariinsky Ballet, Agrippina Vaganova emphasizes using the whole body for harmonious dancing and expressive storytelling (MasterClass). It emphasizes training strength and flexibility not just to minimize injury but also to make the choreography more fluid and dramatic. Vaganova training academies, the most notable being Vaganova Ballet Academy of Russian Ballet in St. Petersburg, also have structured 8-year progressions. Its impact on ballet is far reaching; "a great number of the leading ballet dancers and choreographers of the last century... have studied [at] the Vaganova Ballet Academy" (Masterclass).
Beyond production, ballet training methods were also being reshaped in the United States. Russian émigré dancers brought traditions from their own imperial ballet academies to a new generation of American performers (Croft, 422). Ironically enough, George Balanchine himself, widely considered the "father of American ballet," is Russian-trained. He trained at the Imperial Ballet School for twelve years before joining Mariinsky Ballet. When he went abroad to the United States following the Bolshevik Revolution, he integrated parts of his own training in St. Petersburg into a neoclassical style that better resonated with American dancers. New York City Ballet dancers recalled a lingering "embodied experience of hybridity" that could not acknowledge the American Balanchine style without its Russian foundations (Croft, 441). As such, across oceans and political upheavals, technical mastery and artistic vision from Russian ballet continues to define the global standard for ballet.
Performance
Founded in 1909 by impresario Sergei Diaghilev, Ballet Russes became one of the earliest players in shaping Russian ballet's influence with their touring productions. The company, primarily performing in Western Europe, introduced audiences to Russian dancers, choreography, and stagecraft. Designers collaborated with the Ballet Russes to make avant-garde pieces to put together a "living painting" of sorts. One such designer was Léon Bakst, who revolutionized stage aesthetics with accessories (e.g., veils and feathers) and abstract patterns (Bowit, 36). Later, Diaghilev himself would introduce innovative music, choreography, and other visuals that actually have more in common with modern ballet than to the earlier works of the Ballet Russes collaborators (Bowit, 42). Designing sets and costumes to complement the storyline still stays prevalent in modern theatrical design. Influence from Ballet Russes continues its legacy as ballet performances worldwide integrate all components of the production into a cohesive storyline.
In 1892, Mariinsky Ballet premiered The Nutcracker in St. Petersburg. Its storyline was specifically commissioned for a two-act ballet as an adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King." However, Russian audiences actually criticized the production for being plotless and chaotic. Student dancers replaced professionals in major roles (e.g., Clara herself). Consequently, the choreography was less technically demanding than what audiences expected of imperial ballet, making the ballet poorly received locally. Audience reception in the United States to George Balanchine's The Nutcracker premiere with the New York City Ballet (NYCB) could not have been more different. American customs were reflected in Balanchine's version: family gatherings during Christmas in the scenes with the child dancers resonated deeply with the audience (Kodat, 10). Now, The Nutcracker is one of many buzzwords for Christmas in America, serving the most popular and profitable production in ballet companies.
To think that an American holiday classic originated in Russia and was tailored to the American viewer by a Russian refugee serves as a reminder that Russia’s influence on ballet is so pervasive that its legacy remains impossible to escape.
Prestige
Ballet has been firmly integrated into Russia's culture of physical strength and the performing arts. As early as 1921 under Vladimir Lenin, films were used to "undermine capitalist-imperialist powers" and demonstrate the cultural sophistication of the new regime (Shaw, 60). Decades later, the same principle would be used to wield ballet as a soft power during the Cold War. Soviet and American governments were both willing to heavily invest in cultural influence (Shaw, 74). A natural consequence of state-sponsored art, ballet in the Soviet Union became more than entertainment; it functioned as a cultural instrument to show the rest of the world the country's artistic excellence. Compared to their Hollywood counterparts, Soviet filmmakers were given less creative freedom because of frequent censorship under Joseph Stalin.
The "New Soviet woman" and "New Soviet man" were perfectly embodied by ballet dancers. They were "strong, disciplined, and united" (Haughey), closely aligning them with Soviet propaganda. Thus, ballet tours to the Western world proved to be a golden opportunity for the USSR to showcase their most upstanding Soviet citizens. Audience turnout further proved the prestigious reputation of Russian ballet; "The Bolshoi Ballet’s 1959 tour... drew hundreds of thousands of Americans to its performances across major US cities" (Haughey). News of touring performances from Russia drew crowds, suggesting that artistic excellence could have outweighed politics at the height of ideological tensions.
