#konogray

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Ask Responses: MISC

Do Russian kids usually audition for multiple Russian dance academies? Is it possible to get rejected by one dance academy and accepted by another?

Based on what I’ve heard from ballet mums, the kids usually put all of their efforts into getting into one particular academy, though the families sometimes have back-up plans. 

There are three major academies in Russia: BBA in Moscow, VBA in St Petersburg and PSCC in Perm. For a lot of families, studying in one of this academies means either having to relocate or sending their small child to another city, which is a huge deal. Their efforts are, understandably, concentrated on a particular academy / city.

As for your second questions: Tsiskaridze was once asked a similar one (pertaining specifically to VBA) in an interview. He said that while there have been cases of students getting rejected by VBA, getting into a different school and eventually becoming good enough to transfer back, the chances of that happening are astronomical. And while it’s definitely possible to get into a less prestigious school (like Gzhel, which has been put on the map thanks to Rodkin), if you’ve been rejected by one of the three big academies, you’re not very likely to be accepted into the other two.

Do students take anatomy/biology classes in ballet schools? Do they learn how to read music scores/play the piano?

Musical education is a compulsory Russian ballet academies. They learn both the piano and music theory and history. And I’m pretty sure they have classes that deal with anatomy specifically in the context of ballet.  

Polina Konogray just posted a picture on insta with her in hospital Is she ok?

Her post isn’t especially descriptive. Polina has never spoken about her injury or its aftermath, so I don’t want to make any assumptions.

Do you know if any Vaganova exam footage of Alena Kovaleva exists and if so could you direct me to it? Thank you.

There are probably some snippets out there but I’ve never seen a full video, unfortunately. If anyone’s aware of one, please send me a link.

Hi Melmoth! Elya seems to be taking on a lot of principal/solo roles lately, do you see her getting a promotion soon?

Only Vaziev can answer that. He’s definitely grooming her for soloist position though. It’s just a question of when.

d i s c l a i m e r

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Ask Responses - Vaganova

You said that they added a new grade level to the top which means that Khoreva and her classmates now have two years to go until graduation (I think I read that correctly) so does that mean there won't be a graduating class this year?

No, as I mention in that post: “ I’m pretty sure they will still be graduating in 2018, but their diplomas may be different to those of the previous graduates.”

Did Zoya leave VBA? There is a picture of her at the Korean National University of Arts, recently posted so she couldn't have been at the opening ceremony of VBA this year.

It appears she is indeed based in Seol now. I’m not sure why though. As of the end of last year, she was at VBA and doing well.

I asked this question before but I don't know it was sent. I've always found Julia Spiridonova's classmates, Darya Ustyuzhanina and Ksenia Andreenko, as more promising, though Julia is a very good dancer as well. While Julia, Darya, and Ksenia all played Little Masha when they were younger, why is that Julia is more featured in the graduation performance? Is it because of her body type?

I’m not sure how the casting is determined at Vaganova, but I trust the teachers’ decision. As it happens, I’ve recently read a review of the graduation performance by Igor Stupnikov, a prominent ballet historian and critic, that speaks favourably of Yulia:

“The ballet (”Classical Symphony”) abounds in difficult and exquisite movement combinations, and among the many soloists Yulia Spiridonova and Ruslan Stenyushkin come to mind as having given great pleasure to the audience with their clean, elegant execution.”

While I think that Yulia was a bit more nervous than some of her fellow soloists, I agree that overall her performance was lovely.

What is your opinion on Julia Spiridonova? I just saw her performance in Paquita variation and I think I was quite impressed with her musicality!

I’ve received several questions about Yulia since the graduation performance. It seems that people aren’t liking her much... Which is a shame because I think she’s doing very well. You can see my previous response here.

Is it known whether Polina Konogray has returned to Vaganova this September or if she will not be studying at the Academy?

I think at this point it’s safe to assume that she’s gone for good. Sadly.

I feel incredibly sad that Polina Konogray will probably never dance in VBA again! She is so talented. I absolutely cannot imagine what she must have felt when she realised she would never be dancing there again. She appears so positive, strong and accepting of it all. Very admirable! Do you have any inkling what her future plans might be?

Yes, it’s very sad, but Polina is very, very young. Her whole life is ahead of her, and from what I hear, ballet isn’t the only thing she’s great at. Polina appears to be very strong academically. In fact, she graduated middle school a year early and took part in a national academic competition at Moscow State University (Russia’s ivy league) earlier this year. Like you said, she is a positive and confident person and she has a loving family to support her. I have a feeling she’s going to be alright.

d i s c l a i m e r

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Polina Konogray and Nikolai Tsiskaridze. Vaganova Ballet Academy. 2017.

Photo from Polina’s instagram.

