Nijinsky Commuting

Photo Credit: Vaslav Nijinsky in the ballet "L'Oiseau de feu" ( The Firebird), Paris, 1910

 Bronislava Nijinska discusses her brother Vaslav Nijinsky's first day as an artist which seem to meet the expectations he had. Nijinska recounts this in her own words.

"During the summer, his first as an Artist, Vaslav did not seem very exuberant or excited, and Mama became worried that he was tiring from his daily journey to St. Petersburg and Krasnoe Selo."

"What  Vaslav told me was he was unhappy among the flashy officer set surrounding the Artists. More than that, he was disappointed with the season at Krasnoe Selo and getting no joy or pleasure from performance, which he felt were only aimed to please the royal entourage and the officers of the Imperial Guards."- Quote from Bronislava Nijinska on her brother Vaslav Nijinsky first day on the job as an Artist.

This is a big shift how Nijinsky felt about performances when he was a student. He said he felt free when he danced and alive from this description it sounded like performances had lost it's magic for him. Could be though what his mother said that he was burnt out from the long commute every day?

The answer becomes more clearer when you hear from Nijinsky himself telling his sister why he felt the  way he did.

"At the beginning of program Kulichevskaya puts on one of her own ballets, the ones we know from the Student Performances, Fortunately this year's ballet, Salanga, which I don't care to dance, was a failure, and so we don't do it very often. "

"Then the last part of the program is the Divertissement, made up of comedy numbers and character dances. There is a polka from the Parisian Market, you remember, where the coquettish grisette hiding behind her parasol is flirting as she dances with an amorous student."

"Or there is are sentimental waltzes and gypsy Hungarian dances, and in the middle of these comes my pas de deux with Sedova. "

"Not even the presentation is artistic. The sets and costumes are chosen at random from different ballets; it is a far cry from what we are accustomed to at the Maryinsky. Even when the best Artists of the Imperial Theatres take part, it still gives one the impression of an amateur performance,"

"There is one good thing though: I get to dance many pas de deux,  which will help me for my debut on the stage of the Maryinsky. "

"But it's too bad that performances such as these are pleasing to the public; it's an insult to the art of ballet!"- Quote from Vaslav Nijinsky on his dancing as an Artist at Krasnoe Selo.

I feel you can hear the disappointment and even rage when he says "it's an insult to ballet!" that really shows how Nijinsky was feeling at the time. 

When you read his words it's obvious he was disappointed in Krasnoe Selo because it wasn't the Maryinsky and he didn't like how they did things at Krasnoe Selo. He literally cuts everything down the costumes to the sets. You really feel his dislike for it. Nijinsky was entitled to his opinion but I kind of feel he was being unfair to them because they probably were trying to do the best they could and they also seemed limited in what they could do given what Nijinsky said that the performances were to please a certain audience.

 This attitude with Krasnoe Selo even explains Nijinsky's perfectionism since he wanted everything perfect and the way he wanted, but  he's upset because it isn't and he can't control it which  he seems to fall apart because of it.

I think he also was feeling like he wanted to dance somewhere else which is why he kept comparing it to the Maryinsky. He wanted to dance at the Maryinsky, but he did find some positive at Krasnoe Selo which was he could work on his pas de deux which he said would only help him when he debuted on stage at the Maryinsky, so I believe if he looks at it that way then Krasnoe Selo was a stepping stone to get him to Maryinsky. 

We don't know from this passage how Nijinska reacted to her brother's words after he says all this.  It's obvious he was venting his frustrations and sometimes it's better not to say anything after the person gets it out of their system which maybe be why we don't have a response from her to him.

What we do have though is  before Nijinsky speaks Bronislava Nijinska talks about how she could feel her brother Nijinsky's disappointment instead of the excitement he had as a student which was a big shift in his mood.