Swap the battlefield for the ballet with military service in Novosibirsk

Are you more dancer than destroyer? If you’re a young Russian dreading the draft, you could be in luck – the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre is now included in the list of places where it is possible to complete alternative military service in Russia.

Last year, the theatre’s management appealed to Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky, proposing that young people be able to complete their citizen service there. Their suggestion was accepted by both the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Defence, with the Minister of Labour and Social Protection, Maxim Topilin, signing a decree to this effect earlier this week.

“The theatre is deeply grateful [...] for the adoption of this document, so important for the fruitful creative work of the theatre,” said the theatre’s director, Vladimir Kekhman, quoted by Russian news agency TASS. According to the TASS report, the annual call for military service had previously caused the theatre huge problems, with many young ballet dancers forced to leave.

Under the new initiative, young people undergoing alternative service at the theatre can be employed as a ballet dancer, member of the orchestra or stage technician, or be involved in the installation of sets.

Source: TASS (in Russian)