Sassy and classy with Victor Caixeta

Victor Caixeta’s resignation from the Mariinsky Ballet in the wake of Russian invasion of Ukraine made headlines around the world. Olga Smirnova, Bolshoi’s Prima, fled Russia for the Dutch National Ballet as well. Their first official performance with the company was in April 2022, in Rachel Beaujean’s production of Raymonda.

I discovered Victor in November 2019, during my Moscow scholarship days. I was attending Mariinsky’s special program honoring great dancers of 20th century, a mixed bill including works created on Mikhail Baryshnikov by Twyla Tharp and Roland Petit, my lucky chance at witnessing some Russian blazing display of bravura from a different angle, not through the usual classical productions. He wasn’t dancing that night, but he was spoken in high praise at the post-show dinner, as he was preparing his Romeo and Juliet debut alongside May Nagahisa — the kind of things that stir your (my) curiosity.

Watching him dance, I was stunned by his impeccable stage manners at a very young age. I know a smart dancer when I see one. Physically gifted and with fine Russian pedigree, it was not his promising technique that bought me, but his natural glamour. That little something that cannot be taught. One should see him die on stage. His performance as Romeo is one for the books. He’s an Emerald, a Ruby, but he could take the lead as a Diamond as well. And that’s quite rare. Deep down, there’s still a hint of regret of not seeing him as Solor in Mariinsky’s Bayadère. My favorite production of my favorite ballet. At the right point in time, I think he’ll make a great Onegin. Looking forward to witnessing that moment in his career.

Fast forward a pandemic and a war later, we (finally) got to meet last June in Amsterdam. We brunched on a very sunny day at Soho House, where he likes to spend most of his (little) free time. We reminisced about our Russian experience, the ballet encounters, the frustrations, the blessings, the joy of unexpected meetings, the pain and the glam of it all. What a witty brunch that was…

At the moment, Victor is rehearsing Giselle, ahead of his debut in a new production by Rachel Beaujean and Ricardo Bustamante.

Squeezed between his busy work schedule, here’s my intermission with Count Albrecht. A rising star, a brave artist, a risk-taker. Outspoken both on and off stage, he’s the first to point his flops out (and he’s doing it publicly, despite other dancers’ quest for social media perfection). We talked about the spiritual dimension of Romantic ballets, how iconic roles can trick you, his ballet beginnings in Brazil — "the country of football" — and the misconceptions about boys practicing ballet, politics of casting, how he manages to take on the spot decisions on stage, Instagram trends and how they affect or nourish the art of ballet, the role of artist nowadays, Russian cultural institutions and audiences versus the West, working with Mariinsky legends and more. Talking to someone who knows what it’s like to deal with Russia feels refreshing to say the least…

Vitya, keep your Brazilian fire alive and take care of your Russian shape — they make you unique. Thank you for your sheer intelligence, both on stage and on paper. And don’t you ever lose the freshness of your interpretation. Toi toi toi for your upcoming debut and see you (hopefully) soon!

You’re about to debut in Rachel Beaujean’s Giselle alongside Maia Makhateli and the Dutch National Ballet. How is this production different from the ones we already know? Let’s talk about the spiritual dimension of Romantic ballets and the technical and emotional aspects of your character.

Giselle holds a special place in my heart, especially because I finally had the opportunity to dance it after years of preparation. My journey began during my first year in Russia, under the guidance of the iconic teacher Gennady Naumovich Selyutsky. The role has been simmering in my mind ever since.

I like Rachel’s version of Giselle because she preserves the masterpiece choreography while infusing elements of the modern world. It brings a fresh perspective to the ballet, making it feel less old-fashioned. However, this also poses a challenge for Albrecht, as there is an additional variation in Act 1.

While preparing for this role, I discovered countless interpretations by great dancers through video footage. It became evident that each dancer brings a unique portrayal to the character. Albrecht’s complexity lies in the constant struggle between his love for Giselle and the societal expectations placed upon him. For me, the most challenging aspect is combining the demanding technical skills with the necessary emotional depth.

In April 2023, you were promoted to the rank of Principal Dancer of Dutch National Ballet after your debut as Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake, which happened on your birthday evening! What a great birthday gift! Congratulations! I must confess Swan Lake is never on my top priorities when checking the schedules. These iconic roles are tricky, because they can be done relying only on technique, efficiently rather than heartfelt, which can make the show feel dated and embarrassing. How do you reach the heart of Swan Lake? How do you find soul in the steps? What’s your physical and emotional process? How would you describe your Siegfried?

