Ukrainian soldier who lost legs performs ballet in US
Oleksandr Budko, a soldier who lost both legs during fighting in Kharkiv Oblast, has joined the United Ukrainian Ballet troupe for charity performances in California, he wrote on Instagram on July 5.
A series of
charity performances by the United Ukrainian Ballet under the guidance of
choreographer Alexei Ratmansky has just come to an end, with a final
performance in Los Angeles.
Each performance
consisted of two parts – classical Giselle ballet, and a performance aimed at
drawing attention to the war in Ukraine with choreography by dancer and
choreographer Emma Evelein.
Budko took part in
the latter performance, as Evelein and the performance’s participants wanted to
talk about the war in Ukraine through their choreography, the soldier said
“This choreography
is about the consequences of the war, about people, about how indomitable we
are, despite the pain and losses, we raise human life above everything, we
value our people and go towards the goal, towards victory,” he said in an
Instagram post.
At the end of the
performance, the whole cast sang the national anthem of Ukraine. The audience
was visibly moved by the experience. Thanks to its performances, the troupe has
managed to raise a significant sum for humanitarian aid.
Budko became a
volunteer when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and he
joined the Carpathian Sich battalion. In May 2022, after he was wounded, Budko
underwent rehabilitation in the United States
In early 2023,
Budko met Ukrainian ballet dancer Oleksiy Tiutiunnyk. His introduction to
ballet began with this meeting.
“In February, when
we met for the first time, I had no idea what it would turn into, four months
later I was dancing in front of 3,000 spectators with the incredible artists of
the United Ukrainian Ballet,” Budko said.
“This performance,
my friendship with Oleksiy and the war in Ukraine were integrated into a
documentary by Front Raw, which we are about to finish filming.”
Ratmansky, aged
54, is a Russian-American choreographer. He was born in Russia but spent his
childhood in Kyiv. In 1993, he received the title of Honored Artist of Ukraine
as he was a principal dancer with the National Opera of Ukraine in the
mid-1980s and in the 1990s.
He left Russia in
2008. Prior to that, he had worked as the artistic director of Moscow’s Bolshoi
Theater for four years.
In 2014, he
condemned Russian ballet representatives for supporting Russian dictator
Vladimir Putin’s policy against Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea.
Since the
beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Ratmansky has condemned
Russia’s aggression and has consistently advocated for Ukraine.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