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Polina Konogray posted a lovely tribute to Nikolai Tsiskaridze on her instagram, following her graduation from VBA middle school last week:

“Most people know Nikolai Maximovich as a divine danseur and an amazing teacher. However, he is, first and foremost, an incredibly kind, sympathetic and sincere person, who is always there for you.

I am incredibly grateful for everything you have done for me. There are only a few people like you left in this world.”

Polina Konogray was one of the most promising young students to emerge at Vagaova Ballet Academy in several generations. Unfortunately, a few years ago she suffered a serious injury and it is unlikely that she will return to the academy, though no official statement has been made yet. 

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Ask Responses - Vaganova

A compilation of responses to the questions about Vaganova Ballet Academy which came through ask recently. Thank you for asking.

Any info as to why the girls at Vaganova tie their pointe shoe ribbons on the outer edge of their shoes rather than the inner?

The way the girls tie their ribbons was one of the first things Tsiskaridze changed at VBA. He insisted that everyone does it the “old-fashioned” Vaganova way. Now, I’m not sure what that way actually is. I couldn’t find the exact specifications. Could be that tying the ribbons on the outer edge is part of it... I don’t know. 

Do you know of any VBA students who unfortunately got injured and had to leave VBA for good? And what did they pursue after? Thank you!

That list is pretty long... I’m hesitant to add Polina Konogray to it, but it appears that she is, indeed, the latest casualty. 

Do you know why Vaganova changed their uniforms? If I'm doing the math right they changed when/just after Tsiskaridze came to Vaganova. Maria Kohreva posted an Instagram picture recently of her from the 3rd grade, and she was wearing very pretty dark green leotards. The @vaganova_russia account also has a picture of 7th students wearing dark red leos. I have to say I think the old uniforms look much nicer... the purple one for the middle grades looks terrible, lol. :( The beige one is ok though.

This was one of the first changes implemented under Tsiskaridze. Apparently VBA didn’t have a set uniform when he arrived at the academy, so he struck a deal with Grishko, and they have been providing the uniforms ever since.

Have there been any reviews of the Moscow VBA performance? I remember Nikolai making a comment in a documentary how that performance is yet another test for him?

Major blogs like Ballet Insider and Voci dell'Opera covered it, but professional critics are silent. Tsiskaridze voiced a theory a few years ago (and I agree with him entirely) that, since all ballet critics in Moscow are on someone’s payroll, the powers that be must first give permission for said critics to cover an event. Obviously, praising Tsiskaridze and his work is still prohibited in the capital.

Hi Melmoth! I've only recently started following your blog, and I really enjoy it! I'm sorry if I seem ignorant, but why is there so much hype surrounding Polina Konogray? Isn't she only a 3rd year student? Also, I understand she is injured now, but was she in Tsiskaridze's class? I've read several comments stating that she is one of his favourites. On that note, do you have any idea whether she will return to the academy? I really do hope she will be able to continue at the academy.

Polina would have been in 5th ballet (9th academic) grade this year. Before her injury she was considered the most promising student the academy has had in years. She wasn’t in Tsiskaridze’s class (he teaches boys and has so far only taught a class in 2016/17), but he is aware of all the best students at the academy and works with most of them personally from time to time. It’s unclear whether Polina will return to VBA. It seems very unlikely.

What is the general academic level of students at the Vaganova? I mean compared to other "regular" schools in St. Petersburg? I often wonder how vaganova students have the time and energy for school work, exam preparation and homework with all the training and performing they do.

It’s not great. VBA are required to teach academic classes, and students receive their middle school - highschool education there (the academic classes are mixed in with the ballet ones), but academics are not VBA’s prerogative.

Once Elya leaves, do you think that the next prima of VBA will be Maria Khoreva, then Svetlana Savelieva?

It’s hard to tell for sure, but it’s likely that Maria Khoreva will be the next star student.

d i s c l a i m e r

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Ask Responses - Polina Konogray

Polina Konogray attended the middle school graduation ceremony at VBA the other day, and I received several questions about her presence at the academy.

Hi~ based off of her instagram post is it possible that Polina Konogray is back? Please amaze us with you superior knowledge~ P.S. entirely unrelated but did you know 'maymonacoballet' on instagram who graduated from Princess Grace Academy is joining the Mariinsky this year, how often does it happen that a non Russian dancer who isn't Russian trained gets to join the company?

Polina Konogray recently posted a few pictures on Insta of her at VBA, the english translation says "Finally". Do you know if she's back studying or just visiting? Thanks!

On the Academy's VK page, isn't that Polina Konogray receiving a certificate with the rest of the 5/9 class for what Google Translate calls 'open source software'? Is this some kind of remote learning? Interesting that Polina is still counted as a student despite not dancing there for such a long time. Do hope her recovery can be as complete as possible.

