National Ballet of Ukraine to tour Canada, celebrate 'art and beauty over tyranny'

The National Ballet of Ukraine says an upcoming tour of Canada will celebrate "art and beauty over tyranny and destruction."

Prima ballerina Olga Golytsia says the company intends to show the spirit of Ukraine in a tour starting January 2024 in Quebec City.

Dancers will highlight Ukrainian culture with traditional dance as well as perform excerpts of famous ballets such as Le Corsaire,Giselleand Don Quixote.

Montreal producer Paul Dupont-Hbert says the tour will include stops in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.

Tickets go on sale mid-September for Nadiya Ukraine.Nadiya means hope in Ukrainian.

The National Ballet of Ukraine is comprised of 150 dancers. Before the Russian invasion in February 2022, the company staged 16 productions a month at Kyiv's Taras Shevchenko National Opera House.

Golytsia said Thursday in a release that the Canadian tour "means so much as we represent our country to show the spirit of Ukraine through the power of art and beauty over tyranny and destruction."

Premier soloist Mykyta Sukhorukov added that the dancers are grateful to Canadians who have supported Ukraine.

"Many of us have lost friends and loved ones because of this unprovoked and unjustified invasion. The struggle of this war is hard, but we are resilient, and we will win. Thank you for standing with us," he said.

The tour is part of a fundraising campaign for beneficiaries including the Olena Zelenska Foundation, created by the wife of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to provide medical, educational and humanitarian aid.