To be honest with you, the only reason I dreamed to dance Swan Lake was because it’s the most famous ballet, I much prefer to dive into a more intense artistic challenge or physical demanding ballet. For my prince Siegfried, I got inspiration from the stunning and iconic music of Piotr I. Tchaikovsky and was lucky enough to dance Rudi Van Dantzig’s version, which is a bit more technically challenging than most of other versions. Looking back at it, I think I tried to portray a melancholic prince, but on the other hand also very determined. Somehow it worked out well enough for me to get my promotion.

You were part of the Gala of the Stars celebrating the 50th anniversary of Prix de Lausanne. Competition in ballet — is it different than in any other fields? Tell us more about your Prix de Lausanne experience and how that changed the path for you.

Yes, it was so nice returning to the Prix de Lausanne stage, this time as one of the “stars” invited for the gala. I had the privilege to dance Don Quixote grand pas de deux with Mayara Magri, Principal Dancer with Royal Ballet and one of the prize winners of the competition a few years back; I remember watching Mayara’s video of the Prix de Lausanne and wishing to be there competing one day as well, and so I did!

I was 15 years old when I went to Lausanne, and had only 3 years of ballet training prior the competition. This in my opinion is the most serious ballet competition in the world, the jury chooses 80 talented young dancers aged 15 to 18 to show themselves during a week of dancing in front of the professionals from the best ballet schools and companies in the world.

I personally am very grateful to have competed there, and to be able to go back and dance as one of the stars invited was a very heartwarming moment in my career.

You’re born and raised in Brazil, the country that has produced some of the most iconic players in the history of world football, from Pelé to Ronaldo, Kaká, Neymar — to name a few Brazilian superstars. I like to watch them play as much as I like to watch Marcelo Gomes dance, you already know he’s one of my favorites. Football is the most popular sport and part of your country’s national identity. How did you choose ballet? What’s Brazil’s relationship with art? Have you ever dealt with misconceptions about boys practicing ballet in your country?

I have been a very active child, full of energy, and tried every sport and every extracurricular activity possible. Once I crossed paths with ballet, it was something I couldn’t run away from, it was something that challenged and keeps challenging me to this day, and I guess that’s why I love it so much… you can never be good enough, you can never reach perfection. Not only did I face challenges in ballet, but I did face bad challenges as well whilst studying ballet. In Brazil, they still see ballet as a girl thing, and not as a profession…

What was the first ballet (or dancer) that really spoke to you?

The first big name that spoke to me was Lucia Lacarra in one of the times I competed at the Youth American Grand Prix in New York, she was performing in the gala and I was one of the finalists. Then I guess once I moved to Russia and started working with all those big names that you grow up watching on YouTube. It’s funny how after a few weeks that became “normal” and we treated each other as colleagues, but somehow my admiration for them stayed the same.

You left your home country at the age of 15 to train at Staatliche Ballettschule Berlin, then you moved to St. Petersburg to join Mariinsky Ballet. In 2022, you left Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Life can change from one second to the next. Do you ever feel at home?

Life of an immigrant is not easy, especially when you leave home so young. It’s hard for me to say where home is, especially with the events regarding the war that happened over the past year. Somehow, I’ll never be attached to only one place, I’ll always be ready for wherever life brings me.

Let’s talk a bit about the politics of casting in ballet. Have you ever experienced casting disappointments? What was your first principal role? Were you associated more with roles like Basilio from Don Quixote because of your Latino appearance?

I’ve been very fortunate in my artistic life and career with castings and performances… It’s hard to find someone my age with my repertoire, and for that I’m so grateful to the Mariinsky Theatre, for all the opportunities and the trust they gave me. Of course, there’s times where you feel closer to certain roles, but the management or choreographers will think the opposite. I guess it’s up to you to prove that you’re worthy of the role you so desire, but that doesn’t mean that it will make the direction wishes. In Brazil, they always saw me as a prince and never a Basilio per say; but then in Russia was the opposite, though they would also see a prince in me (my first principal role there was the Nutcracker prince), for them my gold cards would be ballets like Don Quixote or Le Corsaire.

When you make a mistake on stage does it follow you until the end of the performance or not? Does that affect the rest of your performance? How do you get over it and how do you manage to take on the spot decisions on stage?

Mistakes are often present in our performances, even if we try to make everything look so effortless, often our brain and body are working like mathematics, “squeeze here, point there, hold your breath, breathe” and so on. So, when some very visible mistake happens, it seems like the end of the world, but the challenge here it is to keep going till the end of the show as if nothing have happened.

Do you find easier to create a persona on stage than to dance plotless ballets, like Balanchine repertoire for example?! With minimal decor and costumes and no one to impersonate, how do you get in the atmosphere, what is your approach to this type of choreographies?

