Russian Ballerina Banned from Italian Gala

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A top Russian ballerina, Spatlana Zakharova, has been removed from a major dance

gala in Rome, scheduled for March 20th and 21st.

The star for Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre is a strong backer of Russia's leadership

and organizers made the call after getting guidance from officials.

They pointed to the sensitive times with the war in Ukraine, stressing that cultural events

carry big symbolic weight.

Despite Minister Georgia Maloney backs Ukraine and tough sanctions on Russia, so this clear

pressure to avoid any mix-ups.

Deputy Prime Minister Mateo Salvini slammed the move as pure Russophobia.

He argued that barring dancers or artists from Russia only makes peace harder, not easier.

Salvini's party once had links to Russian groups before the conflict heated up.

This isn't the first time.

Last year, a concert near Naples got cancelled over a conductor close to the Kremlin.

Zakharova herself, a 46-year-old born in what was then Soviet Ukraine, faced a similar

boot from a Florence event in January after Ukrainian, complaints.

Meanwhile, the Venice Biennale just reopened its Russian pavilion for the May through November

show, sparking debate.

Italian cultural spots keep navigating these tensions between politics and art.

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