Unearthing a treasure trove of archival footage, filmmakers Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine have fashioned a dazzlingly entrancing ode to the revolutionary twentieth-century dance troupe known as the Ballets Russes. What began as a group of Russian refugees who never danced in Russia became not one but two rival dance troupes who fought the infamous “ballet battles” that consumed London society before World War II.

BALLETS RUSSES maps the company’s Diaghilev-era beginnings in turn-of-the-century Paris--when artists such as Nijinsky, Balanchine, Picasso, Miro, Matisse, and Stravinsky united in an unparalleled collaboration--to its halcyon days of the 1930s and ’40s, when the Ballets Russes toured America, astonishing audiences schooled in vaudeville with artistry never before seen, to its demise in the 1950s and ’60s when rising costs, rocketing egos, outside competition, and internal mismanagement ultimately brought this revered company to its knees.

Directed with consummate invention and infused with juicy anecdotal interviews from many of the company’s glamorous stars, BALLETS RUSSES treats modern audiences to a rare glimpse of the singularly remarkable merger of Russian, American, European, and Latin American dancers, choreographers, composers, and designers that transformed the face of ballet for generations to come.

— Sundance Film Festival, 2005

First official record of Russian dancing is related to year 907 when Great Russian Prince Oleg (Vechshiy Oleg) celebrated his victory over Greeks in Kiev. During the Gala Dinner 16 male dancers dressed as bears and four bears dressed as Russian dancers performed for the guests. After the dinner was over Great Prince commanded to release the bears into the wild and to execute all the dancers. As it became clear later on, Vechshiy Oleg, who was purblind, has mistaken the dancers for the ambassadors from the Northern Tribes ("Severyane") who owned him a few hundred skins of marten - Russian tiger-cat... read more

Traditional Russian dance ensembles, folk dancers, Russian, Cossack, Ukrainian, Klezmer and Gypsy traditional dances descriptions, videos, photos, Russian dancers and dance troups wanted... read more

Russian, Cossack, Ukrainian and Gypsy dancing
Runtime: 60 minutes. Cover art: Inna Ostrovskaya. Russian dance and music ensemble Barynya from New York performes "Kalinka", "Katyusha", "Barynya", "Two Guitars", "Korobushka", "Hopak", "Dance of Russian Sailors" and more

Russian folk dance and music live concert
Runtime: 64 minutes. Cover art: Anna Nagorskaya. Russian folk dances, songs, virtuoso performances on balalaika, bass-balalaika and garmoshka. "Moscow Nights", Cossack Dance, Khorovod Dance, Russian Quadrille and more