Bolshoi Decides It's Over Before Fat Lady Dances

New York Times ^ | September 17,2003 | Sophia Kishkovsky

[stanz]

MOSCOW, Sept. 16 — One of Russia's best-known ballerinas and post-Communist celebrities was fired today by the Bolshoi Theater after a war of insults over whether she was fit for a pas de deux.

Theater officials are charging the ballerina, Anastasia Volochkova, with one of ballet's deadly sins: they say she has become too fat.

"She is heavy for a ballerina; she is hard to lift," Katerina Novikova, the theater's spokeswoman, said in an interview on Monday.

Ms. Volochkova, 27, spoke of mysterious forces working against her — she wouldn't identify them — and also said theater administrators, working on behalf of those forces, did not like her and had plotted to push her out. She says she is in top form, weighing in at 109 pounds and following a strict diet.

"I don't eat ice cream now," said Ms. Volochkova, who once told a Russian interviewer that she "adores" it. "I eat spinach leaves and vegetables."

[stanz]

There was a thread posted a few days ago. This is a continuation. The rest of the article states that she is 5"6" tall and weighs 104 pounds. So, the issue here is not her weight or her height. Truth is, she is a diva whose behavior is not going to be tolerated.

[monkey]

...and has attracted publicity for her close friendships with powerful men, including the actor Jim Carrey.

[11th Earl of Mar]

It is time for the Russians With Disabilities Act.

[BenLurkin]

And here she is:

[yankeedame]

From the International Herald-Tribune: "....She says she is in top form, weighing in at 49.5 kilograms, or 109 pounds.... "I eat spinach leaves and vegetables."

"...The Russian press has been reporting that the blonde ballerina, who has the looks of a fashion model and behaves like a star, is ... 1.8 meters nearly 5 feet 11 inches, tall....(Hurumph! I should be so 'fat'!- YD)

"The situation with the Bolshoi is not about height or weight," she said.... her detractors consider her an outsider at the Bolshoi... She was loudly booed last year... when she won a top prize at an international ballet competition. . ...She has also been accused of difficult, divalike behavior and has attracted publicity for her close friendships with powerful men...."

Yes,sirree, she is a real porker, isn't she? (By the by, these pics. were taken in 04/03)

[stanz]

She really measure 5"6", but pointe shoes add a good 4 to 5 inches. The ballet world finds ways to "dispose" of people they are not fond of for whatever the reason. In this case, it seems she's acting like a diva and not a classicly trained dancer. Most serious dancers eschew the spotlight in favor of disciplined devotion unlike superstars most people are familiar with like Barishnikov and Nureyev.

[stanz]

It's the powerful liasions that dragged her down.

[stanz]

It's the powerful liasions that dragged her down.

[r9etb]

Ms. Volochkova, 27, spoke of mysterious forces working against her — she wouldn't identify them — and also said theater administrators, working on behalf of those forces, did not like her and had plotted to push her out.

While this sounds paranoid, it is most probably true.

I've no doubt that the Bolshoi is a bitchy, claws-out environment. Of course, the lovely ballerina can probably blame herself for bringing attention to herself.

[stanz]

I've no doubt that the Bolshoi is a bitchy, claws-out environment

Ballet in general is a vindictive, predatory world. When my daughter was a student at NY's School of American Ballet (6 years) she told me stories about how a corps member of the NYCB found ground glass in her shoe just before a performance, or the story of a student who returned to her locker in wintertime to find all of her clothes stolen so she would have to go home at night in sub-zero weather, or how teachers there would make sure a student they were not partial to would never be seen by Peter Martins, artistic director of the NYCB. I could go on and on. Those who got chosen for the company were, for the most part, from families with means or related in some way through the faculty. It's not what you know or how you look or what talent you have, but how do you fit in with the politically-charged atmosphere and how does this impact the ego-driven players who are vying for funds, grants and the limelight.

[r9etb]

It's not what you know or how you look or what talent you have, but how do you fit in with the politically-charged atmosphere and how does this impact the ego-driven players who are vying for funds, grants and the limelight.

At the levels we're talking about, they've all got extraordinary talent. So your description of "who gets the parts" is probably correct.

[nutmeg]

LOL, I saw this headline a few hours ago (haven't had much time on FR yet today) and was going to ping you. Now I see you started this thread! :-)