“I Am Still Russian”: Dancing Through the Diaspora
摘要
In Chapter 4 we finally get to hear the voices of the dancers themselves. As they speak their mind on topics ranging Soviet teaching protocols, to studio management, to relationships with their partners, we hear the variety of opinions on each topic as well the common threads of communist upbringing, which run through all of them. Their parents and coaches balance their views with their own interpretations of the themes discussed and I give their perspectives a theoretical backing through an academic analysis of the issues they bring up and tie their words into the relevant academic discourses such as those of migration flows, globalization, cultural identities, and feminism to name a few. We tackle subjects including the clash of socialist approaches to dance practice with the capitalist perspective of ballroom dance as a social hobby; the differences in sports education and professionalization between the USSR and North America; dual identities, gender roles, and discipline in the Soviet-style studios; the training organization, pedagogical methods, and business strategies of these immigrant dancers; appropriation in DanceSport; and movement as culture and intimacy catalyst.