Conclusion
Even the most polished stage has cracks. Most scholarly articles reflect on the historical use of Russian ballet as a political soft power disguised as an artistic showcase. There are little sources that analyze how global companies (like Western and Asian companies) internalize, selectively or not, the Russian technique. Furthermore, many fail to address exactly what elements make Russian-trained dancers stand out: could it be their overall dancing lines, musicality, stage presence, maybe extensions?
By investigating these gaps, my research will connect historical prestige and modern practice to show how Russian ballet’s influence truly endures today.
Works Cited
Bowlt, John E. “Stage Design and the Ballets Russes.” The Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Arts, vol. 5, 1987, pp. 28–45. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/1503934
Croft, Clare. “Ballet Nations: The New York City Ballet’s 1962 US State Department-Sponsored Tour of the Soviet Union.” Theatre Journal, vol. 61, no. 3, 2009, pp. 421–42. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40587353.
Haughey, Olga. "How Soviet Propaganda Weaponized Ballet." Uttryck Magazine, https://www.uttryckmagazine.com/2025/01/22/soviet-propaganda-ballet/
Kodat, Catherine Gunther. “Dancing Through the Cold War: The Case of ‘The Nutcracker.’” Mosaic: An Interdisciplinary Critical Journal, vol. 33, no. 3, 2000, pp. 1–17. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44029692.
MasterClass. “Vaganova Ballet Method: What Is the Vaganova Method? - 2024 - MasterClass.” MasterClass, 2020, www.masterclass.com/articles/vaganova-ballet.
Shaw, Tony. “The Politics of Cold War Culture.” Journal of Cold War Studies, vol. 3, no. 3, 2001, pp. 59–76, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26925135.
"Вы можете это увидеть только в Москве" [You Can See It In Moscow]. Intourist (Soviet State Travel Agency), circa 1954. Chisholm Larsson Gallery, www.chisholm-poster.com.
“История России в фотографиях.” Russiainphoto.ru, russiainphoto.ru/.
Week 3: 5: So You Think You Can Dance?
Let's take a break from Russian ballet and just focus on global ballet for a moment.
Raise your hand if you like scrolling on TikTok. Congratulations, you've probably contributed to the most controversial "shift" in ballet choreography!
"Stop the Scroll" Content
If you have spent any time on "BalletTok" (Ballet TikTok), you would instantly recognize the work of Eva Nys. She has amassed 1.6 million followers and 174.1 million likes on TikTok by photographing elite dancers and videoing ballet classes from Master Ballet Academy. Her most liked videos feature dancers doing technically difficult steps, with a video of a dancer doing twenty pirouettes en pointe gained 1.8 million likes. Eva's content as a photographer is meant to "stop the scroll" with technique that amazes dancers and non-dancers alike.
However, Eva Nys, along with other "stop the scroll" photographers like Jordan Matter, is blamed for sensationalizing ballet. Discourse on TikTok and Reddit (r/BALLET) seems to revolve around the shift in ballet from artistry to awe. Critics argue that Eva's content has shifted choreographers to focus on tricks rather than musicality. In a response to a Reddit post criticizing her heavy involvement with Master Ballet Academy, Eva claims she visits the studio in the early spring to "take pictures and videos for them to advertise summer intensives" (Nys). Because social media metrics have become the new currency for prestigious academies, dance photographers and choreographers alike favor immediate visual impact over cultivated artistry.
Implications
In major ballet competitions like Youth America Grand Prix, dancers often perform famous variations such as the Esmeralda variation. To stand out among other talented dancers with the same canonical variations, competitors often add extra turns, higher extensions, and/or longer balances. Check out this video of two side-by-side Esmeralda performances.
Has ballet been reduced to who can do the most turns or who has the highest leaps? Short-form algorithms wants it to be that way. Or should we ask Timothée Chalamet for his input on this as well...
We'll be back in business in the next blog post with a testimonial from a VBA alumna!
Works Cited
Fogarty, Miko. "Miko Fogarty, 15, - Esmeralda Variation - YAGP 2013." YouTube, YouTube, 4 Sept. 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MRZIt9c3_M.
Nys, Eva. "What's the deal with Eva Nys and Master Ballet Academy?" r/BALLET, Reddit, 4 October 2023, https://www.reddit.com/r/BALLET/comments/16du5ie/whats_the_deal_with_eva_nys_and_master_ballet/.
