"Dancer of the Century" Malakhov: Telling the Chinese Story with Ballet

Vladimir Malakhov is one of the well-known dancers in the international dance industry today, and has been praised by the Western media as the "Dancer of the Century" and the "Prince of Ballet".

As a dancer, he has left countless brilliant marks on the Eurasian stage; as a dance company manager, he single-handedly founded the Berlin Ballet and made it one of the most influential dance companies in the world.

Now, he has a new title - head of the ballet department of the Beijing Dance Academy. On the afternoon of April 3, under the eager attention of many media and dance people, Malakhov solemnly accepted the letter of appointment from Batu, the party secretary of the Beijing Dance Academy, and started a new artistic journey.

Born in Ukraine in 1968, Mr. Malakhov showed a keen interest and talent for dance from an early age. He started ballet at the age of 10 and became the youngest principal dancer of the Bolshoi Ballet at 18. In the early 1990s, Mr. Malakhov moved to Austria, which also opened up a wider world of dance for him.

Since then, Malakhov has been invited by the Vienna State Opera, the Canadian National Opera, the American Ballet Theatre and other Western national dance companies to serve as the principal performer for a long time. From 1992 to 2006, he served as the choreographer and star of the "Vienna New Year's Concert" many times, and he also served as the chairperson and member of the jury of several world-renowned ballet competitions such as Benus and Vienna.

As a dancer, Malakhov has won gold medals in almost all world-renowned ballet competitions such as Varna, Moscow and Paris. At the same time, he is also dedicated to choreography. His adaptations of classical ballet works such as "Sleeping Beauty", "Swan Lake" and "Xianyuan" have become the repertoire of many well-known theaters around the world. He has also created many modern works and become a highly influential ballet choreographer in Europe.

Moreover, Malakhov's talent is not only on stage, but also has leadership skills and strategic vision.

Throughout Malakhov's dance career, from Russia with a strong ballet culture to the United States and Europe with a lively artistic atmosphere, he has been dedicated to cooperating with world-class choreographers from various countries to explore the possibilities of dance art. His artistic style is distinct, and his dance experience is rich, often accurately interpreting Eastern and Western works.

For Chinese audiences, Malakhov's name is not unfamiliar either.

In April 2013, as the head of the Berlin Ballet, Malakhov led the Berlin Ballet to China for the first time. Together with eight outstanding dancers, he performed "Malakhov and Friends Ballet Collection" at the National Center for the Performing Arts, and later staged his new ballet "The Dance Lady". Among them, "The Dance Lady" was praised by Western dance critics as "traditional, more original, unexpected and extraordinary".

In June 2014, Malakhov served as a judge for the "Beijing International Dance Academy Ballet Invitational Competition" and held a master class at the Beijing Dance Academy. Since 2016, he has delivered exciting performances to audiences in Suzhou, Tianjin, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other cities. One of the most talked about by Chinese audiences is that in 2017 he rehearsed Malakhov's version of "Swan Lake" for Liaoning Ballet Company. This version of "Swan Lake" has a new stage set, choreography and subversive ending. It embodies Malakhov's classical and contemporary choreography, and is still touring in China today.

Mr. Malakhov developed a keen interest in Chinese culture after a brief stint as a collaborator and performer. Beijing, a city both ancient and modern, made him linger. In September 2022, he gladly accepted the invitation of the Beijing Dance Academy and was appointed as a national "high-level overseas talent". Since then, he has been a full professor.

"China is a new chapter for me. Because everything is new, including different cultures, different foods," Malakhov told Global magazine. "Every day after I came to China, there are new discoveries, there are many things waiting for me to learn, to explore, to think, and there are many things that inspire me to create and give me a lot of inspiration. For example, Beijing is so beautiful in this season. Every day when I open my eyes and see everything around me, many ideas come to my mind."

Mr. Malakhov singles out his love of Chinese food. "Before coming to Beijing, I had never eaten so many fruits and vegetables. There was a time when I was so crazy about buying so many fruits that I broke my stomach," Mr. Malakhov says, shaking his head and smiling. "I am also very interested in spicy hot pot. Although I am not very good at spicy food, I am also trying it bit by bit."Since taking office at the Beijing Dance Academy, Malakhov has devoted himself to front-line teaching, selecting ballet students to form a top-notch talent class named after "Malakhov", providing a model for the cultivation of top-notch talents in the industry. Students affectionately call him "Teacher Ma".

In the classroom, he provides demonstration teaching and physical training guidance in an open, flexible and changeable form to improve students' technical skills, performance ability and innovative thinking. At the same time, he teaches teachers and students how to handle accurate details and appropriate dramatic performances, and guides students to explore the "soul" of ballet art.

Referring to the exchanges with Mr. Malakhov, Ou Jianping, a researcher at the Institute of Dance Studies at the Chinese Academy of Arts, said Mr. Malakhov had been outspoken: "Chinese ballet dancers have good physical conditions, but their biggest problem is the lack of'soul. '"

Ballet was once regarded as an art form unique to the West, but today its education is increasingly becoming international.

In traditional thinking, ballet education is mainly dominated by schools in Europe and North America. However, with the advancement of globalization and the blending of cultures, the ballet community has begun to encourage diversity and inclusion in ballet education on a global scale.

For the entire ballet industry, learning from different cultures can stimulate artistic creativity. Students from different cultural backgrounds bring their unique cultural characteristics into the dance classroom to rehearse together. The collision of multiple ideas can promote the experimental creation of choreographers and dismantle the boundaries of traditional ballet expressions. Internationalization has thus become a catalyst for artistic renewal and iteration, giving rise to new dance forms and storytelling methods.

"I think the most typical example of the internationalization of ballet and ballet education is in front of you. I studied ballet in my hometown in Ukraine in the early days, then I continued my studies at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, and then an international career took me to many big theaters around the world. I started to have the opportunity to learn from teachers from different countries and backgrounds, and now I am very happy to share knowledge and experience with Chinese students," Malakhov said.

In his opinion, one thing that is very important for the internationalization of ballet education is that the barriers between cultures have been broken down. Ballet is no longer seen as exclusive to certain cultures or regions, but has become a universal language, an art form where dancers from different countries express themselves and interact with audiences around the world. Ballet schools and ballet companies are creating a more inclusive and colorful art form by incorporating different dance styles, music and stories into the curriculum.

"Chinese history and Chinese culture are vast and profound, and there are many stories to tell. For example, Dunhuang, I am very interested in Dunhuang culture," Mr. Malakhov said. "In the future, I want to tell ancient Chinese stories and integrate Chinese culture, Chinese history and so on into ballet. I have some initial ideas, but I still need time and think about how to express it and how to do it best. I hope my work will not only move me, but also the Chinese audience, because I am dancing for the people."

In Malakhov's view, ballet education is not just about imparting technical skills, it can also shape people into global citizens who can appreciate cultural diversity and openness. Through international cooperation, students can learn to face cultural nuances based on respect for tradition, while enhancing their ability to communicate across cultures and deepening their understanding of the world as a whole. In this way, ballet education becomes a platform to encourage tolerance and cultural mutual learning, and thus cultivate a sense of solidarity and collaboration.