The Artistic Cost of War in Ukraine

by Ashley Griffin
In addition to being a contributing writer for OnStage Blog, Ashley Griffin has appeared on and off-Broadway, as well as in T.V. and film in New York, L.A., London, Stratford, and Chicago. As a writer, Ashley's work has been developed at New World Stages, Broadway's Manhattan Theater Club, Playwrights Horizons, and more. Ashley has taught at NYU and is a member of AEA & the Dramatists Guild.

This month and next, Westside Ballet alums Joy Womack and Adrian Blake Mitchell will return to their alma mater to perform in Westside’s “A Petite Soirée” as well as to participate in dance talks and masterclasses with current students. But this is not a celebratory homecoming – at least not in the way one might imagine. It is a desperate escape to a safe haven.

See, Womack, the first American female ever to join the prestigious Bolshoi Ballet in Russia, and Mitchell, a first soloist at the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company (one of the last Imperial Theaters of the Russian Empire) recently had to flee their country of residence. Being an American in Russia is now unsafe and rumors about Russia inciting martial law have long been circulating. Mitchell and his partner on stage and off, Slovakian born dancer Andrea Laššáková fled their home in a matter of two days, packing up what they could carry and crossing the Estonian border by foot. Likewise, Womack had to flee her life in Russia – in the midst of having a film made about her life (following the success of the recent documentary about Womack, “The White Swan.”)

Most of those reading this article are likely doing so from a stable, arts-centric country. I would imagine many of you are from the U.S. or the U.K. – both major theater centers of the world where freedom of speech is a mainstay of our identity. It’s easy to think that’s how things are everywhere in the world, and that the “drama of Broadway” is the most important thing there’s ever been (I say that in a loving way as a lifelong theater person who knows how much seeing a performance on the Tonys or meeting an artist at the stage door can mean.) But the arts, in many forms, exist everywhere, often in situations where putting on any performance is a hair’s breadth away from, or even flat out, illegal. Artists (among many others) have been and continue to be persecuted. And that’s when the “status quo” is in place. Add war into the mix, and simply staying alive can fast become the priority over practicing your art. And part of the sadness is – it’s in those situations that people need the arts the most.

“I see culture as an organic bridge between countries,” Womack says. “If we don’t have cultural exchange you can’t have a conversation. You’re not seeing eye to eye. I think ballet, dance, music is one of the most incredible ways to get to know another culture, get to know people from different places because it’s a universal language that speaks to each of us at our souls.”

Part of what’s caused the war in Ukraine to catch the world’s attention in a way that other wars in non-European countries don’t always (and that, by the way, is deserving of a thesis in and of itself) is that Russia and Ukraine ARE (relatively) stable, arts-centric countries. These things that we oft ignore and take for granted will never come to our doorstep are now uncomfortably close to home. Russia itself has been the center of ballet practically since its inception, and basically, every well-known ballet dancer living today has some connection back to either the Bolshoi or the Mariinski.

With the advent of a new wave of artistic cultural exchange, exemplified by Americans such as Womack and Mitchell becoming among the first Americans ever to join these prestigious institutions, Russian stars such as Maria Khoreva becoming worldwide youtube stars, and even Russian dance apparel now available to purchase almost anywhere around the globe it was easy to imagine the days of artists like Nureyev escaping to freedom, and the threat of new wars at any minute were behind us. Within forty-eight hours (at least for Womack and Mitchell,) all of that changed.

“It was devastating,” Mitchell shares, “to see how much had been lost in such a short amount of time….the forty-eight hours when me and my partner packed all of our things and crossed the Estonian border, that forty-eight hours was just destruction…”

Ms. Womack and Mr. Mitchell are lucky – they were able to escape and had a safe place to go. They have an artistic family in America that’s welcomed them back with open arms. They have a forum to share their stories, and bring what they have learned in Russia to students and institutions in the west. But they are the exception. When the war broke out members of Ukraine’s Kyiv City Ballet found themselves stranded in France. Others, who were still in Ukraine, were fighting for their lives. Buildings have been leveled, all thoughts of training gone.

