It’s All About The Screaming: Alexei Ratmansky On Western Vs. Russian Ballet Training

“[In North America and in Europe] it’s more liberal. You can’t push the kids to work very hard. You can’t touch the kids, of course. You can’t scream. It’s hard to convince little children to work very hard and to go through pain. In Russia, it was like the army. It’s one of the reasons they produce very good dancers.”

Patrick deWitt: How An Arts Grant Made It Possible To Write Award-Winning Book

The B.C.-born author was “at the end of his rope” when the fateful envelope from Canada finally arrived at his Portland home. “My hands were shaking and my wife and my mother were there,” he recalled. “There was this really intensely dramatic moment. When I opened it up and got [the grant] we all erupted in cheers. It was a really fine moment for me.”