Maya Plisetskaya Плисецкая, Майя Михайловна

I never met her but have read countless books on her.....gorgeous woman and dancer. If ballerinas sometimes wear strained expressions it's because dance, ballet in particular, is tough. What these men and women have achieved is daunting.....
I never knew much of her story only that her photos fascinated me. Something unique comes through every dancer even though they wear the same costumes and perform nearly identical moves. But she stood out to me. As a teenager I hung out in Strand Books a lot and for hours would study these photos which was all I had for a long time. I didn't know that she was considered subversive there and banned from touring which is why she didn't come over here; although eventually she did. An article on her says, "Plisetskaya explains that for her generation, and her family in particular, defecting was a moral issue: 'He who runs to the enemy's side is a traitor.' She had once asked her mother why their family didn't leave the Soviet Union when they had the chance, at the time living in Norway. Her mother said that her father 'would have abandoned me with the children instantly' for even asking. 'Misha would never have been a traitor.'" Check it out it's pretty fierce her bio. It's Wikipedia so questionable but a general idea.....

you will be missed.