Adrian Blake Mitchell (Photo: NYC Dance Project)

We need to hear their stories. We need to preserve and protect all the people who have suffered because of these atrocities - and yes, I include both people in Ukraine and Russia – many Russian citizens are staunchly against the war, or simply have no access to truthful information, and are not responsible for the actions of the regime they live under.

Just as a small example…on April 22nd an anonymous Russian source (anonymous only out of fear of reprisal) shared that numerous Russian actors, directors, theater makers, and historians who stood against the war were recently fired or left their posts in the theaters and museums they worked at, including playwright Mikhail Durnenkov who has been expelled from the Union of Theatre Makers for his antiwar statement, Dmitri Volkosrelov, artistic director of the Meyerhold Theatre Center was fired for his anti-war post in social media, Konstantin Raikin, People’s Artist of Russia and artistic director of the Raikin School, was fired from his own school for signing an anti-war letter, Alexei Rotmansky, artistic director of the Bolshoi Theatre Ballet company left the country, similarly with artists Chulpan Khamatova, Yuia Osieva, Irina Dolinina, and on, and on and on…

Both Womack and Mitchell have become ambassadors – bringing what they have learned in Russia back to the country of their birth and hope that if they can’t be with their companies (at least, we pray, just for now,) they can bring us a bit of what they learned there. Both strongly advocate for the positives of Russian artistic culture we are missing in the states. Mitchell and Womack share that Russia has a theater in every town offering diverse programming. Artists are respected, and their opinions and thoughts valued not only in their communities, but in their own companies where it is much more common to have casual conversations between artists and artistic directors, dancers who work closely, one on one, with a coach regardless of their rank in the company, and teachers at all levels who are able to take a more active approach in the training and coaching of their pupils.

But Womack and Mitchell hope that in the future both Russia and the U.S. (as well as all the countries around and between) will have more diversity in leadership and more opportunities for dancers. Both Mitchell and Womack have personally taken active roles in bringing those changes about – Womack was in the process of getting involved in local government before she had to quickly leave Russia, even attending the University of Moscow to get the required degree to help her better advocate on the civic level. Mitchell has founded a non-profit called Dance in Color (https://www.danceincolor.com/?fbclid=IwAR0Dqa6zOZbKeCs_PREPqKGqM61xAjhMHQiyC9V3labTsn2evT_LgB6Vf4k) to support black artists, especially in ballet.

We are losing artists, we are losing stories, we are losing cultures that are becoming scattered to the winds. We need to protect eastern Europe, we need to protect Ukrainians, artists included, who have a unique power to inspire and shape us for the better. Womack and Mitchell suggest donating to, or getting involved with the American Red Cross – Womack especially shares how at every stop along her journey she saw the wonderful work they were doing. And they share that the need for housing and sponsorship for refugees is overwhelming. If you have extra room in your home, if you have a theater or dance studio with space just to allow refugees to train and take class, please consider reaching out.

And if anyone is in need of two remarkable dancers, born in America, trained in Russia, who have performed and collaborated all over the world, I know of two who are simply in great need of a job after leaving their whole lives, their friends, their careers, behind to flee to safety. It may be 2022, but sadly we are still in the midst of a tale as old as time.

Please find information on how to follow Womack and Mitchell below, as well as contact info for the American Red Cross and Westside Ballet Academy, as well as information on Mitchell and Womack’s upcoming collaborations with Westside.

Saturday, May 7, 2022, 6 pm: "A Petite Soirée" reception and awards, followed by the 7:30 pm "New Horizons" with special performances; -and- Sunday, May 8, 2022, 2 pm: "New Horizons" Spring Performance. Both at The Broad Stage at the Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center, 1310 11th St, Santa Monica, CA 90401. Sunday tickets are $45. "A Petite Soirée" Saturday reception and special performance are $75. Tickets for this must-see dance event of the season may be purchased online at www.westsideballet.com/springtixor by phone (additional fees apply) at (800) 595-4849 (4TIX).

