Sergei Polunin, the former Royal Ballet star known for his tattoos of Russian President Vladimir Putin, revealed on Wednesday that he intends to leave Russia. The 35-year-old Ukrainian-Russian dancer, a controversial figure due to his vocal support for Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and military actions in Ukraine, has been a prominent supporter of the Russian government. His pro-Russian stance earned him prestigious roles, including positions in Crimea’s arts scene.
In a message posted to his Instagram account, Polunin stated, “My time in Russia ran out a long time ago, it seems at this moment that I have fulfilled my mission here.” The post, which first appeared on his Telegram account on Sunday, contained several misspellings and was somewhat disjointed in tone.
While Polunin did not elaborate on the specific reasons for his decision, he mentioned that “a time comes when the soul feels it is not where it should be.” He confirmed that he would be leaving the country with his wife, Yelena, and their three children, although he has yet to specify their destination.
This announcement follows earlier claims from Polunin in the summer that he was being followed and lacked security. Despite his previous close ties to the Russian state, Polunin has distanced himself from the country’s political climate in recent months.
Polunin, who was born in Ukraine, supported the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and became a Russian citizen in 2019. He was appointed to high-profile positions in the arts, including the role of acting head of a dance academy in Sevastopol and director of the opera and ballet theater in Crimea, for which a new theater building is currently under construction.
Last year, Polunin was honored by President Putin for his contributions to the popularization of dance. However, his standing in the Russian arts community has shifted. In August, he was replaced as the head of the Sevastopol Dance Academy by former Bolshoi prima ballerina Maria Alexandrova. More recently, Russia’s Minister of Culture, Olga Lyubimova, announced that Ildar Abdrazakov, a singer, would take over Polunin’s director position at the Sevastopol theater.
Polunin’s departure comes after he made headlines in December with a social media post expressing sorrow for the people living in a heavily bombarded Ukrainian village near Kherson, the region his family hails from. In that post, he remarked, “The worst deal would be better than war.”
A child prodigy, Polunin won a scholarship to the Royal Ballet School in London at the age of 13 and quickly rose to fame as its youngest-ever principal dancer. His rebellious attitude and tattoos earned him the moniker “bad boy of ballet.” He made headlines in 2012 by resigning from the Royal Ballet at the height of his fame, and in 2015, he starred in the viral video for Hozier’s “Take Me to Church.”
Polunin later moved to Moscow to perform at the Stanislavsky Musical Theatre’s ballet and began a solo career. He has taken on high-profile roles, including playing the mystic Grigory Rasputin. His controversial Putin tattoos, including a large portrait on his chest and two smaller ones on his shoulders, have garnered attention, as has his tattoo of the Ukrainian trident on his right hand.
Polunin’s planned departure from Russia marks a dramatic shift for the dancer, whose career has been intertwined with the country’s political landscape.
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