AGENTS OF CHANGE: PROMOTING TOLERANCE AND ACCEPTANCE IN RUSSIA By Vasily Kolotilov, The Moscow Times
Justin Lifflander
Andrei Lyubimov
Choreographer Margarita Rebetskaya has been working on her Cinderella dance project for over a year. Her performers, from the Open Art Theater, all have Down Syndrome. They are able to socialize through dance during their weekly rehearsals.
18 January (Moscow) A rehearsal is being held in a large hall — light streaming in through floor-to-ceiling windows onto the performers. Some dance, some sit sprawled across the floor watching their compatriots. “Kostik, stand up, you’re going to get cold,” the choreographer scolds. A young man slouched on the wooden parquet rises, shooting another performer with imaginary pistols before goading him into wrestling — they are ignored. After grappling briefly, they embrace before returning their attention to the proceedings.