Irish dancing school in Russia inspired by Michael Flatley reflects people's 'warm attitude to Ireland'

Irish Examiner

4 days ago

An Irish dancing school in Russia is keeping it reel despite the country's deteriorating relationship with Europe and a shift away from Western culture since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Eirindance owes its existence to Michael Flatley, whose performance as Lord of the Dance at the Academy Awards in 1997 captivated Mariana Petrishina and inspired her to pursue the discipline, setting up the school five years later.
Riverdance and Lord of the Dance played an important part in boosting the popularity of Irish dance in Russia, and competitions in Moscow prior to 2019 typically attracted more than 400 entrants.
However, a combination of the covid-19 pandemic and the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine just as public health restrictions were lifted in 2022 had a major impact on participation levels, reducing the average number of entrants to fewer than 60.
Eirindance's Sofya Vavilova says the number of Russians interested in Irish dancing has plummeted, with some people adopting the belief that 'this is all Western, we do not need this in Russia'.
'Immediately after the pandemic, [with the] deterioration of relations with the West, some people simply left Russia,' she recalls.
"Accordingly, there are much fewer people interested and enthusiastic about Irish dancing in Russia. Even the founder of our school is not in Russia now."
However, Ms Vavilova says those who 'deny everything related to the West' are in the minority, and dance competitions have slowly begun to grow in size as new people are attracted to the discipline.
'It seems to me that people in Russia have a rather warm attitude towards Ireland,' she adds. 'Previously, parades in honour of St Patrick's Day were held on the main streets of Moscow.
Many people are interested in Irish culture, history, life, music, and nature. Films and books also contribute to the popularisation of Irish culture in Russia. We find something magical in it.
'It seems to me that in any city in Russia, you can find several Irish pubs. We visit them ourselves, there is something beautiful in this. In the evenings, these places are packed with people watching football, listening to music, and relaxing.'
Some of the students at Eirindance have travelled to Ireland, and one has even learned to speak Irish quite well, according to Ms Vavilova.
'We all really want to visit Ireland. It's a dream for many at the school — they want to see different cities and join the culture,' she says.
The school was founded in Sevastopol — a city in the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014. It has since opened branches in the Russian cities of St Petersburg, Ryazan, and Moscow.