What do you think?
Rate this book
Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer's Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia
Nina Anisimova was born in 1909 in imperial St Petersburg. One of the most renowned character dancers of the Stalinist period, she won her way into the hearts of her audience over many decades. Yet few knew that her exemplary career was a fragile construct built atop a dark secret. In 1938, at the height of the Great Terror, Nina vanished. Only a handful of people knew that this famous dancer had not only been arrested by Secret Police as a Nazi Spy, but sentenced to forced labour in a camp in Kazakhstan. There, her art would become a salvation, giving her a reason to fight for her life when she found herself without winter clothes in temperatures of minus 40 degrees. Over the coming weeks, Nina's husband, Kostia Derzhavin, began to piece together what had happened to his wife. What he decided to do next was almost without precedent - to take on the ruthless Soviet state to prove her innocence. He would put himself in danger to save the woman he loved. Dancing for Stalin is a remarkable true story of suffering and injustice of courage, resilience and love.
304 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2021
18 people are currently reading
234 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
January 8, 2022
An inspiring story of survival in the time of the Great Purges in Stalin's Russia.
Nina Anisimova was one of Russia’s most renowned ballerinas and one of the first Soviet female choreographers. Yet few knew that her exemplary career concealed a dark secret.
In 1938, at the height of Stalin’s Great Terror, Nina was arrested by the secret police, accused of being a Nazi spy and sentenced to forced labour in a camp in Kazakhstan. Trapped without hope – and without winter clothes in temperatures of minus 40 degrees – her art was her salvation, giving her a reason to fight for her life.
The book is extremely well written and researched and the reader gains great insight into this horrible period of Russian history and also of Russian Ballet scene in the 1930s.
Many of the letters written by Nina Anisimova survived and from these the reader gains an insight into life as it was for those who were falsely arrested but survived to tell the ugly tale.
While this was an interesting and informative account, I wasn’t sorry to be finished with this one as felt it dragged quite a bit in places. I liked it but didn’t love it.
Nina Anisimova was one of Russia’s most renowned ballerinas and one of the first Soviet female choreographers. Yet few knew that her exemplary career concealed a dark secret.
In 1938, at the height of Stalin’s Great Terror, Nina was arrested by the secret police, accused of being a Nazi spy and sentenced to forced labour in a camp in Kazakhstan. Trapped without hope – and without winter clothes in temperatures of minus 40 degrees – her art was her salvation, giving her a reason to fight for her life.
The book is extremely well written and researched and the reader gains great insight into this horrible period of Russian history and also of Russian Ballet scene in the 1930s.
Many of the letters written by Nina Anisimova survived and from these the reader gains an insight into life as it was for those who were falsely arrested but survived to tell the ugly tale.
While this was an interesting and informative account, I wasn’t sorry to be finished with this one as felt it dragged quite a bit in places. I liked it but didn’t love it.
November 1, 2022
Hú, ez nekem nagyon tetszett! Talán dokumentumregénynek mondanám ezt a szovjet terror, majd a II. vh. alatt az elismert orosz balerina, Nyina Anyiszimova megpróbáltatásait, magán- és szakmai életét feltáró, jól összeszedett írást. Nagyon érdekel a téma, a művészetek sorsa és hatása a legkeményebb történelmi időkben, főleg, hogy nagyrészt balettről van szó, ami a zene után a szívem másik csücske.
"A rendszer erőfeszítései ellenére, hogy totális ellenőrzést gyakoroljon a kultúra fölött, a művészet - az olyan személyiségeknek köszönhetően, mint Nyina - kisiklott szorításából, és szellemi vigaszt nyújtott a közönséges embereknek, azaz a méltóság, a szépség és az életöröm alternatíváit kínálta mindazoknak, akik a sztálinizmus rémálmait megszenvedték."
"A rendszer erőfeszítései ellenére, hogy totális ellenőrzést gyakoroljon a kultúra fölött, a művészet - az olyan személyiségeknek köszönhetően, mint Nyina - kisiklott szorításából, és szellemi vigaszt nyújtott a közönséges embereknek, azaz a méltóság, a szépség és az életöröm alternatíváit kínálta mindazoknak, akik a sztálinizmus rémálmait megszenvedték."
September 26, 2021
A truly fascinating account about the life of Nina Alexandrovna Anisimova, a ballet dancer who was part of the Kirov Theatre in Leningrad. The story also follows the narrative of the clash between artists and the state in their view about art, something which reminds me of Václav Havel’s position in communist Czechoslovakia after the crackdown of Prague Spring in 1968, during which Havel’s plays were banned from the theatre world in his own country and he was unable to leave Czechoslovakia to stage foreign performances, resulting in his increasing political activities. Our heroine in this story, Nina Anisimova, also found herself labelled as a ‘socially dangerous element’ due to suspicion of espionage activities and only as of the result of one false testimony. Regardless of that, Nina was arrested and sent to Gulag in Kazakhstan.
Stalin’s Great Terror claimed many lives from the intelligentsia in the late 1930s, artists are among them. By highlighting a single individual in this story, the author attempts to recreate and remember the extent of Stalin’s repressions through a character who could be said was a Soviet cultural icon. It begs us to question the value of truth and human rights which are being compromised in the face of an unjust system, which put millions of citizens into prison camps with poor living conditions, effectively cut them from the outside world in the name of reeducating them into model Soviet citizens. The position of Nina’s art, ballet, which was closely identified with the already-defunct Romanov dynasty which popularised it and the ruling classes who had enjoyed it didn’t make things easier for her.
Gulag, which stands for Glavnoe Upravlenie LAGerei ‘Main Camp Administration’, becomes the major topic of Solzhenitsyn, which was frequently quoted in his testimony in this book as well. The Gulag in Kazakhstan’s Karaganda region where Nina was imprisoned, was home to the Soviet Union’s third-largest coal reserves that required enormous manpower to function. What I enjoyed the most in this book was the genuine letter exchanges between Nina and Konstantine Derzhavin, her husband, during the time of her imprisonment in the Gulag between 1938 and 1939. The author seems to be doing it on purpose, to show how love was an integral part of Soviet life, how Kostia decided to lobby colleagues, officials, and networks to locate Nina’s whereabouts and to beg for reevaluation of the decision of the authorities to put Nina in Gulag, despite the fact that doing so might endanger his own position as even corresponded with a Gulag prisoner might trip someone into the fate of ‘guilty by association'. The letter exchanges also highlight prisoner conditions that seem inhumane by current standards with heavy labour.
Besides the thriving of artists during the Great Terror, this book also provides some insights into the life of Soviet artists during the Great Patriotic War, Soviet’s term to refer to World War II. Leningrad became one of the major theaters of the War, with the siege that lasted several years until January 1944. During this time, many artists were evacuated to safer areas, such was the case of Nina’s Kirov troupe which was hosted in the city of Perm and staged the repertoire Gayané composed by Aram Ilyich Khachaturian, a composer from Armenia who wrote his magnum opus Sabre Dance during this period on the request of the director of the Kirov. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of contemporary art as well as Soviet history.
Stalin’s Great Terror claimed many lives from the intelligentsia in the late 1930s, artists are among them. By highlighting a single individual in this story, the author attempts to recreate and remember the extent of Stalin’s repressions through a character who could be said was a Soviet cultural icon. It begs us to question the value of truth and human rights which are being compromised in the face of an unjust system, which put millions of citizens into prison camps with poor living conditions, effectively cut them from the outside world in the name of reeducating them into model Soviet citizens. The position of Nina’s art, ballet, which was closely identified with the already-defunct Romanov dynasty which popularised it and the ruling classes who had enjoyed it didn’t make things easier for her.
Gulag, which stands for Glavnoe Upravlenie LAGerei ‘Main Camp Administration’, becomes the major topic of Solzhenitsyn, which was frequently quoted in his testimony in this book as well. The Gulag in Kazakhstan’s Karaganda region where Nina was imprisoned, was home to the Soviet Union’s third-largest coal reserves that required enormous manpower to function. What I enjoyed the most in this book was the genuine letter exchanges between Nina and Konstantine Derzhavin, her husband, during the time of her imprisonment in the Gulag between 1938 and 1939. The author seems to be doing it on purpose, to show how love was an integral part of Soviet life, how Kostia decided to lobby colleagues, officials, and networks to locate Nina’s whereabouts and to beg for reevaluation of the decision of the authorities to put Nina in Gulag, despite the fact that doing so might endanger his own position as even corresponded with a Gulag prisoner might trip someone into the fate of ‘guilty by association'. The letter exchanges also highlight prisoner conditions that seem inhumane by current standards with heavy labour.
