Missing Page: American Modern and Post-Modern Dance in Russian Culture

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Despite thirty years of access to great American performers and groups, American modern and postmodern dance of the 20th century remains largely unknown for the vast majority of Russian theater goers. This is because non-classical dance was completely excluded from Soviet culture during the 1930-1970s due to ideological issues: the state officially allowed and gave substantial support only to classical ballet and pseudo-folk dance, which did not seem "Western" and "bourgeois" to party leaders. Despite the intensive cultural exchange of the last three decades, only a few books on this topic have been published in Russia, and those quite recently. In this presentation, Elena Yushkova will explain the complicated history of American non-classical dance and why in 2022 the window to this art form has closed once again.