TheBunduBallerina. "Yuan Yuan Tan - Esmeralda Variation 2002." YouTube, YouTube, 11 Oct. 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak5vH0V3BGc.
Week 4: Practice Makes Perfect
For decades, aspiring professionals have been buzzing about training with the best ballet academies in Eastern Europe. But what makes Russian ballet so elite?
I interviewed Anna Maria Myachina, VBA Class of 2022 graduate and professional at the Astrakhan State Theatre, a couple days ago. Myachina used her own experience to talk about the elements of Russian ballet that don't make the highlight reel. Dancers live in a reality where they aren't just taught to dance; they're bullied into becoming the best.
Beauty is Pain
We see this phenomenon quite often with Russian art—the belief that suffering is a necessary evil for greatness. Russian literature like Crime and Punishment or The Brothers Karamazov is notorious for not having happy endings. More often than not, both the author and characters of the book suffer to reach genius. Gold medals are almost expected from elite gymnastics and ice skating at every Olympic appearance, but coaches constantly push athletes to their limit. Take, for example, composers like Dmitri Shostakovich. His music is famous for the heavy, "dark" sound of his orchestras; Shostakovich composed during Stalin's totalitarian regime, living in constant fear of arrest or execution. Notice the common denominator: "elite" is a status earned through literal blood, toil, sweat, and tears.
This mindset of greatness through grit is exactly what distinguishes VBA from other academies. What Myachina describes as the distinguishing factor of Russian ballet is essentially its toxicity. Rather than focusing solely on technique or production, it seems to almost manufacture the best dancers through a survival-of-the-fittest training system.
Artistry in Words
In a country as diverse as the United States, the Russian training system indubitably produces different results. Myachina herself recalls her gymnastics coach getting fired for being "too strict" when she was still in the U.S. As you can imagine, that would never happen in Russia.
Consequently, Russian teachers sanitize how they deliver their messages. Their feedback to students is often the same as it would be in Russia—they just have to get more creative with the insults. They might say "I can see your lunch" as an alternative for "you're fat." Can you imagine which would be more problematic in the United States?
Works Cited
Anna Maria Myachina [@anna.myachina]. "Sleeping Beauty - Lilac Corps (or the first dance in a marathon of a ballet" Instagram, 6 October 2025. https://www.instagram.com/p/DPeHjydDrD2/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==.
Week 5: Two Left Feet
The discourse about the most recent Winter Olympics is all about Alysa Liu. Of course, she has become an emblem of American resilience on ice. The reception of her performance brought about a massive cultural schism in the skating world—some thought her joyful programs were a breath of fresh air while others dismissed her artistry as a facade for lacking "elite" technical difficulty.
Let's extract these talking points from both sides and apply it to ballet.
Court of Public Opinion
My middle school teachers would have a heart attack if they see TikTok citations in this post. Unfortunately, the platform is widely accessible and popular, making it a breeding ground for public opinions.
A video with on-screen text that reads "american ballet dancers >> russian ballet dancers" stirred controversy amongst commenters. Surprisingly, users were able to reach some sort of consensus: Russian technique is unrivaled. The discourse seems to stem from individual interpretation of artistry. Take a look at some of the top comments.
Some acknowledge Russian ballet as the most "pure" form and recognize its value in history. Of course, ballet has been part of Russia's culture long before America even declared independence. Others see the more neoclassical Balanchine style as a necessary evolution of art. Some Western audience members don't appreciate cookie-cutter dancers anymore, opting for more athletic and "soulful" movement that they feel better suit the storyline.
So, the "two left feet" debate is entirely up to the viewer's discretion.
If you prioritize the mathematical certainty of a body pushed to its absolute limit, the Russian school is your sanctuary; to those fans, the American style looks unpolished, structurally weak, and "messy." But if you value the humanity of the performance, the Russian machine is the one that seems out of step—a collection of "two left feet" unable to find a pulse as they chase a ghost of perfection. It seems as if a combination of training methods and politics coming from Russia works together to create a cycle of toxicity that American audiences perceive... but perhaps that will be saved for a later blog post.
Works Cited
Femme Felony [@femmefelony] "i said what i said #ballet #nutcracker #abt #americanballettheatre" TikTok, 18 Dec. 2025, https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTkNrhdkQ/.
