 |
Photo Credit: Natalia Osipova and Sergei Polunin
www.criticaldance.org |
It’s hard not to resent Sergei Polunin a little bit. After walking away
from his principal position at The Royal Ballet at age 23, frustrated—as
he later told
Dance Magazine—by
the lack of support, money and exposure he was getting as a ballet
dancer, now it looks like he’s having his cake and eating it, too. Not only is Polunin dancing again—under Igor Zelensky in Munich’s
Bayeriches Staatsballett, and with girlfriend Natalia Osipova in her
program of contemporary works—but he’s also getting the Hollywood
attention (and paycheck) he’s always wanted. In addition to starring in his own bio-doc,
Dancer, Polunin recently confirmed to
The Hollywood Reporter that he’ll be appearing in two major upcoming movies: the spy thriller
Red Sparrow, featuring Jennifer Lawrence (who plays a ballerina-turned-Russian spy who falls for a CIA officer) and the whodunit classic
Murder on the Orient Express
starring Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz and Judi Dench. For now, Polunin’s
roles in both movies are unknown. But we’re keeping our fingers crossed
they include some dancing. Don’t let yourself get too bitter. Sure, he’s landed numerous
priceless opportunities in spite (or maybe because) of his “bad boy”
reputation. But watching
Dancer, you realize he’s struggled the same as every aspiring dancer. What’s more, he’s determined to give back: He says his new Project Polunin
is designed to be a company to support other dancers by setting them up
with resources like scholarship funds, lawyers looking out for their
interests and agents who can connect them with other industries—like
film.
Dance Magazine Photo
