Rudolf Nureyev: Ballet's Champion
Rudolf Nureyev: Ballet’s Champion
1961 was a pivotal year for the fine arts from a media stand point. Up until then, reviews, commentaries, advertisements or just basic information were usually relegated to the fine arts publications and channels. However, on June 16, 1961, the Art of Ballet was on the front page of newspapers all around the world because that was the day that Rudolf Nureyev defected from the Soviet Union1. His dramatic departure to the West, in essence, created its own Cold War crisis and turned him into a celebrity overnight. This, however, was just the beginning. Nureyev, a Russian dancer known for his ground breaking contributions to the world of ballet, spent the remainder of his life tearing down barriers and reinventing male ballet technique. What he brought to dance was a new role for men. No longer would men be just the frame holding or accentuating the picture of the female as the centerpiece.
Nureyev continually worked to challenge the techniques of modern ballet dance by updating the most sacred of classics. He even made history by partnering with a woman twice his age, prima ballerina abssoluta, Margot Fonteyn. Due to his outspoken nature and willingness to taunt the rules of Soviet Communism, Rudolf Nureyev was convicted, in absentia, of treason (assigned traitor number 50,888) against the state under Soviet article N43 in April of 19622. The intent of this paper is to take a deeper look into the complex and colorful life of Rudolf Nureyev: a man who pushed the limits during a time in the Soviet Union when the limits were not supposed to be pushed and a man who forever changed the world of ballet. In order to gain a better understanding of the man who challenged “Mother Russia,” one must start at the beginning of his unique life story. Nureyev was born Rudolf Hametovich Nureyev on March 17, 1938,(1938-03-17) near the city of Irkutsk, Siberia, USSR to a Bashkir-Tatar family. His mother, Farida Nureyeva, and his
1961 was a pivotal year for the fine arts from a media stand point. Up until then, reviews, commentaries, advertisements or just basic information were usually relegated to the fine arts publications and channels. However, on June 16, 1961, the Art of Ballet was on the front page of newspapers all around the world because that was the day that Rudolf Nureyev defected from the Soviet Union1. His dramatic departure to the West, in essence, created its own Cold War crisis and turned him into a celebrity overnight. This, however, was just the beginning. Nureyev, a Russian dancer known for his ground breaking contributions to the world of ballet, spent the remainder of his life tearing down barriers and reinventing male ballet technique. What he brought to dance was a new role for men. No longer would men be just the frame holding or accentuating the picture of the female as the centerpiece.
Nureyev continually worked to challenge the techniques of modern ballet dance by updating the most sacred of classics. He even made history by partnering with a woman twice his age, prima ballerina abssoluta, Margot Fonteyn. Due to his outspoken nature and willingness to taunt the rules of Soviet Communism, Rudolf Nureyev was convicted, in absentia, of treason (assigned traitor number 50,888) against the state under Soviet article N43 in April of 19622. The intent of this paper is to take a deeper look into the complex and colorful life of Rudolf Nureyev: a man who pushed the limits during a time in the Soviet Union when the limits were not supposed to be pushed and a man who forever changed the world of ballet. In order to gain a better understanding of the man who challenged “Mother Russia,” one must start at the beginning of his unique life story. Nureyev was born Rudolf Hametovich Nureyev on March 17, 1938,(1938-03-17) near the city of Irkutsk, Siberia, USSR to a Bashkir-Tatar family. His mother, Farida Nureyeva, and his