Besides the thriving of artists during the Great Terror, this book also provides some insights into the life of Soviet artists during the Great Patriotic War, Soviet’s term to refer to World War II. Leningrad became one of the major theaters of the War, with the siege that lasted several years until January 1944. During this time, many artists were evacuated to safer areas, such was the case of Nina’s Kirov troupe which was hosted in the city of Perm and staged the repertoire Gayané composed by Aram Ilyich Khachaturian, a composer from Armenia who wrote his magnum opus Sabre Dance during this period on the request of the director of the Kirov. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of contemporary art as well as Soviet history.
February 24, 2022
Just like its title, this story is about courage and survival of a Russian ballerina cum choreographer named Nina Aleksandrovna Anisimova who survived and courageously fought her way and made it through Stalin's Gulag labour camp by doing what she did best, dancing and choreographing for the labour camp's stage productions!.
In 1937-1938, Stalin's begin his horrific campaign known as the Great Terror/Great Purge where a massive series of executions,ethnic cleansing and imprisonments had occured ranging from Russian citizens, officials,rival politicians up to artists and performers. Nina Anisimova happened to be one of those people who was arrested and sent to those prison and labour camp during the Great Purge as she has been suspected for being a spy for Hitler's Nazi.
So, this biography recounts about her life and experiences while being in the prison and the labour camp, how she coped and survived living under such brutally harsh conditions and what drives her to get such strong will and self-endurance during the hard and difficult times.
It was revealed that Nina got her strength and motivation to endure from the continuous supports of her family and her husband, Kostia Derzhavin through the letters that they sent to her regularly despite the very strict regulations and control where letters are easily discarded and intercepted,usually did not make their way to the hands of the receivers. Resources to write the letters were also very limited and scarced causing Nina and the other prisoners to write on whatever things they could get their hands on which they kept tightly hidden for fear of being confiscated.
Besides support from family and friends, Nina's source of endurance came from what she did best which was dancing and choreographing!. Surprisingly and remarkably,at the labour camp, despite the horrific situations and war time, stage performances were conducted there as a source of entertainment for the labour camp's administrators.
The camp's prisoners were allowed to be involved in staging the performances. This proves to be a huge opportunity for Nina to shine and flourish in her field. As state by Nina, "You yourselves have to understand how happy i am about this. My days are filled completely. I am working a lot, i have no time,just as it used to be in former times. The club here is very good even though it is small. I already performed, i danced the Spanish Dance,after all my castanets are with me. I thought my legs would fail me,but it was ok". Through performing and being involved in the performances, was how Nina survived at the camp as artists were given the extra privileges to help cope between life and death. It was said that Nina also succeeded in coming up with a number of dance choreographies of her own during her time in the Gulag, which was rare and unusual for women at that time as choreography field was usually done and dominated by men.
In conclusion, this book proves to be a fascinating read to me which i would recommend to anyone who is interested in Soviet Russia's history during Stalin's time, Russia's ballet dancing industry and stage performances. This story left me feeling inspired by Nina's tenacity and will to survive and excel in her field. I am glad to be given the opportunity to read about her through this book (my only quirk is i find the footnotes and extra details given by the author to be confusing and distracting at times in following the flow of the story. Other than that, she did a very excellent job in conveying the story of Nina and i am glad that she found that secret file, otherwise we might have not known about this remarkable dancer).
I rated this book a 4.5🌟.
Thank you Elliot & Thompson and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this extraordinary book.
In 1937-1938, Stalin's begin his horrific campaign known as the Great Terror/Great Purge where a massive series of executions,ethnic cleansing and imprisonments had occured ranging from Russian citizens, officials,rival politicians up to artists and performers. Nina Anisimova happened to be one of those people who was arrested and sent to those prison and labour camp during the Great Purge as she has been suspected for being a spy for Hitler's Nazi.
So, this biography recounts about her life and experiences while being in the prison and the labour camp, how she coped and survived living under such brutally harsh conditions and what drives her to get such strong will and self-endurance during the hard and difficult times.
It was revealed that Nina got her strength and motivation to endure from the continuous supports of her family and her husband, Kostia Derzhavin through the letters that they sent to her regularly despite the very strict regulations and control where letters are easily discarded and intercepted,usually did not make their way to the hands of the receivers. Resources to write the letters were also very limited and scarced causing Nina and the other prisoners to write on whatever things they could get their hands on which they kept tightly hidden for fear of being confiscated.
Besides support from family and friends, Nina's source of endurance came from what she did best which was dancing and choreographing!. Surprisingly and remarkably,at the labour camp, despite the horrific situations and war time, stage performances were conducted there as a source of entertainment for the labour camp's administrators.
The camp's prisoners were allowed to be involved in staging the performances. This proves to be a huge opportunity for Nina to shine and flourish in her field. As state by Nina, "You yourselves have to understand how happy i am about this. My days are filled completely. I am working a lot, i have no time,just as it used to be in former times. The club here is very good even though it is small. I already performed, i danced the Spanish Dance,after all my castanets are with me. I thought my legs would fail me,but it was ok". Through performing and being involved in the performances, was how Nina survived at the camp as artists were given the extra privileges to help cope between life and death. It was said that Nina also succeeded in coming up with a number of dance choreographies of her own during her time in the Gulag, which was rare and unusual for women at that time as choreography field was usually done and dominated by men.
In conclusion, this book proves to be a fascinating read to me which i would recommend to anyone who is interested in Soviet Russia's history during Stalin's time, Russia's ballet dancing industry and stage performances. This story left me feeling inspired by Nina's tenacity and will to survive and excel in her field. I am glad to be given the opportunity to read about her through this book (my only quirk is i find the footnotes and extra details given by the author to be confusing and distracting at times in following the flow of the story. Other than that, she did a very excellent job in conveying the story of Nina and i am glad that she found that secret file, otherwise we might have not known about this remarkable dancer).
I rated this book a 4.5🌟.
Thank you Elliot & Thompson and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this extraordinary book.
October 11, 2021
Wow! If you're looking for a story about an inspirational woman then look no further! I knew nothing of Nina Anisimova before picking this book up, and was just interested in finding out more about Russian history and I've been left gobsmacked by the story of this woman who found herself arrested during the purge of Stalin in 1938, and was sentenced to forced labour in Kazakhstan.
Her story is horrific and inspiring in equal measures as you read what was she was forced to endure under this brutal regime and it really brings home the horrors of life under Stalin. Her husband fought relentlessly on the outside for her release, and their story is made even clearer by the letters they shared and that is where the author found her inspiration. She only came across their story by mistake - what a story to uncover!
Her life before her arrest makes for astonishing reading too, as she rose to the top of the ballet world, and that love for ballet is what kept her going through the toughest times in the labour camps. She would dream of returning to the stage and choreography and you are left in no doubt with her attitude that she was going to achieve that aim, no matter what she was facing on a daily basis.
The background into Russian history was also absolutely fascinating, and seeing how the propoganda and paranoia whipped up by Stalin would make the population so fearful. The treatment of prisoners was horrific and the author pulls no punches in sharing what those locked up had to go through.
The love of her husband was equally powerful - their letters were so touching but always spoke of hope, and he just wouldn't give up on getting her back. A truly amazing and courageous couple!
An astonishing story that needs to be read to be believed! Powerful!
Her story is horrific and inspiring in equal measures as you read what was she was forced to endure under this brutal regime and it really brings home the horrors of life under Stalin. Her husband fought relentlessly on the outside for her release, and their story is made even clearer by the letters they shared and that is where the author found her inspiration. She only came across their story by mistake - what a story to uncover!
Her life before her arrest makes for astonishing reading too, as she rose to the top of the ballet world, and that love for ballet is what kept her going through the toughest times in the labour camps. She would dream of returning to the stage and choreography and you are left in no doubt with her attitude that she was going to achieve that aim, no matter what she was facing on a daily basis.
The background into Russian history was also absolutely fascinating, and seeing how the propoganda and paranoia whipped up by Stalin would make the population so fearful. The treatment of prisoners was horrific and the author pulls no punches in sharing what those locked up had to go through.
The love of her husband was equally powerful - their letters were so touching but always spoke of hope, and he just wouldn't give up on getting her back. A truly amazing and courageous couple!
