Join the conversation
Log in or create an account to leave a comment
Log In
Nureyev did not openly criticize
the Soviet Union because members of his family
were still living there, and they could be badly affected. When the Kirov Ballet used to come
to London and perform, they used to give us Russian badges
from the companies as presents. So I collected
quite a lot of them over the years. And one evening,
when Nureyev came to perform, I was wearing some of them,
and he went crazy. He pulled them all off, threw them
on the floor and stamped on them, and said to me,
"You're never to wear those here." It was to do with his mother.
He couldn't see his mother in Russia and how dare me wear these Russian badges? He must have been
very frustrated that he could not express
what he really felt
the Soviet Union because members of his family
were still living there, and they could be badly affected. When the Kirov Ballet used to come
to London and perform, they used to give us Russian badges
from the companies as presents. So I collected
quite a lot of them over the years. And one evening,
when Nureyev came to perform, I was wearing some of them,
and he went crazy. He pulled them all off, threw them
on the floor and stamped on them, and said to me,
"You're never to wear those here." It was to do with his mother.
He couldn't see his mother in Russia and how dare me wear these Russian badges? He must have been
very frustrated that he could not express
what he really felt
Full Transcript
00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:05.044
Nureyev did not openly criticize
the Soviet Union
00:00:05.052 --> 00:00:08.008
because members of his family
were still living there,
00:00:08.092 --> 00:00:11.092
and they could be badly affected.
00:00:13.002 --> 00:00:16.056
When the Kirov Ballet used to come
to London and perform,
00:00:16.064 --> 00:00:21.002
they used to give us Russian badges
from the companies as presents.
00:00:21.096 --> 00:00:24.056
So I collected
quite a lot of them over the years.
00:00:24.068 --> 00:00:27.088
And one evening,
when Nureyev came to perform,
00:00:27.096 --> 00:00:32.000
I was wearing some of them,
and he went crazy.
00:00:32.998 --> 00:00:34.092
He pulled them all off, threw them
on the floor and stamped on them,
00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:38.004
and said to me,
"You're never to wear those here."
00:00:38.048 --> 00:00:40.096
It was to do with his mother.
He couldn't see his mother in Russia
00:00:41.998 --> 00:00:43.072
and how dare me wear these Russian badges?
00:00:45.999 --> 00:00:47.006
He must have been
very frustrated
00:00:47.068 --> 00:00:51.999
that he could not express
what he really felt.
Want This Clip in HD?
Upgrade for HD/4K downloads and unlimited access. Upgrade now →
Movie Summary
This striking and moving documentary from BAFTA nominated directors Jacqui and David Morris traces the extraordinary life of Rudolf Nureyev. From his birth in the 5th class carriage of a trans-Siberian train, to his dramatic leap ...
