Emotions at the launch of the new United Ukrainian Ballet in The Hague

On Tuesday 31 May, the new ballet company The United Ukrainian Ballet was presented to the public at the old Royal Conservatory in The Hague. Ukrainian dancers who fled to the Netherlands have found a new home in this company under the direction of ballerina Igone de Jongh.

When I walked into the conservatory before the presentation, I could immediately take a crying Ukrainian girl in my arms. She had lost her mother for a moment. With this little child unwilling to let go of me, I immediately realised the harrowing reality behind the new dance company that is in the spotlight. These are young dancers who have had to leave home and hearth, leave fathers behind and now have to dealing with a new reality.

Interrupting rhythm is disastrous

However, continuing to dance is necessary because a break from the rhythm of ballet classes is disastrous for a career in which your heart and soul are invested. Hence the noble initiative by Igone de Jongh and Matthijs Bongertman (Senf Theaterpartners) to set up a United Ukrainian Ballet Foundation with the pillars Dutch Centre for Ukrainian Dancers and The United Ukrainian Ballet Company. One to help dancers stay in shape and the second to allow them to perform. The underlying idea is that in better times, dancers will be able to pick up where they left off in Ukraine.

Under the eye of the mayor of The Hague, the ambassador of Ukraine, a world choreographer, the assembled press and the dance world, Ukrainian dancers performed a beautiful part of Falling Angels by Jiří Kylián (the world choreographer). An apt title and a nice accompaniment to a pretty fraught moment. Because it will not be easy as a classically trained dancer to dance spicy Kylián costumes right in front of an audience, realising why you are standing here.

Dancers in a safe haven

The beloved studios, where I myself used to be often sent out as an apprentice, still offer a wonderful workplace, and together the dancers sit in a safe haven. Thanks to the Kylián Foundation, "fantastic work" by the Salvation Army, Igone de Jongh and her impresario Senf, and the Dutch Don't Dance Division, among others, they are getting the support they desperately need.

The good news today is also that 12 (male) dancers were given permission to travel to the Netherlands and have already crossed the Ukrainian border. Guess who I bump into again on my way out of the conservatoire. Sofia, the little girl. She smiles happily this time.