An astonishing story that needs to be read to be believed! Powerful!
September 4, 2021
What a remarkable biography. It tells the story of Nina Anisimova, acclaimed Russian ballerina and choreographer, who was accused of espionage during Stalin’s purges in 1938 and sent to the Gulag. Amazingly, she managed to survive the harsh regime and clung on to her desire to dance. Equally amazingly, her husband Kostia Derzhavin fought back against the system on her behalf, at great personal risk, remaining loyal throughout and protesting her innocence. Many letters between them have survived and the author has drawn on these to complement her meticulous research into Anisimova’s life and cruel fate. Once she was released, she returned to Saint Petersburg and went on to have an illustrious career with the Kirov. I’d never heard of her before and found her story a truly extraordinary one, compellingly narrated here, along with an informative overview of the Russian ballet of that era. There are many histories of individuals caught up in the Gulag and this is a welcome addition to their number. I found the book a truly fascinating read.
August 26, 2021
Review ~ Dancing for Stalin by Christina Ezrahi.
Firstly I’d like to thank the lovely folks at Elliott & Thompson and Sam TheBookSheElf for sending me a copy of this stunning book with a request to read it and write an open and honest review.
I absolutely adored this book. It tells the story of Nina Anisimova, a Russian ballet dancer and dance choreographer who was born in 1909 and brought up in St. Petersburg during a time of great change and a deep paranoia that existed within the government of Russia at the time. Revolutions, Spies and the constant threat of imprisonment and the very real possibility of execution if found “guilty” of any misdemeanour that was deemed against your country.
Nina was arrested and thrown in prison among accusations that she was a spy reporting back to Nazi Germany. She was interrogated and encouraged to sign false confessions of her supposed spying activities. Thrown into a forced labour camp she used her training as a dancer and performed for the officials of the prison/camp. Her passion for her craft kept her going and gave her something to live for.
Before reading this book I had, personally, never heard of this astonishing woman and the hellish situation she and many like her found themselves in during that very dark period in recent human history. I find myself wanting to know more about her.
This book is a beautifully written and an incredibly well researched biography of a very gifted and talented performer who, against all the olds, used her gifts to get her through a terrifying experience. It is also, unlike other non fiction books of this kind, a very easy read.
I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of non fiction that depicts strong female characters from world history. I feel more people should be aware of this woman and others like her.
Firstly I’d like to thank the lovely folks at Elliott & Thompson and Sam TheBookSheElf for sending me a copy of this stunning book with a request to read it and write an open and honest review.
I absolutely adored this book. It tells the story of Nina Anisimova, a Russian ballet dancer and dance choreographer who was born in 1909 and brought up in St. Petersburg during a time of great change and a deep paranoia that existed within the government of Russia at the time. Revolutions, Spies and the constant threat of imprisonment and the very real possibility of execution if found “guilty” of any misdemeanour that was deemed against your country.
Nina was arrested and thrown in prison among accusations that she was a spy reporting back to Nazi Germany. She was interrogated and encouraged to sign false confessions of her supposed spying activities. Thrown into a forced labour camp she used her training as a dancer and performed for the officials of the prison/camp. Her passion for her craft kept her going and gave her something to live for.
Before reading this book I had, personally, never heard of this astonishing woman and the hellish situation she and many like her found themselves in during that very dark period in recent human history. I find myself wanting to know more about her.
This book is a beautifully written and an incredibly well researched biography of a very gifted and talented performer who, against all the olds, used her gifts to get her through a terrifying experience. It is also, unlike other non fiction books of this kind, a very easy read.
I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of non fiction that depicts strong female characters from world history. I feel more people should be aware of this woman and others like her.
June 9, 2023
Dancing for Stalin by Christina Ezrahi is a stunning book in every way. I read a lot from Stalin's Great Terror era and the difference here is the perspective of Nina Anisimova, a choreographer and character dancer born in St. Petersburg who became known for her character depictions in her beloved art. However, she was falsely accused of espionage and vanished, as so many thousands of people did then. Her life in the Gulag was beyond imagining. Having to survive both Stalin and Nazi nightmares is incomprehensible and humans' capacity of inhumanity is staggering. This book is about passion, despair, anguish and hope.
Nina's wrote letters which not only reveal personal struggles but are incredibly important historical contributions. Sadly, justice was never served for false accusations, arrests, tortures and deaths making a tragic story even worse. However, Nina left behind a legacy of her characters at dance competitions in the present day. One of the many aha moments for me in this book was that Nina did not dance for Stalin but for human beings who were her real audience. I like that the author included Nina's life after the Gulag.
If you are eager to learn more about Nina's story and/or Stalin's Great Terror, be sure to read this.
My sincere thank you to Elliott & Thompson and NetGalley for providing me with an early digital copy of this outstanding book.
Nina's wrote letters which not only reveal personal struggles but are incredibly important historical contributions. Sadly, justice was never served for false accusations, arrests, tortures and deaths making a tragic story even worse. However, Nina left behind a legacy of her characters at dance competitions in the present day. One of the many aha moments for me in this book was that Nina did not dance for Stalin but for human beings who were her real audience. I like that the author included Nina's life after the Gulag.
If you are eager to learn more about Nina's story and/or Stalin's Great Terror, be sure to read this.
My sincere thank you to Elliott & Thompson and NetGalley for providing me with an early digital copy of this outstanding book.
December 6, 2024
Nevím, proč to jednu dobu byla kniha velmi špatně hodnocená nebo proč se u nás prodávala za 19 korun. Obálka je asi zvláštní. Něco mi na ní vadí. Asi ta ruka je tam divná a že by to možná odrazovalo? Stalinova baletka není románem, ale biografií a celkem odborně udělanou. Jsou tam dokumenty, spisy i její dopisy. Na odrazu jejího příběhu, který se skutečně odehrál je však celkem dobře ukázáno, jak to v té době probíhalo. To od roku 1909...1920 1933... prostě to, co nemělo hlavu a patu a logiku. Vlastně i ona, jak se octla na prahu smrti a bojovala, aby se dostala aspoň do tábora .. jak šmahem ruky potom stačilo vše smést ze stolu a jakoby se nic nedělo, tak se stala tou největší baletkou té doby... no prostě si pak můžete ujasnit, proč se někdo v Rusku chová tak, jak se chová. Proč se bojí. Proč chování nedává smysl... A jak tam panuje velký chaos, stihomam a jednoduše bordel.
April 17, 2023
In awe with the amount of research and sourcing that went into this book. At times it helped paint the picture, and was also at times too overwhelming with the amount of facts that the story was lost. I recommend after reading, to watch videos from Gayane and the Sabre dance- it’s incredible to see such beauty come from such hard times. It truly shows how remarkable this true story Dancing with Stalin is.
For me this wasn’t a quick read with so much factual information, but I’m so glad to have read it, and I did learn a lot!
Thank you, Netgalley and Elliott & Thompson, for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
For me this wasn’t a quick read with so much factual information, but I’m so glad to have read it, and I did learn a lot!
Thank you, Netgalley and Elliott & Thompson, for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
August 26, 2021
Thank you to NetGalley, Elliot & Thompson, and the author for the chance to read and review an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.
This book is nominally a microhistory of Soviet character dancer Nina Anisimova, who was sent under the flimsiest of pretenses to a Kazakh gulag in the late thirties and somehow not only survived but thrived. The author has clearly researched her subject extensively and seems to this under-informed reader to be equally knowledgeable (or at least, informed) about this period of Soviet history as she is about minute details of ballet history. At times the extensive research, endless long Russian names, and multitude of footnotes were really distracting and made for some dense, slogging reading. It's not the author's fault but my ARC edition was very poorly formatted and most of the footnotes were plunked down mid-paragraph, making it difficult to follow the narrative. I appreciate the wealth of knowledge that the author is able to impart but frankly I think Nina's story would have benefitted more from a focus on Nina directly and less on the specifics of every last dancer, choreographer, theater supporter, and tangential character known to Nina.
The book particularly shines in the narrative portions where Nina's specific experience is explained - such as in the harrowing train ride to the gulag - and in her letters home. The translations of her letters made me wonder if some of her phrasing is typical for Russians, or more of a historical way of speaking? ("I kiss you strongly," etc.) I'd be interested to find out. At any rate, Nina was clearly an indomitable survivor and miraculously survived an experience that killed or benumbed so many of her compatriots, with her fiery artistic spirit intact and her creative drive going strong. I looked online to see if I could find any videos of her performing but sadly, I couldn't. The idea of a character dancer is kind of a new one for me, and I definitely fell down a YouTube wormhole looking at examples.
