When posting gleefully the news last Thursday never could I foresee that it will be switched to a new line of talk involving certain social and cultural peculiarities in Russia, Europe, etc.
It is a happy wonderful ‘trend’ among female dancers now that they don’t deprive themselves of becoming mothers as was the case with their predecessors not so long ago. Very few of them dared then to interrupt their careers. It was so sad to listen to Galina Sergeyevna Ulanova saying in an interview in the last year of her life: “If I had a child! But my parents begged me: Galya, in no case should you have children. It must be either theatre or family.”
I have a great admiration for ballerinas when they decide to make a gap in their short career in order to have babies. There can be some apprehension that the come-back does not guarantee the same roles and the same status. Nevertheless, they take this break. (The Bolshoi’s Principal Marianna Ryzhkina even did it twice (!) and continues dancing the leading roles now:
http://www.bolshoi.ru/en/persons/ballet/65/ , while her elder son, although in corps de ballet, already appeared in some solo parts:
http://www.bolshoi.ru/persons/ballet/1470/)
In case of Mariinsky the situation was rather extraordinary when four ladies (principals and leading soloists) took maternity leave at the same time. What a headache for the management!
Yes, theatres don’t make announcements about it. It would be especially problematic for the administration of the Bolshoi or Mariinsky, with their personnel in thousands. At the same time I don’t know any ballerina, or any other mother incidentally, who wouldn’t enjoyed being congratulated on this occasion, obviously most significant in her personal life. Therefore, I don’t feel uncomfy when rejoicing at happy motherhood.
In fact, my message expressed just a joy that the excellent ballerinas happily achieved what they were yearning for, which is the most important, and that we can now look forward to enjoying their art again in a few months.