Barvikha (Russia) (AFP)
A sulphurous dancer in the skin of Rasputin: Sergei Polunin, star of Russian ballet, explores the "dark side" of the famous and mysterious man of the Church in a show presented Thursday near Moscow.
Of Ukrainian origin, the 29-year-old has long been known as the "bad boy of the ballet", both for his passionate performances and his polemical statements.
With "Rasputin", Sergei Polunin, who has had Russian nationality for a year, is attacking a controversial figure in the history of Russia.
"I think he (Rasputin) wanted to do well and he had a good intention," he said before the premiere of this ballet choreographed by the Japanese Yuka Oishi. "But he had a dark side that sometimes pushed him away from that direction."
At the twilight of Tsarism, this mystic pilgrim had won the confidence of the last Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra by promising to treat their son with hemophilia.
Honni by the people, Grigori Rasputin was finally murdered shortly before the start of the Russian revolution by a group of aristocrats who denounced his "evil" influence on the royal family.
"I do not think we can defeat his demons, it's possible, I do not know, to get close to the light, but I do not know how to completely get rid of his shadow," Sergei confessed. Poulounine.
The dancer was particularly controversial for his fiercely pro-Putin views - of which he has a tattoo on his chest - and for publications calling for slapping overweight people or criticizing gay dancers he judge too effeminate.
Sometimes compared to legends Mikhail Barychnikov and Vaslav Nijinsky, the young dancer lost a role in Swan Lake at the Paris Opera because of his controversial remarks. The artistic director of the troupe, Aurélie Dupont, felt that they were against the values of the institution.
He has since deleted these publications, but LGBT groups oppose another of his performances. A British agency has also refused to sell tickets for a performance of "Rasputin" in London.
"I always have a good intention," he said.
Sergei Polunin gave details on Wednesday about a new ballet school which he will be the artistic director in Sebastopol, in the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea annexed by Russia. According to him, the selection of dancers will begin in September.
? 2019 AFP