David Motta Soares. Photo: Alexey Yakovlev, via Wikimedia Commons
In a powerful act of cultural reclamation, the Berlin State Ballet will host the international debut of Nureyev on March 21, 2026.
This landmark production marks the first time the work has seen a stage since it was purged from the Russian repertoire by Kremlin-enforced censorship.
Stepping into the title role is 28-year-old Brazilian sensation David Soares, a former Bolshoi soloist who, like the production’s visionary director Kirill Serebrennikov, fled Moscow in 2022 to protest the invasion of Ukraine.
Originally premiered at the Bolshoi in 2017 to global acclaim, the ballet was officially banned and scrubbed from the schedule in 2023 as Russia’s “LGBTQ+ propaganda” laws tightened, silencing its poignant portrayal of Rudolf Nureyev’s same-sex relationships – until now.