Thursday, April 28, 6 pm Reception and 7 pm Q&A: "Dance Talks" with Joy Womack, Adrian Blake Mitchell, and Andrea Laššáková. At Westside Ballet, 1709 Stewart Street, Santa Monica, CA. The alumni and guest artists will share their experiences fleeing from the war. This informal evening is co-sponsored with Santa Monica College's Public Policy Institute and is open to the public.

Adrian Blake Mitchell Born in Texas, U.S.A. Adrian Mitchell began his serious ballet training at the age of 14 in Los Angeles with Yuri Grigoriev and at Westside Ballet under the direction of Yvonne Mounsey. From 2010-2012 Mitchell studied at the Houston Ballet Academy and the Gelsey Kirkland Academy in New York City where he worked with the American ballerina herself as well as Irina Kolpakova, Vladilen Semenov and Rinat Imaev and received extensive acting training from Pilar Garcia. From 2012-2014 Mitchell studied at the Ellison Ballet Professional training program under the tutelage of Edward Ellison to whom he credits most of his artistic and technical growth. In 2014 Mitchell was invited to join the graduating class of the Vaganova Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia, one of the worlds oldest and most prestigious institutions. Here he performed numerous soloist roles on the stages of the Mariinsky Theatre and the Kremlin Palace and worked under the instruction of Nikolai Tsiskaridze, Farukh Ruzhimatov and Alexey Illyin. From 2015-2022 Mitchell was been a member of the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company, one of the last imperial theaters of Russia and was promoted to the rank of Coryphee in 2021. On the stage of the Mikhailovsky he performed featured roles such as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, Espada in Don Quixote, The High Brahmin in La Bayadere and Von Rothbart in Swan Lake. He is also one of the primary interpreters of the contemporary repertoire, performing the principal role in Nacho Duato’s White Darkness as well as the principal roles in Duato’s Duende, Prelude and Multiplicity in forms of Silence and Emptiness. He has partnered world class ballerinas including Polina Semionova and Angelina Vorontsova. He has also been featured in Vogue Paris, and modeled for British Designer Gareth Pugh. Since 2020 he has served as the Artistic Director of the charitable foundation “Dance in Color”, a non-profit organization that he co- founded to promote equity, accessibility, and inclusion in the professional dance industry.

Joy Womack began her serious training with Yvonne Mounsey at Westside School of Ballet in 1999. In 2012, Ms. Womack made international headlines by becoming the first American female to be invited to dance under contract with the Bolshoi Ballet, where she danced as a soloist. She went on to perform as a principal dancer with Kremlin Ballet Theater in Moscow and Universal Ballet in Seoul, Korea, then joined the Boston Ballet in 2019. Recently she performed with the Astrakhan Opéra and Ballet in Russia as a principal dancer and assistant to the Artistic Director. Ms. Womack's life is the subject of two recent film projects. "Joy Womack: The White Swan," a documentary directed by Dina Burlis, Danila Kuznetsov, and Sergey Gavrilov, was released in late 2021. "Joika," a biopic based on Ms. Womack's time in Russia, has been announced by New Zealand filmmakers James Napier Robertson and Tom Hern, and to star Talia Ryder.

American Red Cross:

https://www.redcross.org

Adrian Blake Mitchell:

Website: http://www.adrianblakemitchell.com/about-adrian.html

Instagram: @adrianblakemitchell

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adrianblakemitchell1/

Dance in Color Nonprofit Organization: https://www.danceincolor.com/?fbclid=IwAR0Dqa6zOZbKeCs_PREPqKGqM61xAjhMHQiyC9V3labTsn2evT_LgB6Vf4k

Joy Womack:

Website: https://www.joywomack.com/?fbclid=IwAR0AYkyfMlNJ6NaNqjNqiC6GcNIXyFjZxmxxL6juhjivD2y_W17Ll3tK5Y8

Instagram: @joy.womack

Twitter: @joywomack

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/joywomack