I did assume from the title that Nina performed literally in front of Stalin at this point, but unless I misread, I don't believe that was portrayed in the book. (In case this matters to anyone.)
I would recommend this book to a reader with a strong interest in Soviet/Russian history, a reader who likes strong women, or a devotee of ballet history.
This book is nominally a microhistory of Soviet character dancer Nina Anisimova, who was sent under the flimsiest of pretenses to a Kazakh gulag in the late thirties and somehow not only survived but thrived. The author has clearly researched her subject extensively and seems to this under-informed reader to be equally knowledgeable (or at least, informed) about this period of Soviet history as she is about minute details of ballet history. At times the extensive research, endless long Russian names, and multitude of footnotes were really distracting and made for some dense, slogging reading. It's not the author's fault but my ARC edition was very poorly formatted and most of the footnotes were plunked down mid-paragraph, making it difficult to follow the narrative. I appreciate the wealth of knowledge that the author is able to impart but frankly I think Nina's story would have benefitted more from a focus on Nina directly and less on the specifics of every last dancer, choreographer, theater supporter, and tangential character known to Nina.
The book particularly shines in the narrative portions where Nina's specific experience is explained - such as in the harrowing train ride to the gulag - and in her letters home. The translations of her letters made me wonder if some of her phrasing is typical for Russians, or more of a historical way of speaking? ("I kiss you strongly," etc.) I'd be interested to find out. At any rate, Nina was clearly an indomitable survivor and miraculously survived an experience that killed or benumbed so many of her compatriots, with her fiery artistic spirit intact and her creative drive going strong. I looked online to see if I could find any videos of her performing but sadly, I couldn't. The idea of a character dancer is kind of a new one for me, and I definitely fell down a YouTube wormhole looking at examples.
I did assume from the title that Nina performed literally in front of Stalin at this point, but unless I misread, I don't believe that was portrayed in the book. (In case this matters to anyone.)
I would recommend this book to a reader with a strong interest in Soviet/Russian history, a reader who likes strong women, or a devotee of ballet history.
May 26, 2023
To say that this book has been well researched would be an offensive understatement. The Great Terror under Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1939. The Siege of Leningrad by Germany and subsequent evacuation from 1941 to 1943. These darkest parts of Soviet history have been obscured by more than just the passage of time.
Yet through meticulous research and the discovery of 75-year-old letters, author Christina Ezrahi has recreated the never-before-told story of dancer and choreographer Nina Anisimova, whose iron will rivaled the strength of the Iron Curtain.
Ezrahi sticks strictly to the history in a somewhat dry recounting of prison interrogations and letters. However, it is through records such as these that Ezrahi describes Anisimova’s remarkable experiences during what amounts to multiple years in exile from the loves of her life, both her husband, writer Konstantin Derzhavin, and the theater.
Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer’s Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia is an excellent biography. It is not, however, one I would recommend to every reader. If you have a particular interest in the rise of communism and/or World War II history particularly related to the Soviet Union, I highly recommend this book. It left me wanting to learn more about other artists of this period such as Vaganova, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, and Pasternak.
If, on the other hand, you are drawn in by the word “Dancing” in the title, you may not find enough actual dance, beyond a history of the early Kirov Ballet and choreographic styles, to keep you reading. The title is more of an ironic choice which the author doesn’t explain until the Epilogue.
In the end, the beauty of Dancing for Stalin lies in its portrayal of triumph over a system bent on destruction–proof, as Ezrahi mentions more than once, that art is stronger than politics.
*Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Yet through meticulous research and the discovery of 75-year-old letters, author Christina Ezrahi has recreated the never-before-told story of dancer and choreographer Nina Anisimova, whose iron will rivaled the strength of the Iron Curtain.
Ezrahi sticks strictly to the history in a somewhat dry recounting of prison interrogations and letters. However, it is through records such as these that Ezrahi describes Anisimova’s remarkable experiences during what amounts to multiple years in exile from the loves of her life, both her husband, writer Konstantin Derzhavin, and the theater.
Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer’s Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia is an excellent biography. It is not, however, one I would recommend to every reader. If you have a particular interest in the rise of communism and/or World War II history particularly related to the Soviet Union, I highly recommend this book. It left me wanting to learn more about other artists of this period such as Vaganova, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, and Pasternak.
If, on the other hand, you are drawn in by the word “Dancing” in the title, you may not find enough actual dance, beyond a history of the early Kirov Ballet and choreographic styles, to keep you reading. The title is more of an ironic choice which the author doesn’t explain until the Epilogue.
In the end, the beauty of Dancing for Stalin lies in its portrayal of triumph over a system bent on destruction–proof, as Ezrahi mentions more than once, that art is stronger than politics.
*Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
December 10, 2021
Dancing for Stalin by Christina Ezrahi is the story of dancer/choreographer Nina Anisimova with an emphasis on the time and impact of her time in a Soviet gulag.
For those who primarily enjoy biographies this is one you will not soon forget. Anisimova's story is filled with incredible highs and devastating lows, and Ezrahi does a wonderful job of telling the story, often in Anisimova's own words.
What sets this book apart from many biographies is what it has to say about both Stalinist Russia and, more broadly, the role of artists in an authoritarian regime. There is a great deal of valuable historical information here that will appeal to the reader with an interest in history.
The aspect about artists and authoritarian regimes speaks both to that specific time and place as well as all such situations. With the trend toward anti-intellectualism, or more accurately toward anti-truth, artists are once again considered a threat to those wanting authoritarian rule. We would do well to take this lesson to heart before the minority on the right complete their destruction of democracy.
Highly recommended for those into biographies, Soviet, particularly Stalinist, history, and those wanting to learn from history to make the future a better rather than a more barbaric place where boys feel justified in going to another state and murdering people in "self-defense."
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
For those who primarily enjoy biographies this is one you will not soon forget. Anisimova's story is filled with incredible highs and devastating lows, and Ezrahi does a wonderful job of telling the story, often in Anisimova's own words.
What sets this book apart from many biographies is what it has to say about both Stalinist Russia and, more broadly, the role of artists in an authoritarian regime. There is a great deal of valuable historical information here that will appeal to the reader with an interest in history.
The aspect about artists and authoritarian regimes speaks both to that specific time and place as well as all such situations. With the trend toward anti-intellectualism, or more accurately toward anti-truth, artists are once again considered a threat to those wanting authoritarian rule. We would do well to take this lesson to heart before the minority on the right complete their destruction of democracy.
Highly recommended for those into biographies, Soviet, particularly Stalinist, history, and those wanting to learn from history to make the future a better rather than a more barbaric place where boys feel justified in going to another state and murdering people in "self-defense."
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
September 20, 2021
A truly fascinating account of Nina's life, and one I knew absolutely nothing about. Packed with facts and real historical research/accuracy this is a beautifully detailed biography.
Some shocking scenes, and this doesn't hold back from what happened. Also glorious in how Nina overcame this. Her letters are so warm and endearing even at the toughest times.
Some shocking scenes, and this doesn't hold back from what happened. Also glorious in how Nina overcame this. Her letters are so warm and endearing even at the toughest times.
December 12, 2022
Nemám moc důvěru v knížky, které začínají tím, že si autorka objedná něco v archivu a Knihovnice přehlédla jasný pokyn na titulní straně, podle kterého se tento svazek neměl dostat do rukou badatelům bez zvláštního povolení. (s. 13)
A tam to bylo, jak by řekla Helenka Součková.
Nina mi přišla otravná.
Dopisy ve stylu „pošli mi tohle, tohle a tamto“ a „proč jsi mi poslal tohle a ne tamto?“ tomu nepřidaly.
s. 284 Dopisy od Niny jsou (...) záznamem vnitřního života umělkyně
Zjevně jsem četla nějaké jiné.
Bez hysterických výkřiků, že se Kosťa v telegramu podepsal jako Kolja a že kolega dostal pohled o den dřív než ona, bych se obešla.
Jestli bylo autorčiným cílem vykreslit Ninu jako hloupoučkou, povrchní, sobeckou, hysterickou umělkyni... má splněno.
Je to jen další příběh bez nějaké přidané hodnoty.
Autorka hojně cituje. Většinou věci, které znáte už po přečtení první knížky o gulagu.
