Ukrainian ballet troupe to perform 'Giselle' in Taiwan

Taipei, Jan. 5 (CNA) The United Ballet of Ukraine will perform "Giselle" in Taiwan with a guest principal dancer from Brazil, the troupe announced at a press event Friday.

The ballet group currently has around 60 dancers under its employ amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, which started on Feb. 24, 2022.

According to principal dancer Arsen Marusenko, the troupe has been able to perform and rehearse consistently to this day thanks to the resilience and dedication of the Ukrainian army.

"Ballet is the best way we can show the army our respect," Marusenko said. "At the same time, we want to show the rest of the world Ukraine's cultural development and contribution."

For its upcoming appearances in Taiwan, members of the troupe will perform "Giselle," a two-act romantic ballet first performed in 1841 at the Salle Le Peletier in Paris, France.

Anastasia Bondar, the United Ballet of Ukraine's prima ballerina, said the piece is generally challenging as the character of Giselle requires a ballerina to put on two different layers of emotional maturity, depending on the act.

Giselle will be performed Jan. 5-7 at Taipei's National Theater Hall and then for a day on Jan. 14 at the National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts-Weiwuying before being staged at the National Taichung Theater on Jan. 20 and Jan. 21.

The ballet troupe announced that for the three-day performance in Taipei over the weekend, Brazilian principal dancer Victor Caixeta will take over the principal male dancer position.

Caixeta is the current principal dancer with the Dutch National Ballet after having left his original position with the famous Mariinsky Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia.

On Friday, Caixeta said that dancing for Mariinsky Ballet was a lifelong dream that he had to leave behind soon after the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict after realizing that his moral fiber carried more weight than his dancing ambitions.

The Brazilian said he was honored to be performing with the United Ballet of Ukraine and he praised his Ukrainian peers' passion for ballet that he said had to be shared with Taiwanese audiences.

Echoing Caixeta, the troupe's British-born dance producer Paul Godfrey said he hoped that the passion and love of his Ukrainian dancers would be delivered to Taiwan.