Weeks 6-7: Fashionista vs. Ballerina
Following World War II, Paris was devastated. The economy collapsed, resources became scarce, and the cultural capital of the world almost lost its creative legacy. However, French fashion had a reputation to maintain even when designers could not afford enough fabric to make full-sized garments for the traditional runway. In response, the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, the governing body of French fashion, organized the Théâtre de La Mode (Theater of Fashion) in 1945. Designers could conserve textiles, leather, and other scarcities by showcasing their work on a mannequin the size of nine-month-old baby. These "dolls" wore full-functioning pieces with zippers and featured intricate accessories (Maryhill Museum of Art).
Ever heard of Cartier, Balenciaga, Hermès, maybe Van Cleef & Arpels? All of them were key contributors.
Parisan designers used their "artistic authority" to preserve their global prestige. When resources are scarce and the world starts to question the survival of an art, more concentrated forms of excellence emerge. Even today, some of the most well-known designer brands come from France. In preserving French couture in a miniature form, viewers of the Théâtre de La Mode saw an elite fashion standard that seemed independent from war and politics. Even when the world is starving, the French taste for fashion is untouchable.
Even when the world is starving, the Russian taste for ballet is untouchable.
Endurance in Another "Theater"
Ballet was brought to Russian courts in the late seventeenth century. Sheer luck is not enough to maintain ballet's reputation amongst political tensions with the rest of the world...
1. The "Blueprint": Following the 1917 Revolution, Agrippina Vaganova turned ballet into a science. A pedagogy so precise that dancers clung to its technical foundation even after fleeing, the Vaganova method guaranteed a dancer could perform with maximum efficiency and minimal injury. Famously, dancers who train in the Russian method adapt more easily to other ballet forms (Balanchine, Cecchetti, etc.) because of their strong backs and complete control of their limbs.
2. Siege of Leningrad (1941-1944): Training and performance did not stop with the Siege of Leningrad. During the blockades, the Imperial Ballet School evacuated to the Ural Mountains region to keep training in bomb shelters. Performances for soldiers and civilians boosted morale and resisted against cultural "deterioration." Around the same time, touring "concert groups" took this standard on the go. Because the USSR could not afford to send a 200-person ballet production overseas, they sent out "distilled" squads of their best dancers. Russian ballet was kept alive and relevant through these this "concentrated showcasing" that the Théâtre de La Mode also replicates (Ezrahi 88; Garafola 155).
3. The "Swan Lake" Blackout (1991): The August Coup of 1991 refers to a failed attempt to overthrow Mikhail Gorbachev and reverse his reform policies. For the entire three-day duration, television channels looped Swan Lake. The grace of the dancers completely masked the political chaos but calmly signaled to Soviet citizens that the leadership was unstable. Historically, Swan Lake was broadcasted to fill the emptiness during leader deaths or major crisis, becoming a tacit indicator of political upheaval (Morrison 312). When all else fails, artistry remains intact and results in ballet being the only part of the national identity that still looks perfect (Schmemann).
Watch the Pas de Quarte from Swan Lake that played during the August Coup here.
Who knows? Maybe the secret to surviving a global crisis is just wearing Cartier and having a strong back.
Works Cited
baek Blackbeen. "Tchaikovski's Swan Lake that was broadcasted during August Coup in all Soviet television." YouTube, 24 Jun. 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj2c6vJvyPA.
Ezrahi, Christina. Swans of the Kremlin: Ballet and Power in Soviet Russia. University of Pittsburgh Press, 2012.
Garafola, Lynn. Legacies of Twentieth-Century Dance. Wesleyan University Press, 2005.
Morrison, Simon. Bolshoi Confidential: Secrets of the Russian Ballet from the Rule of the Tsars to Today. Fourth Estate, 2016.
Schmemann, Serge. "Gorbachev, Last Soviet Leader, Resigns; U.S. Recognizes Republics' Independence." The New York Times, 26 Dec. 1991, www.nytimes.com/1991/12/26/world/end-of-the-soviet-union-the-soviet-state-is-dead-nation-is-dissolved.html.
"Théâtre de La Mode," Maryhill Museum of Art. https://www.maryhillmuseum.org/inside/exhibitions/permanent-exhibitions/theatre-de-la-mode
Week 8: Child's Play
I bet you've heard the saying "if you think you're good at something, there's always a child doing it better than you." But for ballet dancers, the case is generally a ten-year-old ten times more flexible, strong, and disciplined. And, shockingly, said child isn't always Russian... but sometimes Asian?
The Proxy Prodigy
Believe it or not, the Vaganova Ballet Academy actually has a YouTube channel. Their page has several videos of selection processes, ballet evaluations, and rehearsal clips.