Někdy příliš zjednodušuje, viz poprava carské rodiny, s. 110.
Překvapilo mě, že vězni v gulagu poslouchali pravidelně v rádiu vážnou hudbu.
Nesedí mi autorčin patetický styl, kde barvitě popisuje, co chudina hrdinka prožívala... Aby to doplnila poznámkou, že se teda neví, jestli to tak bylo, ale vězni přibližně z té doby to tak nějak popisují.
Úplně nerozumím tomu, jak fungovala pošta z obléhaného Leningradu. Zjevně bylo nutné dát vědět, že se mu stýská a pes žere za dva. (s. 233)
Zatímco Ljubov si následující den píše do deníčku, že začíná hlad a nejsou skoro žádné potraviny.
s. 239 [sestra] Valja měla dvě práce, starala se o domácnost a psa
A co dělal Kosťa, kromě psaní ufňukaných dopisů?
Kosťa trávil většinu času doma, snažil se bádat, číst a psát.
A byl v depresi, bo málokdo chodil na návštěvu a neměl si s kým promluvit, ani s Valjou ne, protože se každý den vracela z práce úplně vyčerpaná. (s. 240)
Teda kromě Kolji, který je často navštěvoval a zůstával přes noc. (s. 241)
No chudák malý.
Ztratila jsem se u mužů sestry Valji (a rejstřík mi nepomohl).
s. 99 Její pětatřicetiletá sestra Vajla měla své vlastní starosti: její manžel, Michail Kontorovič, armádní technik, byl také zatčen a poslán do lágru.
s. 247 Den před představením zkolagovala na jejich prahu Valjina tchyně, Maria Grigorjevna Kontorovičová. Michail Jevimovič, Valjin druhý manžel a významný inženýr, byl během Velkého teroru zatčen a odsouzen k nuceným pracím.
To je jako jeden a ten samý?
Protože v rejstříku je na s. 326 Kontorovič, Michail 99 a na s. 325 Jefimovič, Michail 247.
s. 250 Tchyni poslaly pryč, bo musela pořád ležet, takže si Valja ani její matka nemohly lehnout a odpočívat.
Nakonec Marii Grigorjevnu vypravily do Stalinobadu. Nina byla šťastná, že jsou spolu opět jen ony tři. Koupila otoman a pružinovou matraci, protože čekala, že přijede Kosťa, a chtěla všem zajistit dostatek místa na spaní.
To taky o něčem svědčí.
Některé formulace jsou matoucí, např.
s. 83 Konstantin miloval Ninu už dva roky, ale jejich životy se spojily už dávno předtím. Když vypukla Velká říjnová socialistická revoluce, bylo Nině osm a Kosťovi čtrnáct. Paradoxně ten totální zmatek, který nastal, jim oběma umožnil, aby se věnovali své lásce k divadlu.
Ale to neznamená, že se v té době znali.
s. 88 Nina a Kosťa se poprvé setkali v červnu 1936 na premiéře jejího prvního baletu...
Poprvé se tedy setkali v červnu 1936.
Zatčená byla 2. února 1938.
Krátce po zatčení ji miloval už dva roky.
Aha.
Nina a její rodina žili od roku 1909 na Kirovově prospektu, dům 1/3, byt 31. (s. 21, 22)
s. 130 [její manžel Kosťa Děržavin]
Kosťa vyřešil problém s jejím pokojem tak, že se do něj přestěhoval z bytu svých rodičů (...)
Přestěhovat se z bytu rodičů do Ninina komunálního bytu...
s. 202 Připojuji se k žádosti svého syna.
Akademik N. S. Děržavin
Leingrad, 46 Pr. Kirov, 1/3 byt 31
To tam jeho otec bydlel taky? Nebo proč použil adresu Niny a svého syna?
s. 93 Zdá se, že jediný z rodiny, kdo přežil Teror a druhou světovou válku, byla jeho sestra (hledání jména v elektronické databázi Kniga pamjati „Blokada“ (...), Levaněnkova sestra je jediná členka jeho nejbližší rodiny, jejíž jméno se v databázi neobjevuje...
Z toho vyplývá co? Že není v databázi neznamená, že přežila blokádu. Nebo že vůbec byla v obleženém Leningradě.
s. 14 obviňovaly asi pětatřicet tanečníků, herců a dirigentů
Asi...
s. 15 Těchto čtyřiatřicet umělců
s. 182 Teploty klesaly k mínus 40 stupňům
s. 134 je tu 43 °C pod nulou
s. 224 divadlo v polovině srpna oznámilo, že zahájí sezónu 23. srpna (...)
Ale pak, 15. srpna 1941 oznámil ředitel na plenární schůzi, že Moskva nařídila evakuaci
Jsem si myslela, že 15. srpna je polovina srpna.
Originál vyšel v roce 2021. I když píše, že Tato kniha je první knihou pamětí vydanou v roce 2022.
Na s. 276-278 píše o ruském vpádu na Ukrajinu v roce 2022. To by chtělo nějakou vysvětlivku. Lidé z posledních stran už nejsou v rejstříku.
Obrazovou přílohu tvoří jedna jediná černobílá mapa SSSR.
Kapitola 8, s. 179 – místo poznámky č. 42 je poznámka č. 1.
s. 66 boží [zboží]
uvozovky - s. 131, 138, 144, 145, 154, 175, 186, 271
ji/jí - s. 133
špatné dělení slov - s. 229
A tam to bylo, jak by řekla Helenka Součková.
Nina mi přišla otravná.
Dopisy ve stylu „pošli mi tohle, tohle a tamto“ a „proč jsi mi poslal tohle a ne tamto?“ tomu nepřidaly.
s. 284 Dopisy od Niny jsou (...) záznamem vnitřního života umělkyně
Zjevně jsem četla nějaké jiné.
Bez hysterických výkřiků, že se Kosťa v telegramu podepsal jako Kolja a že kolega dostal pohled o den dřív než ona, bych se obešla.
Jestli bylo autorčiným cílem vykreslit Ninu jako hloupoučkou, povrchní, sobeckou, hysterickou umělkyni... má splněno.
Je to jen další příběh bez nějaké přidané hodnoty.
Autorka hojně cituje. Většinou věci, které znáte už po přečtení první knížky o gulagu.
Někdy příliš zjednodušuje, viz poprava carské rodiny, s. 110.
Překvapilo mě, že vězni v gulagu poslouchali pravidelně v rádiu vážnou hudbu.
Nesedí mi autorčin patetický styl, kde barvitě popisuje, co chudina hrdinka prožívala... Aby to doplnila poznámkou, že se teda neví, jestli to tak bylo, ale vězni přibližně z té doby to tak nějak popisují.
Úplně nerozumím tomu, jak fungovala pošta z obléhaného Leningradu. Zjevně bylo nutné dát vědět, že se mu stýská a pes žere za dva. (s. 233)
Zatímco Ljubov si následující den píše do deníčku, že začíná hlad a nejsou skoro žádné potraviny.
s. 239 [sestra] Valja měla dvě práce, starala se o domácnost a psa
A co dělal Kosťa, kromě psaní ufňukaných dopisů?
Kosťa trávil většinu času doma, snažil se bádat, číst a psát.
A byl v depresi, bo málokdo chodil na návštěvu a neměl si s kým promluvit, ani s Valjou ne, protože se každý den vracela z práce úplně vyčerpaná. (s. 240)
Teda kromě Kolji, který je často navštěvoval a zůstával přes noc. (s. 241)
No chudák malý.
Ztratila jsem se u mužů sestry Valji (a rejstřík mi nepomohl).
s. 99 Její pětatřicetiletá sestra Vajla měla své vlastní starosti: její manžel, Michail Kontorovič, armádní technik, byl také zatčen a poslán do lágru.
s. 247 Den před představením zkolagovala na jejich prahu Valjina tchyně, Maria Grigorjevna Kontorovičová. Michail Jevimovič, Valjin druhý manžel a významný inženýr, byl během Velkého teroru zatčen a odsouzen k nuceným pracím.
To je jako jeden a ten samý?
Protože v rejstříku je na s. 326 Kontorovič, Michail 99 a na s. 325 Jefimovič, Michail 247.
s. 250 Tchyni poslaly pryč, bo musela pořád ležet, takže si Valja ani její matka nemohly lehnout a odpočívat.
Nakonec Marii Grigorjevnu vypravily do Stalinobadu. Nina byla šťastná, že jsou spolu opět jen ony tři. Koupila otoman a pružinovou matraci, protože čekala, že přijede Kosťa, a chtěla všem zajistit dostatek místa na spaní.
