In a candid exchange, veteran ballet artist Nikolai Tsiskaridze reflected on long-standing tensions within Russian ballet, suggesting that the decline in standards began well before recent international sanctions. He described a cultural shift where expectations in theatres tilted toward profit, often at the expense of artistic rigor. The dancer recalled that during holiday periods, Western theatres would pause tours, while Russian troupes continued to push performances simply to satisfy audiences in places like London and Paris at the time, a situation he viewed with disappointment and concern for the art form. [Source: kp.ru]
Tsiskaridze noted how the visibility of Russian dancers in international cities has transformed over the years. He cited memories from the 1980s, when tours to Japan featured promotional posters of dancers across subways, reflecting high local interest. Recently, however, he says that curiosity to Russian ballet has waned, and he attributes this to what he describes as overextension. He contends that ballet has become a commodity, a spokesperson for a market-driven approach rather than an elevated, disciplined performance tradition. [Source: kp.ru]
According to the artist, the standard of training and performance has eroded as more companies travel to European stages, staging multiple productions of Swan Lake concurrently. This trend, he argues, creates a saturation that lowers the bar for Russian ballet overall. He stresses that maintaining rigorous standards requires not just more performances, but a clear commitment to artistic integrity, discipline, and a rigorous selection of repertoire that challenges both dancers and audiences alike. [Source: kp.ru]