The Russian government has officially blocked YouTube because of its refusal to remove illegal content. Ironically, it seems they’ve made an exception for VBA to continue flexing their superior ballet training. We all feel a sense of deprivation when we see other people outperforming us in our specialty—that feeling is only magnified tenfold when we realize said virtuosos are children. Perhaps that shame in our own performance translates to forced admiration for those better than us, a subtle way of making the entire world look up to an otherwise politically hated Russia.
In part, Asian countries have adopted the Russian teaching methods. Primarily seen with Japan welcoming Russian choreographers and pedagogy in the twentieth century (Russian Ballet and Japan), Asian countries have integrated ballet into their own culture. Notable examples include the Tokyo Ballet in Japan, Beijing Dance Academy in China, and Asia Ballet Academy in Malaysia. Both Eastern European and Asian cultures value early talent identification, dedication, and hard work; all three of which make up an almost perfect formula for an exceptional ballet dancer. Some Asian states (e.g. China and South Korea) sponsor ballet education and give generous scholarships for students of the arts. Much like Russian schools, the selection process is intense and young children are subject to extreme stress and physical exertion. Parents are willing to send their kids to these rigorous academies in hopes for social mobility and stability.
Age Is Just a Number (of Turns)
We have already established that Russian dancers are essentially bullied into being the best. The same applies to Asian dancers in classical dance companies that have adopted the Vaganova method. But the bullying extends far beyond dancers in their own countries; recreational dancers, particularly in the Western hemisphere, are completely awed by such young talent. Consequently, we find ourselves unable to look away from the technical perfection of the child prodigy. Long live the "artistic authority" of Russian theaters that override our moral or political critiques of the systems that created it.
So, the blueprint moves southeast. Elements of Eastern Europe's classical dance culture are what make several Asian countries excel in performing arts today. And, for the untalented Americans who can't do twenty turns by age twelve, these kids on social media serve as a masterclass in humbling yourself. Just remember: there is always a child in Asia or Russia doing your life's passion better than you.
Works Cited
"Russian Ballet and Japan – from First Ballet School to Close Friendship with the Bolshoi Ballet Academy." Moscow State Academy of Choreography, 15 Jan. 2021, https://en.balletacademy.ru/media/news-events/russian-ballet-and-japan-from-first-ballet-school-to-close-friendship-with-the-bolshoi-ballet-academ/.
Hernández, Javier C. "'Princes Can Be Asian, Too': A Dancer Breaks Barriers in Ballet." The New York Times, 28 Jul. 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/arts/dance/chun-wai-chan-new-york-city-ballet.html.
Só Bailarinos [@renatosobailarinos] "13 yrs 😱 @annetakahashi_balletlove" Instagram, 15 Apr. 2026, https://www.instagram.com/reel/DXKaA1QCVAf/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==.
Vaganova Academy, "Classical Dance Exam, Vagnova Ballet Academy (5/9), December 2015." YouTube, 22 Dec. 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozyczQLCBVM&t=849s.
Week 9: Blinded by the Lights
I admit defeat. Comparing and editing video footage to determine regional influence in the ballet world proves harder than I originally thought. Truthfully, the original goal of relying on performance analysis to carry the bulk of the research is a dead end.
Not only is it unrepresentative of Russia's true influence on global ballet, but it will also yield undependable results due to the different ways dancers express themselves on stage. World-class competitions, social media algorithms, and routine classes showcase vastly different levels of technique and artistry. It is simply a variation of the age-old "apples to oranges" comparison fallacy.
Luckily, this flaw was patched before any major developments in the documentary. Previous weeks' research on Russian ballet through different lenses should provide a more objective evaluation of modern contexts. The long-respected legacy of Russian ballet still lives through the "Three P's" found in Week 3's literature review: pedagogy, performance, and prestige.
That being said, the methodology must now be revised. What's going to replace the screen time that performance comparison would have had?
Meet the Understudies
Pedagogy preserved: Includes the training lineages of artistic directors and senior faculty at top ballet institutions. Primarily in North America, Asia, and Europe, prestigious schools share a universal technique foundation in the Vaganova method. Examples include Qu Hao (Beijing Dance Academy), Larissa Saveliev (Youth America Grand Prix), and Tamás Solymosi (Hungarian National Ballet). Clips from auditions or classes themselves serve as better indicators for uniformity in the Russian aesthetic. If possible, find similar combinations from other countries and note any parallels in geometry (e.g. approximate angle of leg extensions and head tilts)
Premier perspectives: Extract and transcribe important quotes from interviews with industry professionals. Interviews will comprise of my own interviews and previously conducted interviews online. Review literature review to continue gathering evidence to build credibility in academic perspectives.
