Nikolai Tsiskaridze and Anastasia Volochkova have appeared on stage together many times in the past. When the ballerina was fired from the Bolshoi Theater because of a scandal, her partner was one of the few who stood up to defend the former prime minister.
Now Tsiskaridze is a successful person. He directs the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, is a respected teacher and participates in famous television projects. Meanwhile, his longtime friend, Volochkova, has been dubbed “the country's main eccentric” and many offensive nicknames by fans. She appears more and more in the news as the heroine of another scandal. A few years ago, Nikolai Maksimovich talked about how at the Bolshoi Theater Anastasia was mercilessly suppressed by higher management.
“It is very difficult to survive this blow,” Tsiskaridze said.
According to him, “there was an order for Nastya,” and he was even convinced when told that it was impossible to lift a ballerina while dancing, and when he refused, revenge ensued.
“Crutches in the Villa”: Volochkova on her health
The dancer noted that not everyone could endure what Volochkova had to face, who, however, “helped himself to the finish”, but “more maturity” helped him overcome all the difficulties in the team and rise to the top. Nikolai did not expose those who once ignited the wheels of the Bolshoi, but entrusted this task to Anastasia herself.
But in a recent interview, Tsiskaridze said that he also had disputes and conflicts with Volochkova during their work together, although this concerned only creative issues. The male dancer also mentioned that it was he who persuaded the ballerina to try her hand at the Bolshoi, where the turning point in her career later occurred.
“There is nothing worse than the train she fell from. God forbid anyone,” Nikolai said.
Let us remember that Volochkova was fired from the Bolshoi Theater in the early 2000s, allegedly because she did not meet the physical standards accepted in a ballet environment. The former prim has always maintained that she actually became a victim of lawlessness on the part of the theater management.