To taky o něčem svědčí.
Některé formulace jsou matoucí, např.
s. 83 Konstantin miloval Ninu už dva roky, ale jejich životy se spojily už dávno předtím. Když vypukla Velká říjnová socialistická revoluce, bylo Nině osm a Kosťovi čtrnáct. Paradoxně ten totální zmatek, který nastal, jim oběma umožnil, aby se věnovali své lásce k divadlu.
Ale to neznamená, že se v té době znali.
s. 88 Nina a Kosťa se poprvé setkali v červnu 1936 na premiéře jejího prvního baletu...
Poprvé se tedy setkali v červnu 1936.
Zatčená byla 2. února 1938.
Krátce po zatčení ji miloval už dva roky.
Aha.
Nina a její rodina žili od roku 1909 na Kirovově prospektu, dům 1/3, byt 31. (s. 21, 22)
s. 130 [její manžel Kosťa Děržavin]
Kosťa vyřešil problém s jejím pokojem tak, že se do něj přestěhoval z bytu svých rodičů (...)
Přestěhovat se z bytu rodičů do Ninina komunálního bytu...
s. 202 Připojuji se k žádosti svého syna.
Akademik N. S. Děržavin
Leingrad, 46 Pr. Kirov, 1/3 byt 31
To tam jeho otec bydlel taky? Nebo proč použil adresu Niny a svého syna?
s. 93 Zdá se, že jediný z rodiny, kdo přežil Teror a druhou světovou válku, byla jeho sestra (hledání jména v elektronické databázi Kniga pamjati „Blokada“ (...), Levaněnkova sestra je jediná členka jeho nejbližší rodiny, jejíž jméno se v databázi neobjevuje...
Z toho vyplývá co? Že není v databázi neznamená, že přežila blokádu. Nebo že vůbec byla v obleženém Leningradě.
s. 14 obviňovaly asi pětatřicet tanečníků, herců a dirigentů
Asi...
s. 15 Těchto čtyřiatřicet umělců
s. 182 Teploty klesaly k mínus 40 stupňům
s. 134 je tu 43 °C pod nulou
s. 224 divadlo v polovině srpna oznámilo, že zahájí sezónu 23. srpna (...)
Ale pak, 15. srpna 1941 oznámil ředitel na plenární schůzi, že Moskva nařídila evakuaci
Jsem si myslela, že 15. srpna je polovina srpna.
Originál vyšel v roce 2021. I když píše, že Tato kniha je první knihou pamětí vydanou v roce 2022.
Na s. 276-278 píše o ruském vpádu na Ukrajinu v roce 2022. To by chtělo nějakou vysvětlivku. Lidé z posledních stran už nejsou v rejstříku.
Obrazovou přílohu tvoří jedna jediná černobílá mapa SSSR.
Kapitola 8, s. 179 – místo poznámky č. 42 je poznámka č. 1.
s. 66 boží [zboží]
uvozovky - s. 131, 138, 144, 145, 154, 175, 186, 271
ji/jí - s. 133
špatné dělení slov - s. 229
March 15, 2023
The Soviet era under Stalin has always been one shrouded in mystery, albeit with information emerging since the 1980s, which saw a period of openness (Glasnost) there remains uncertainty and secretiveness regarding this period.
In Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer’s Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia: A True Story of Love and Survival in Soviet Russia, Christina Ezrahi unveils some of this mystery told through the experiences of Russian Ballerina, Nina Anisimova who, in 1938, during the height of Stalin’s ‘Great Terror’ disappeared into Soviet Russia’s notorious Gulag.
Nina’s story had been mostly unheard until a chance happening for the author, that led to the revelation of, not only Nina’s astounding story, but also the brutality of the Stalinist regime in the years leading up to World War II and Hitler’s invasion of Russia. Told by piecing together a vast amount of historical research and surviving letters from Nina’s husband, the writer Konstantin Derzhavin, Christina Ezrahi brilliantly unveils a fascinating tale of love, a passion for ballet and survival in one of history’s most brutal regimes.
The surviving artifacts relating to this period of Nina’s life in the Gulag, portray not just someone determined to survive after being accused of espionage, but also someone whose love for her art, as well as her family managed to sustain her throughout her imprisonment. Dancing for Stalin is not just a tale of Nina’s imprisonment but her inspirational effort to survive and succeed in a career dominated by men, where her legacy survives stronger since her passing in 1979 than it did during her lifetime.
Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer’s Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia: A True Story of Love and Survival in Soviet Russia presents a new and fascinating portrayal of survival in Stalinist Russia, during a time of unimaginable horrors inflicted upon a people by its own government. It would take decades for much of the information to become public and it is here that Christina Ezrahi’s happenchance upon a file containing documents on Nina’s imprisonment that this tale is revealed to the world, not only to inspire us, but to educate us that even through the darkest hours a light can still shine.
In Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer’s Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia: A True Story of Love and Survival in Soviet Russia, Christina Ezrahi unveils some of this mystery told through the experiences of Russian Ballerina, Nina Anisimova who, in 1938, during the height of Stalin’s ‘Great Terror’ disappeared into Soviet Russia’s notorious Gulag.
Nina’s story had been mostly unheard until a chance happening for the author, that led to the revelation of, not only Nina’s astounding story, but also the brutality of the Stalinist regime in the years leading up to World War II and Hitler’s invasion of Russia. Told by piecing together a vast amount of historical research and surviving letters from Nina’s husband, the writer Konstantin Derzhavin, Christina Ezrahi brilliantly unveils a fascinating tale of love, a passion for ballet and survival in one of history’s most brutal regimes.
The surviving artifacts relating to this period of Nina’s life in the Gulag, portray not just someone determined to survive after being accused of espionage, but also someone whose love for her art, as well as her family managed to sustain her throughout her imprisonment. Dancing for Stalin is not just a tale of Nina’s imprisonment but her inspirational effort to survive and succeed in a career dominated by men, where her legacy survives stronger since her passing in 1979 than it did during her lifetime.
Dancing for Stalin: A Dancer’s Story of Courage and Survival in Soviet Russia: A True Story of Love and Survival in Soviet Russia presents a new and fascinating portrayal of survival in Stalinist Russia, during a time of unimaginable horrors inflicted upon a people by its own government. It would take decades for much of the information to become public and it is here that Christina Ezrahi’s happenchance upon a file containing documents on Nina’s imprisonment that this tale is revealed to the world, not only to inspire us, but to educate us that even through the darkest hours a light can still shine.
July 20, 2023
I was sent this book for free in return for an honest review.
‘Dancing for Stalin,’ starts in the archives of St Petersburg and takes us on a journey through the years of ‘The Terror,’ under Joseph Stalin the leader of the Soviet Union. The book focuses on Nina Anisimova, a ballet dancer with the Kirov ballet company. (Now known as the Mariinsky Ballet.) Accused of having counter revolutionary relationships and discussions Nina is found guilty and sent to the soviet prison system gulag.
The book is incredibly well researched and the author does an exceptional job of using Nina’s own letters to allow us to really understand what her experience was like as a prisoner of the Soviet regime. The situation she found herself is harrowing and could easily have been soul destroying and yet Nina holds on to her passion for the arts, for ballet and for dance to enable herself to not just get through her imprisonment but also to hold on to her positive belief she would one day again get to dance. It truly is inspirational.
As a history enthusiast who loves ballet this book appealed to me on many levels. The history of the ballet in Russia post Bolshevik takeover was something I had not read much about and was actually fascinating. Ballet as an art form has traditionally been linked with the bourgeoisie and it was intriguing how the new Soviet government tried to move away from this and make ballet more ideologically acceptable. Reclaiming it in the name of telling the story of the workers. Through Nina’s story we were able to see how these changes were often not easy on those who were part of the arts.
The history aspect really shed light on just how terrifying, all embracing and fanatical the hunt for those accused of espionage was. How committed the NKVD were to fulfilling its quota of 'those who had anti bolshevik beliefs,’ and how this affected just about everyone. The author names so many people affected and the scale of the suffering is overwhelming.
Overall with this book the author has made history really accessible and readable. Combining great research with engaging writing that draws the reader in. This book provides a somber but also uplifting look at a devastating period in history that everyone should read.
