War in Ukraine is tearing the world of ballet apart

Throughout the Cold War, ballet was the gilded bridge that connected the USSR to the West. World leaders visiting Moscow were routinely taken to the Bolshoi Theatre, a stone’s throw from the Kremlin, to see the great Russian dancers, such as Galina Ulanova and Maya Plisetskaya. The latter described her experiences as being a bird in a golden cage, exhibited for the pleasure of visiting dignitaries. But