For me it’s much easier to dance a full length, you have the time to build a story, you’re not only worried about nailing the variations, actually your solos are not what will impress the audience at the end of the show. And then with short ballets you got one shot to nail whatever you’re doing, often these ballets have no stories, it’s a bunch of steps which requires perfect execution, otherwise it’s never so impressive.

How much of your performance is improvisation?

Once you get to be a principal dancer, a lot of your performance will have to be improvisation, at least the artistic side of it; once you rehearse artistic scenes too much, it becomes too robotic, you want it to be as natural as possible.

You experienced two different worlds through your art, Russia and the West. Can you make a comparison between both the institutions and the audiences?

Art in general in Russia feels much more prestigious, the way they treat artists and the way they grow up with art, with the theatre always present in their lives it’s very inspiring. So that says a lot about their audience, you get a more educated and devoted audience in a way, people know you as an artist, know both your strengths and your limitations, they spend a lot of time and also money to support the arts there. Where here they treat it more casual, they think it’s cool and appreciate what you do, but the connection will never be the same.

What are some differences between Mariinsky Ballet and Dutch National Ballet in terms of repertoire?

Mariinsky’s repertoire is probably the richest comparing to all other theatres over the world, almost all iconic ballets were created there, so you get it why. But dancing in Amsterdam now, I find that in Russia they are missing out a lot on working with new choreographers, the world is changing and with that we should change too. Don’t get me wrong, I love tradition, but nowadays there must be a balance. Especially with the level of dancers they have, it could be an even greater company.

What were the echoes of your Russian audience after you left Mariinsky?

I lost a lot of “fans” since I left, but the ones that really enjoyed my dancing are still interested to see what I’m up to, and happened to even come to watch me here in Amsterdam.

You had the chance of working with some of Mariinsky legends, your first ballet master in Russia was Gennady Selyutsky. Now you’re working with Larissa Lezhnina, a former Mariinsky principal. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?

For me it’s so important to work with someone who knows what it takes to be in the position I am today, dancing the repertoire I do. You can have a good coaching telling you that your foot is not stretched enough or so on, but it’s much more interesting to work with someone that has danced that same role and can pass on what they learned from their time on stage and from their teachers. I think the best advice my masters gave me was to try not to copy anyone; to never be afraid to be myself on stage…

Through your art you are in constant communication with your audience. You present bits of your life outside ballet on your socials as well. Building a social media persona — we see young dancers, especially students filming themselves in the studio, vlogging, talking in clichés in their ig captions, clearly obsessing over how many likes they get. What do you think of these “Instagram trends”?! How do they affect or nourish the art of ballet and the next generations of dancers?!

Instagram and social media have changed the way ballet dancers interact with audiences, providing opportunities to showcase their work and connect on a personal level. Instagram trends can bring attention to ballet, increase its visibility, and attract new audiences. However, it's important to balance the excitement of trends with maintaining the complexity and integrity of ballet as an art form. Dancers should approach social media thoughtfully to share their passion and inspire others, but try to avoid reinforcing stereotypes or unrealistic expectations.

For many dancers, Instagram has evolved into an online portfolio. Photo shootings seem to be mandatory in order to create an online identity. Do you find it easier to be in front of an audience as someone else or in front of the camera as yourself?

As much as trends, now photoshoots are becoming more and more present in our profession. On a personal level, I’d rather have people shooting me with their camera while I dance on stage and care about which character I am portraying than in a small studio, with lights and cameras pointing at me; this often provokes insecurity and repetitions to get the “perfect shot”. I find it very tiring and will try to do as less I can of it.

Do you feel that as an artist you have a responsibility of having a voice or inspiring people? What do you think is the role of artist nowadays?

Absolutely, artists have traditionally played a vital role in society by expressing their perspectives, inspiring others, and sparking conversations. They have the potential to make a significant impact on both individuals and society as a whole, and especially on young artists that look up to them as a role model.

How do you define art for yourself?

Art for me it’s the way one can express oneself, the way one can say unspeakable words. In my point of view, one cannot live without any form of Art.

Blitz questions✨

Fav song: Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen.

Fav book: A Little life, Hanya Yanagihara

Fav movie: Interstellar

Fav city: Berlin

Best restaurant in Amsterdam: Momo

Best coffeeshop in Amsterdam: Kadinsky, near my house

Most treasured possession: Memories

If you could partner any ballerina, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Uliana Lopatkina, the ballerina that got closest to perfection in my point of view.

If you had the chance to meet any dancer in the history who would it be and what would you ask him?

Nureyev, I think I’d just like to give him a hug and thank him for all the inspiration.

If you could have dinner with 3 historical figures, who would you choose?

Nureyev, Freddie Mercury and Pelé.

What’s the one thing you would never change about yourself?

My courage to follow my heart.