‘Dancing for Stalin,’ starts in the archives of St Petersburg and takes us on a journey through the years of ‘The Terror,’ under Joseph Stalin the leader of the Soviet Union. The book focuses on Nina Anisimova, a ballet dancer with the Kirov ballet company. (Now known as the Mariinsky Ballet.) Accused of having counter revolutionary relationships and discussions Nina is found guilty and sent to the soviet prison system gulag.
The book is incredibly well researched and the author does an exceptional job of using Nina’s own letters to allow us to really understand what her experience was like as a prisoner of the Soviet regime. The situation she found herself is harrowing and could easily have been soul destroying and yet Nina holds on to her passion for the arts, for ballet and for dance to enable herself to not just get through her imprisonment but also to hold on to her positive belief she would one day again get to dance. It truly is inspirational.
As a history enthusiast who loves ballet this book appealed to me on many levels. The history of the ballet in Russia post Bolshevik takeover was something I had not read much about and was actually fascinating. Ballet as an art form has traditionally been linked with the bourgeoisie and it was intriguing how the new Soviet government tried to move away from this and make ballet more ideologically acceptable. Reclaiming it in the name of telling the story of the workers. Through Nina’s story we were able to see how these changes were often not easy on those who were part of the arts.
The history aspect really shed light on just how terrifying, all embracing and fanatical the hunt for those accused of espionage was. How committed the NKVD were to fulfilling its quota of 'those who had anti bolshevik beliefs,’ and how this affected just about everyone. The author names so many people affected and the scale of the suffering is overwhelming.
Overall with this book the author has made history really accessible and readable. Combining great research with engaging writing that draws the reader in. This book provides a somber but also uplifting look at a devastating period in history that everyone should read.
July 20, 2023
I was sent this book for free in return for an honest review.
‘Dancing for Stalin,’ starts in the archives of St Petersburg and takes us on a journey through the years of ‘The Terror,’ under Joseph Stalin the leader of the Soviet Union. The book focuses on Nina Anisimova, a ballet dancer with the Kirov ballet company. (Now known as the Mariinsky Ballet.) Accused of having counter revolutionary relationships and discussions Nina is found guilty and sent to the soviet prison system gulag.
The book is incredibly well researched and the author does an exceptional job of using Nina’s own letters to allow us to really understand what her experience was like as a prisoner of the Soviet regime. The situation she found herself is harrowing and could easily have been soul destroying and yet Nina holds on to her passion for the arts, for ballet and for dance to enable herself to not just get through her imprisonment but also to hold on to her positive belief she would one day again get to dance. It truly is inspirational.
As a history enthusiast who loves ballet this book appealed to me on many levels. The history of the ballet in Russia post Bolshevik takeover was something I had not read much about and was actually fascinating. Ballet as an art form has traditionally been linked with the bourgeoisie and it was intriguing how the new Soviet government tried to move away from this and make ballet more ideologically acceptable. Reclaiming it in the name of telling the story of the workers. Through Nina’s story we were able to see how these changes were often not easy on those who were part of the arts.
The history aspect really shed light on just how terrifying, all embracing and fanatical the hunt for those accused of espionage was. How committed the NKVD were to fulfilling its quota of 'those who had anti bolshevik beliefs,’ and how this affected just about everyone. The author names so many people affected and the scale of the suffering is overwhelming.
Overall with this book the author has made history really accessible and readable. Combining great research with engaging writing that draws the reader in. This book provides a somber but also uplifting look at a devastating period in history that everyone should read.
‘Dancing for Stalin,’ starts in the archives of St Petersburg and takes us on a journey through the years of ‘The Terror,’ under Joseph Stalin the leader of the Soviet Union. The book focuses on Nina Anisimova, a ballet dancer with the Kirov ballet company. (Now known as the Mariinsky Ballet.) Accused of having counter revolutionary relationships and discussions Nina is found guilty and sent to the soviet prison system gulag.
The book is incredibly well researched and the author does an exceptional job of using Nina’s own letters to allow us to really understand what her experience was like as a prisoner of the Soviet regime. The situation she found herself is harrowing and could easily have been soul destroying and yet Nina holds on to her passion for the arts, for ballet and for dance to enable herself to not just get through her imprisonment but also to hold on to her positive belief she would one day again get to dance. It truly is inspirational.
As a history enthusiast who loves ballet this book appealed to me on many levels. The history of the ballet in Russia post Bolshevik takeover was something I had not read much about and was actually fascinating. Ballet as an art form has traditionally been linked with the bourgeoisie and it was intriguing how the new Soviet government tried to move away from this and make ballet more ideologically acceptable. Reclaiming it in the name of telling the story of the workers. Through Nina’s story we were able to see how these changes were often not easy on those who were part of the arts.
The history aspect really shed light on just how terrifying, all embracing and fanatical the hunt for those accused of espionage was. How committed the NKVD were to fulfilling its quota of 'those who had anti bolshevik beliefs,’ and how this affected just about everyone. The author names so many people affected and the scale of the suffering is overwhelming.
Overall with this book the author has made history really accessible and readable. Combining great research with engaging writing that draws the reader in. This book provides a somber but also uplifting look at a devastating period in history that everyone should read.
January 30, 2023
Thank you to Christina Ezrahi and netgalley for the opportunity to review this great piece of history.
I went into this with an open mind and enjoyed it throughly.
Pros:
🔸️ through investigation and knowledge
🔸️unprecedented view of Stalin lead Russia
🔸️ unprecedented view of russia "work camp"
🔸️a 'real' love story
🔸️great use of description of what was actually leading to Russian internment
🔸️amazing use of historical documents
Cons:
🔻 very fact driven, minimal story
🔻 slow read: at times read more like a high school history book than a novel
🔻I would sometimes find myself overwhelmed with dates and additional facts that would not actually pertain to the story at all.
🔻 Limited "views" everything is third person. Sometimes this would prevent me from an attachment or feeling the true impact.
The history buff in me loved it, the bibliophile not so much. Anybody with a strong interest in soviet russia during this period, a love of Anna "Nina" Anisimova, or even the history of soviet dancing.
Happy to have enjoyed this beautiful piece of history.
I went into this with an open mind and enjoyed it throughly.
Pros:
🔸️ through investigation and knowledge
🔸️unprecedented view of Stalin lead Russia
🔸️ unprecedented view of russia "work camp"
🔸️a 'real' love story
🔸️great use of description of what was actually leading to Russian internment
🔸️amazing use of historical documents
Cons:
🔻 very fact driven, minimal story
🔻 slow read: at times read more like a high school history book than a novel
🔻I would sometimes find myself overwhelmed with dates and additional facts that would not actually pertain to the story at all.
🔻 Limited "views" everything is third person. Sometimes this would prevent me from an attachment or feeling the true impact.
The history buff in me loved it, the bibliophile not so much. Anybody with a strong interest in soviet russia during this period, a love of Anna "Nina" Anisimova, or even the history of soviet dancing.
Happy to have enjoyed this beautiful piece of history.
January 30, 2023
Thank you to Christina Ezrahi and netgalley for the opportunity to review this great piece of history.
I went into this with an open mind and enjoyed it throughly.
Pros:
🔸️ through investigation and knowledge
🔸️unprecedented view of Stalin lead Russia
🔸️ unprecedented view of russia "work camp"
🔸️a 'real' love story
🔸️great use of description of what was actually leading to Russian internment
🔸️amazing use of historical documents
Cons:
🔻 very fact driven, minimal story
🔻 slow read: at times read more like a high school history book than a novel
🔻I would sometimes find myself overwhelmed with dates and additional facts that would not actually pertain to the story at all.
🔻 Limited "views" everything is third person. Sometimes this would prevent me from an attachment or feeling the true impact.
The history buff in me loved it, the bibliophile not so much. Anybody with a strong interest in soviet russia during this period, a love of Anna "Nina" Anisimova, or even the history of soviet dancing.
Happy to have enjoyed this beautiful piece of history.
I went into this with an open mind and enjoyed it throughly.
Pros:
🔸️ through investigation and knowledge
🔸️unprecedented view of Stalin lead Russia
🔸️ unprecedented view of russia "work camp"
🔸️a 'real' love story
🔸️great use of description of what was actually leading to Russian internment
🔸️amazing use of historical documents
Cons:
🔻 very fact driven, minimal story
🔻 slow read: at times read more like a high school history book than a novel
🔻I would sometimes find myself overwhelmed with dates and additional facts that would not actually pertain to the story at all.
