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| Bolshoi Director Is Removed After Scandals | Bolshoi Director Is Removed After Scandals |
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| MOSCOW — The general director of the Bolshoi Theater, Anatoly Iksanov, was removed from his post on Tuesday, the Ministry of Culture announced at a news conference at the theater, after a series of public scandals that started in January with a shocking acid attack on the ballet company’s artistic director. | |
| His replacement is Vladimir Urin, the director of the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Musical Theater. Mr. Urin, 66, is credited with rebuilding and expanding Moscow’s second-biggest ballet theater and is considered highly unlikely to spark controversy. | His replacement is Vladimir Urin, the director of the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Musical Theater. Mr. Urin, 66, is credited with rebuilding and expanding Moscow’s second-biggest ballet theater and is considered highly unlikely to spark controversy. |
| Though many observers had expected Mr. Iksanov to be removed at the end of the season, the announcement came abruptly, days before the much anticipated premiere of “Eugene Onegin,” a ballet choreographed by John Cranko based on the verse-novel by Aleksandr Pushkin. | Though many observers had expected Mr. Iksanov to be removed at the end of the season, the announcement came abruptly, days before the much anticipated premiere of “Eugene Onegin,” a ballet choreographed by John Cranko based on the verse-novel by Aleksandr Pushkin. |
| The production has already been fraught with trouble. Last week, the prima ballerina Svetlana Zakharova reportedly refused to dance after a casting reshuffle removed her from the role of Tatiana on the ballet’s opening night | |
| Officials at Tuesday’s news conference lavished Mr. Iksanov with praise for his 13-year stewardship of the theater. For his part, Mr. Iksanov looked grave and said nothing at all about the decision, limiting his remarks to thanking “friends and colleagues” who were present. | Officials at Tuesday’s news conference lavished Mr. Iksanov with praise for his 13-year stewardship of the theater. For his part, Mr. Iksanov looked grave and said nothing at all about the decision, limiting his remarks to thanking “friends and colleagues” who were present. |
| Mr. Urin was equally serious, saying that accepting the position was “not a simple decision at all” and that he had initially refused it. | Mr. Urin was equally serious, saying that accepting the position was “not a simple decision at all” and that he had initially refused it. |
| “I think it is very important that this transition from one leader to another will happen in a civilized way — normally, calmly, in a businesslike way — and not in the way that it sometimes happened, when leaders found out they had been removed from their posts through the mass media,” he said. | “I think it is very important that this transition from one leader to another will happen in a civilized way — normally, calmly, in a businesslike way — and not in the way that it sometimes happened, when leaders found out they had been removed from their posts through the mass media,” he said. |
| He added, “I hope that most people working in this theater — talented, wonderful people — will be united with me, and only together can we solve the problems that exist here at the Bolshoi, as at any theater.” | He added, “I hope that most people working in this theater — talented, wonderful people — will be united with me, and only together can we solve the problems that exist here at the Bolshoi, as at any theater.” |
| Mr. Iksanov was named general director of the Bolshoi in 2000 and his contract was to expire in December 2014. He has said that he hoped to use the remaining time to select and train his successor, in order to assure that his long-term plans for the theater — which extended to 2016 — would be carried out. | Mr. Iksanov was named general director of the Bolshoi in 2000 and his contract was to expire in December 2014. He has said that he hoped to use the remaining time to select and train his successor, in order to assure that his long-term plans for the theater — which extended to 2016 — would be carried out. |
| The last months, however, have brought several waves of negative publicity for the theater. In January, a masked man threw acid in the face of Sergei Filin, the company’s artistic director, causing third-degree burns to his eyes. A dancer, Pavel Dmitrichenko, later confessed to hiring two accomplices to carry out the attack, though he said he had only expected the men to beat Mr. Filin. | The last months, however, have brought several waves of negative publicity for the theater. In January, a masked man threw acid in the face of Sergei Filin, the company’s artistic director, causing third-degree burns to his eyes. A dancer, Pavel Dmitrichenko, later confessed to hiring two accomplices to carry out the attack, though he said he had only expected the men to beat Mr. Filin. |
| In June, the Bolshoi announced it was ending its contract with its most prominent male dancer, Nikolai Tsiskaridze, 39, whose complaints about the theater’s leadership boiled over into open conflict after the attack on Mr. Filin. Mr. Tsiskaridze’s fans have held two small protests in his defense. Asked about Mr. Iksanov’s removal on Tuesday, Mr. Tsiskaridze replied, “What can I say? He dug his own grave.” | |
| During an interview early this year, Mr. Iksanov said that for at least three years rivals had been pressing the Ministry of Culture — and, ultimately, Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev — to remove him. He also reflected on how risky it was for administrators to be drawn into conflicts with performers. | During an interview early this year, Mr. Iksanov said that for at least three years rivals had been pressing the Ministry of Culture — and, ultimately, Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev — to remove him. He also reflected on how risky it was for administrators to be drawn into conflicts with performers. |
| “There is a widespread opinion among the unenlightened people — when there is a conflict between an artist and an administrator, of course everyone is on the artist’s side,” he said. “This poor artist is being terrorized, they want to kick him out. See how bad the administrators are. This is natural, all people think like this — there are bureaucrats and there is a creative person.” | “There is a widespread opinion among the unenlightened people — when there is a conflict between an artist and an administrator, of course everyone is on the artist’s side,” he said. “This poor artist is being terrorized, they want to kick him out. See how bad the administrators are. This is natural, all people think like this — there are bureaucrats and there is a creative person.” |
This | Tuesday’s announcement met with a surge of commentary that reflected deep polarization among fans and members of the company. Some cheered. But a theater critic, Grigory Zaslavsky, described Mr. Iskanov’s exit as a loss to Russian culture and said that the parade of scandals should be seen as a focused campaign whose goal was “the seat of the general director.” |
| Writing on Facebook, Mr. Zaslavsky praised Mr. Urin, but said he face many of the same problems. “The troubles which he will encounter are not far away,” he wrote. “The first test of his strength will be, of course, Nikolai Tsiskaridze, who from the change of leadership, I can imagine, expects an invitation to return.” | |
Sophia Kishkovsky contributed reporting. | |
| This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | |
| Correction: July 9, 2013 | Correction: July 9, 2013 |
An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of the theater where Vladimir Urin is the director. It is the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theater, not the Stanislavisky and Nemirov-Danchenko Music Theater. | An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of the theater where Vladimir Urin is the director. It is the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theater, not the Stanislavisky and Nemirov-Danchenko Music Theater. |