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Lead dancers quit Bolshoi Ballet over Ukraine crisis as cultural backlash against Russia grows
- The best-known cultural institution in Russia lost principal dancer Jacopo Tissi, Brazilian leading soloist David Motta Soares, and its music director in the space of 48 hours
- The Royal Opera House, which cancelled the Bolshoi Ballet’s London season last week, dropped a Bolshoi Orchestra conductor for performances of Swan Lake
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Two star dancers have announced they are quitting the Bolshoi Ballet, as Russia’s best-known cultural institution becomes swept up in the international backlash against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
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On March 7, Italian Jacopo Tissi said he was leaving his role as a principal dancer with the Moscow-based dance troupe in protest.
“I am shocked by this situation that has come upon us from one day to the next, and quite honestly, I find myself unable to continue with my career in Moscow,” Tissi wrote in a post published on Instagram.
“No war can be justified. Ever. And I will always be against every kind of violence,” he added.
The 27-year-old was only promoted to the top rank of the ballet company in January.
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