Principal prestige: Historical documentaries will be this section's best friend. Ballet's function as a soft power extends far before World War II; it has adapted and survived throughout the years (see "Week 8: Child's Play" for examples of adaptability). Accordingly, state-sponsored education and international competition contribute to the prestige that global media sees today. Propaganda posters, among other media promoting Russian ballet, will be consulted to understand the modern influence of Russian ballet.
Now, is all this to say that performance analysis will be completely scraped? Not exactly. Evaluating pedagogy comes with visual comparison of technique itself. The shift from comparing performances to comparing classes would hopefully eliminate a single confounding variable—the setting. Dancers, like other performers, are heavily influenced by the adrenaline and stylistic liberties of a live stage.
Come back next week to see how these three new elements will (hopefully) come together!
Works Cited
Jennings, Luke. "Don Quixote review – the evening belongs to Marianela Nuñez" The Guardian, 29 Nov. 2014, https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/nov/30/don-quixote-marianela-nunez-carlos-acosta-review-royal-ballet-ava-dance-company.
Week 10: Stage Crew
With the bulk of the research done and only the nitty gritty details left, I have begun my exploration of editing software. But that's not all in store for this week—the outline for the documentary is also in progress!
Editing "Pro"?
Recommendations from friends for editing software include Da Vinci Resolve, Capcut, Adobe Premiere Pro, and Final Cut Pro X. Of course, because I foresee being a "broke college student" for the next four years, I have chosen Da Vinci Resolve for being both professional-grade and free.
Da Vinci Resolve has a reputation for feeling overwhelming for beginners. My friend, who produced a one-hour documentary last year with the software, has supported this perspective. Hopefully, my familiarity with amateur editing tools like Capcut will transfer to Da Vinci Resolve and make the learning curve less harsh. That doesn't exactly exempt me from watching YouTube tutorials on getting the basics down...
To my mother's dismay, I will be spending a considerable amount of time in front of a computer daily. Which leads me to the next development this past week: the outline itself.
Finding the Center
There's not much to note about the outline. It exists mostly to help me write a script and identify key talking points rather than establish the order of topics for the final product. Additionally, several archival footage sites that I have saved to Zotero have been taken down on a specific site, so I will be continuously mining for more. Rest assured, there will be lots of dancers on screen to keep you entertained as you listen to me talk for however many minutes the documentary turns out to be.
We will see in the next blog post the progress of the documentary and the improvement of my editing skills!
Works Cited
Al Jazeera, "Why Russians Are So Good At Ballet | AJ+" YouTube, AJ+, 3 Jun. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpKM32TaPSA.
Justin Brown, "DaVinci Resolve 20 - Complete Tutorial For Beginners (2026)!" YouTube, Justin Brown - Primal Video, 9 Jun. 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CC_-V5qjhaY.
Week 11: The Curtain Falls (Reflection)
So, this is it. This eighteen-minute documentary features historical case studies, an "insider" perspective, variations performed by beloved prima ballerinas, classical music as background noise—the list goes on! I think the evidence speaks for itself when I say the learning curve for DaVinci Resolve wasn't so bad.
Unfortunately, YouTube took down my documentary within 30 seconds of uploading for containing multiple copyrighted musical works. I will update this post if my appeals (for all eight violations...) are fruitful!
The question everyone wants to know in a reflection is what was the most valuable takeaway. I promised in my literature review that my project's novelty came from performance analysis. Halfway through, I had to let go of my ambitious "aha!" product to conduct a more academic evaluation. It's okay to change the methodology's course knee-deep into the project if prior research suggests a better path. To me, seeing the "dead end" sign before turning onto the street is better than reaching the dead end and having to U-turn. That's not to say my weekly check-ins with my faculty advisor will not be missed—those coffee runs definitely kept me motivated throughout all twelve weeks of research.
Thank you to Mr. Brady for the weekly encouragement and enthusiasm, Ms. Kitty Xu for guidance and lived experience in the dance world, and Mr. Cunningham for his thoughtful organization and meetings. I truly had a blast throughout the entire research process about an academic topic completely unrelated to my major.
Director Claire out!