🔻 Limited "views" everything is third person. Sometimes this would prevent me from an attachment or feeling the true impact.
The history buff in me loved it, the bibliophile not so much. Anybody with a strong interest in soviet russia during this period, a love of Anna "Nina" Anisimova, or even the history of soviet dancing.
Happy to have enjoyed this beautiful piece of history.
July 3, 2023
I was caught from the beginning by this true story about Russian ballerina/choreographer, Nina Aleksandrovna who was arrested and sent to one of Stalin's gulags, labor camps about as horrific as those of the Nazis would prove to be, during Stalin's Great Purge. The Great Purge or Great Terror took place in 1937-1938, in which the ethnic cleansing of Russia was enforced in the forms of executions and imprisonment to the gulags, or labor camps. Mirroring the Nazi camps if you ask me, the only thing missing is the Jewish aspect.
This book tells the life of Nina, what kept her going in the gulag, how she survived freezing temps with no proper clothing, and little to no food daily? What drove her to succeed and live when so many others died? It is a story of courage and determination, and bravery.
I recommend this book to all history fans who enjoy reading about the turbulent times of the 1930s and of Russian gulags, ballet, and Stalin's reign.
Thank you to Elliott and Thompson publishing and to Net Galley for the free ARC, I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.
This book tells the life of Nina, what kept her going in the gulag, how she survived freezing temps with no proper clothing, and little to no food daily? What drove her to succeed and live when so many others died? It is a story of courage and determination, and bravery.
I recommend this book to all history fans who enjoy reading about the turbulent times of the 1930s and of Russian gulags, ballet, and Stalin's reign.
Thank you to Elliott and Thompson publishing and to Net Galley for the free ARC, I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.
October 15, 2023
Nina was a ballerina in Leningrad.
In 1938 the NKVD burst into Nina’s family home and take our heroine.
We see what Nina’s life was like before and after her arrest.
But there are two sides to Nina.
Was she a German spy? Did she conduct criminal activity against the Soviets.
An engaging story made all the more interesting because Nina was a real person.
Such a harrowing and moving story, the research and historical accuracy ware amazing.
Poses the question is art stronger than politics
Thanks @christinaezrani @elliottandthompson & @netgalley for the eARC
In 1938 the NKVD burst into Nina’s family home and take our heroine.
We see what Nina’s life was like before and after her arrest.
But there are two sides to Nina.
Was she a German spy? Did she conduct criminal activity against the Soviets.
An engaging story made all the more interesting because Nina was a real person.
Such a harrowing and moving story, the research and historical accuracy ware amazing.
Poses the question is art stronger than politics
Thanks @christinaezrani @elliottandthompson & @netgalley for the eARC
February 27, 2023
Thank you so much for this advanced copy - a very well written insight into the system of communism under Stalin, an era that is often overlooked in history.
The story at times was very slow and could have had a bit more depth. However, the overall message was hard hitting.
A Nina’s story is the story of an era of terror, imprisonment, and a hard hitting communism regime.
Highly recommend - especially for the history lovers out there!
The story at times was very slow and could have had a bit more depth. However, the overall message was hard hitting.
A Nina’s story is the story of an era of terror, imprisonment, and a hard hitting communism regime.
Highly recommend - especially for the history lovers out there!
June 30, 2023
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Nina Anisimova, a renowned Russian ballerina, becomes caught up in Stalin's purges of the late 1930s. Suspected of being a Nazi spy, she is sent to a gulag without warm clothing or any type of protection against the cruel Russian winter. Courage and determination plus her talent for dancing and choreography keep her surviving. Amazing story of a strong woman and the support of her family.
Nina Anisimova, a renowned Russian ballerina, becomes caught up in Stalin's purges of the late 1930s. Suspected of being a Nazi spy, she is sent to a gulag without warm clothing or any type of protection against the cruel Russian winter. Courage and determination plus her talent for dancing and choreography keep her surviving. Amazing story of a strong woman and the support of her family.
February 5, 2023
A hard hitting and cold look at the terror Stalin inflicted on his people and the criminal system that trapped and ground innocent people into dust. Nina’s story is the story of an era and of a people imprisoned and terrorized in their own country by a paranoid dictator in the name of Communism.
April 14, 2023
Tahle kniha je opravdu kvalitně zpracovanou biografií Niny Anisimové založenou na pečlivý práci s pramenama. Ale mam pocit, že je to trochu click bait. Naprosto žádným způsobem nechci zlechčovat utrpení kohokoliv, kdo strávil byť jedinej den ve stalinskym gulagu. Jenom si myslim, že v anotaci týhle knížky by kromě inzerovanýho příběhu boje o přežití ve stalinským Rusku mělo bejt uvedený, že je to taky příběh naprosto neskutečnýho souběhu šťastnejch náhod a toho, jak vám vlivný kontakty mohly doslova zachránit život, protože Nina určitě byla skvělá tanečnice, ale taky měla obrovský štěstí, který další miliony podobnejch neměli ani zdaleka.
January 21, 2024
DNF @ page 45 🥹
August 5, 2024
A good read.
February 26, 2023
Note: I received an advanced copy of this book from Elliott & Thompson via NetGalley.
The true story of one couple’s fight for survival in Stalin’s Russia: a famous ballerina, sent to the Gulag, Nina Anisimova, and her husband, Kostia, who found a way to save her against all odds.
I was originally intrigued by the true story aspect of the description. I did like how the author used Nina and Kostia's words from the letters that they wrote and weaved the story along from there. I know Nina was a ballerina, however, there was a great deal revolving around the theater. The story as it was written was way longer than it needed to be; parts of it were boring to read.
The true story of one couple’s fight for survival in Stalin’s Russia: a famous ballerina, sent to the Gulag, Nina Anisimova, and her husband, Kostia, who found a way to save her against all odds.
I was originally intrigued by the true story aspect of the description. I did like how the author used Nina and Kostia's words from the letters that they wrote and weaved the story along from there. I know Nina was a ballerina, however, there was a great deal revolving around the theater. The story as it was written was way longer than it needed to be; parts of it were boring to read.
June 16, 2025
Nina Aleksandrovna Anisimova(27 January 1909-23 September 1979) was a Soviet ballerina and choreographer.She studied at the Petrograd(later Leningrad) Ballet School with Maria Feodorovna Romanova,Alexander Shiryaev,and Agrippina Vaganova.In 1926 she graduated from the Maly Theatre of Opera and Ballet,then from 1927-1958 danced with GATOB(later Kirov Ballet).In 1932, she created the role of Therese in Vasili Vainonen's Flames of Paris,demonstrating her abilities as a character dancer.In 1936, she choreographed her first major ballet,Andalusian Wedding for the Leningrad Ballet School.Her subsequent works include Gayane(1942),Perm in which she danced the lead in the Sabre Dance.She also choreographed Songs of the Crane(1944),The Magic Veil(1947),and her own version of Scheherazade(1950).In 1963-1974 she taught choreography at Leningrad Conservatory.The Bolshoi and Mariinsky Ballets are renowned classical ballet companies.Nina's spouse was the writer Konstantin Derzhavin.During the Great Purge or Terror,Nina was arrested on 2 February 1938,and imprisoned for 21 months until she was released on 11 November 1939.She spent time in the Karlag,one of the largest Gulag labour camps,located in Karaganda Oblast,Kazakhstan.Nina was able to survive by dancing for her captors,as well as through her family sending food and other necessities.Her husband doggedly campaigned to the NKVD for her release.Ballet was used as an ideological and diplomatic tool,with humanistic orientation,and the organic connection with folk art.The significance of repertoire,technical perfection,meaningfulness and spirituality of the performance,it's all about the intelligibility,accessibility,but also people's perception of beauty and poetry.
The Great Purge was Joseph Stalin's campaign to solidify his power in Russia.
As the purge began widening,the omnipresent suspicion of saboteurs and counter-revolutionaries began impacting civilian life.The NKVD widely utilised imprisonment,torture,violent interrogation,and arbitrary executions to solidify control over civilians through fear. Ethnic minorities were targeted and subjected to forced deportation and extreme repression.
The Great Purge was Joseph Stalin's campaign to solidify his power in Russia.
As the purge began widening,the omnipresent suspicion of saboteurs and counter-revolutionaries began impacting civilian life.The NKVD widely utilised imprisonment,torture,violent interrogation,and arbitrary executions to solidify control over civilians through fear. Ethnic minorities were targeted and subjected to forced deportation and extreme repression.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews