BARNSLEY BOLSHOI GRADUATE
Ballerina on first tour after time at famous academy
TALA LEE Turton was just 16 when she left home and moved to Russia after securing a place and the famous Russian Bolshoi Ballet Academy. For most people, let alone a teenager from Barnsley, it would be daunting moving to a country where you don’t even speak the same language, And yet Tala took it all in her stride.
“I was just so excited to be there and we were training ten hours a day and so I really didn’t have time to think about being homesick or anything like that,” says the now 21 year old.
“Everyday I could see a difference in my dancing and that was really all that mattered to me.” For four years Tala lived in a boarding house above the Bolshoi with other hopefuls, eating, drinking and breathing ballet.
“I learnt to speak Russian pretty quickly,” she says in her distinctive South Yorkshire accent. “I loved the Russian way of teaching ballet. It is pretty intense when you compare it to European ballet schools and it doesn’t suit everyone – I did have some friends who dropped out – but for me it was perfect.”
Tala took up ballet when she was four years old and first discovered Russian training at the age of 14 when she was coached by Chika Temma and Yury Demakov of Bristol Russian Ballet School, and from then on she focused all her training on the audition for the Bolshoi.
Moving away from home and family and adapting to a new culture was a huge change for then 16-year-old Tala. But her determination to succeed shone through and she flourished under the guidance of the professionals at the Bolshoi.
Last year Tala became just one of three British female dancers to graduate from the prestigious Bolshoi Ballet Academy, one of the most famous ballet schools in the world. But she had no plans to return home to Yorkshire or the UK.
Soon after graduating, Tala went on to secure a place at the Astrakhan State Opera and Ballet Theatre. She is now one of a select group of British dancers who has made the transition from student to professional in Russia, with a job at one of the prestigious state-funded classical ballet companies
“Astrakhan is the most amazing place. It has its own huge theatre and incredible rehearsal rooms. But what I also really liked was the fact that they had a touring company which included a tour of the UK. It meant that my friends and family who haven’t been able to travel to Russia would be able to see me dance as a professional.”
The UK tour started on October 14 and Tala even gets a couple of days off which has meant being able to travel back home to Barnsley.
“My friends in the company are jealous that I get to spend
some time at home and it has been really lovely having friends and family in the audience during our Yorkshire dates.”
The tour continues until December 7 at theatres across the UK, including Harrogate and Scarborough. The shows are being produced by the Russian State Opera and Ballet House and Tala performs in Swan Lake,
The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet.
“The Russian style of dance is so expressive while simultaneously providing such logical technical grounding that prepares a dancer for the most difficult repertoire, old and new,” says Tala.
“It’s hard to describe the magnitude of my feelings when I look back on my graduation. To now be part of such a prestigious company and be given the opportunity to dance classical, as well as neoclassical repertoire is another fantastic step in my career.”
But Tala’s career aspirations don’t stop at being a Bolshoi graduate and a member of a prestigious Russian ballet company, for her next ambition is to develop her choreographic skills. Recognising a distinct lack of female choreographers in the industry, this is a gap Tala is determined to help fill.
She has recently worked with young artists in the dance, film and music industries to produce two showcase videos using her own creative choreography – one filmed at Wentworth Woodhouse in South Yorkshire.
“Choreography is hugely interesting to me because, as a classical dancer, you are pretty much always dancing other people’s creative output, whereas I also enjoy the opportunity to harvest my ideas and influences into something that expresses a very personal viewpoint.
“The videos are a way for me to showcase the ideas I have developed during my time at the Bolshoi and create a full routine in collaboration with music composers, film directors and cinematographers. It’s the first time I’ve done something of this nature and it was a fantastic experience and such a personal expression of my training in classical dance.
“As is the case with many industries, females in positions with high creative control have been lacking in the dance world and this is an issue which is attracting attention at the moment. I think it’s therefore a great time to be a young female choreographer as change feels like a whisper in the air in the current creative climate.
“The tour and the choreography are an exciting new chapter in my career. It’s important for me to set my aspirations high to accomplish what I want. I never thought I’d be able to graduate from the Bolshoi Ballet Academy but I achieved that dream, so I feel like there is nothing stopping me now.” She has also decided to continue a blog she started when she first left for Moscow.
“I have decided to give advice to dangers about what to do when you leave ballet school and what to do next. There was very little out there when I looked and so I really want to help others.”
I feel like there is nothing stopping me now. Tala Lee Turton from Barnsley who is now a professional ballerina in Russia