Rudolf Nureyev: The Power of Curiosity
Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn arrive at Schiphol airport, Amsterdam, 1968 (Wikimedia Commons, © Erik Koch for Anefo)
On 5, 6 and 12 September 2022, London celebrated the iconic dancer Rudolf Nureyev (1938 – 1993) at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Nureyev was the first international ballet superstar. He had an iron will, incredible charisma and revolutionised the role of the male dancer by making him just as important as the female ballerina. Nureyev’s insatiable curiosity about everything connected to dance, art, music and literature made him into a unique artist. Even people who knew nothing about ballet knew Rudolf Nureyev. His magnetic personality reached new audiences all over the world. In the 1960s and 1970s, Nureyev was everywhere – even on the Muppet Show.
Nureyev’s legend started with a scandal. His curiosity almost ruined him. In June 1961, Rudolf Nureyev caused an international sensation when he defected from Leningrad’s Kirov Ballet (today St. Petersburg’s Mariinsky Ballet) while on tour in Paris. It was the height of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the West. An imaginary Iron Curtain divided the free, democratic Western world from the communist dictatorships of the Soviet empire. The Soviet regime tried to minimize contact between its citizens and the West, forbidding international travel to anyone but a select few. Culture became an important weapon in the Cold War: each side wanted to show that it was superior because it had the better dancers, musicians or artists. Artists were sent across the Iron Curtain with the mission to win over the hearts of ordinary people.
In 1961, the Kirov Ballet made its first tour to the West. The tour started in Paris and twenty-three-year-old Nureyev was a sensation. But the Soviet secret police kept a constant watch on the Kirov’s dancers to keep them away from “evil” Western influences. Rebellious Nureyev would have none of it: instead of sticking to tightly supervised tours, he broke all the rules. He ran away from his minders, befriended Parisians and soaked up everything the city had to offer, roaming the streets with his new friends at night. But punishment was near: when the Kirov Ballet was about to board a plane to London, Nureyev was taken aside and told to return to Moscow. The young dancer panicked. Fearful that he would never again be allowed to travel abroad and that his career would be finished, he took a fateful decision: he approached the French police and asked for political asylum. His curiosity had almost cost him dearly – but it gave the world to Nureyev, and Nureyev to the world.
Former Royal Ballet principal Nehemiah Kish conceived Nureyev: Legend and Legacy to honour Nureyev’s lasting impact on today’s ballet world by bringing together stars from companies including the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet and Hamburg Ballet in ballet excerpts linked to Nureyev’s career. The performance can be watched on demand on Marquee television from 16 through 26 September 2022.