Sorry to disappoint you, but at this point it’s unlikely that Polina will return. It appears that she’s been focusing on her academic career lately, which is going very well. Polina was at the academy to attend the middle school graduation ceremony.

P.S.: No, I didn’t know that May Nagahisa was joining the Mariinsky. In response to your question: it’s a rare occurrence, but it does happen occasionally. Xander Parish is a another example.

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Ask Responses - Vaganova

A compilation of questions relating to the Vaganova Ballet Academy graduation performances and general Vaganova questions.

Is it just me or does it seem as though Nikolai has brought back a lot of focus on petit allegro in the graduation performances? All of the pieces seemed to be quicker and with more of the little jumps and fast footwork. Or is that just me?

I’m not sure if that was his focus, though the choreography does seem to be a bit more advanced than usual. Every year Tsiskaridze bases the graduation program around the particular group of students graduating, to better show off their strengths and mask their weaknesses. He had a strong cast to work with this year. I guess he figured he could throw them a few curveballs.

For the answer to the question about Lada, when you say "make the grade" do you mean students have to get a certain grade in their exams to take part in the graduation performance?

Sorry, I mean “make the cut”, “pass the audition”, etc.

I have never really heard of or seen Maria Petukhova, but she is brilliant!! She seems to be one of VBA's top students!

I haven’t really heard of her before either. What a gem!

Do all the same students perform all 5 performances? I saw Sofia from second grade wasn't in the one on the 12th but she seems to be doing her makeup so she might be in today's?

Unfortunately, I only have the program for one of the performances, so I can’t check the casts. Usually the students alternate between roles every performance. Some of them get nights off.

How will the cast go to Moscow? Will all of them go by train?

I think they travel by train. It’s the cheapest way to transport such a massive cast and crew.

I'm sorry if this comes off as rude, but what makes Sevenard such a star pupal?

For the past two years, Elya has been the only student in her year capable of carrying VBA’s entire repertoire. I believe she currently holds the record for the most “Nutcarckers” (Princess Masha) performed by a student (10). She’s VBA’s designated workhorse and has performed under serious physical and emotional pressure. 

But don’t take my word for it. There are plenty of videos of Elya online, and you can follow her academic career from way back to the present day. I think you’ll be able to see why she’s earned the title of the start pupil.

Is Maria Petukhova an understudy for Aleksandra Korshunova? In photos from rehearsals at the Hermitage, Korshunova is opposite Borodulina, but in performance videos, Petukhova is in Korshunova's place. Did Aleksandra get injured?

I’m not sure. The soloists alternate between performances, which is why you get different casts every night. I hope Aleksandra isn’t injured.

Is the tuition for Vaganova expensive? Are there merit-based scholarships?

Apparently it is, yes. A foreign trainee I interviewed last year cited the cost of tuition as one of the reasons she decided to leave Vaganova for a different ballet school. I believe some scholarships are available for local students, but I think those are mainly for the kids from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Do you know if Polina Konogray will be returning to Vaganova?

Your guess is as good as mine.

I read somewhere that you can only tour the Vaganova Academy and its museum if you are a professional in the ballet world. Is that correct? I am going to visit St. Petersburg soon and I would love to try and visit the school's museum or take a look in a studio.

That’s about right. The Academy doesn’t let civilians (even the students’ parents) in. They occasionally run seminars and lectures, which take place in the museum, which outsiders can attend, but otherwise it’s almost impossible to get in. Good luck though! 

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Do you think Polina Konogray is overrated? Some posters in a Russian forum say that there are better students in her year that don't get as much exposure as her. Also, what do you think of Daria Ionova, Maria Khoreva, Ksenia Sevenard, and Anya Sharova?

Russian ballet forums are a cesspool of assholery. Sure, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I wouldn’t pay much attention to what people are saying online. How can a student (who’s still in middle school ffs) be overrated? A professional dancer can be overrated, but not a kid who still has years of school left.

The notion of some students getting more exposure than they deserve is ridiculous as well. First off, Polina is injured and isn’t event at VBA this year. Second, all students start out on equal footing. The only way to advance and to get noticed is to work harder than everyone else. If a student is attracting attention and is getting solo and principal parts, it’s because they’ve really bloody earned it. You could argue that some students are more popular than others due to their status on social media (like Khoreva). But, again, a student will only become an insta celebrity if (like Khoreva) they demonstrate extraordinary skills. 

I’ve written about Maria Khoreva here and about Daria Ionova here. I’m not a fan of Ksenia Sevennard (not to say that I dislike her, I’m just not very interested in her), but that can change. Anna Sharova is great. She dances with so much joy!