Born in Santa Monica and raised in California and Texas, Joy Womack trained with the Westside Ballet and Kirov Academy in Washington DC, pointing her towards a career in Russia and eventually to her being the first female ballet dancer to graduate from the Bolshoi Ballet Academy with a Red Diploma and only the second American woman ever to sign a contract with the Bolshoi Company. Womack joined the Bolshoi in 2012 and then went on to be a principal ballerina with the Kremlin Ballet for several years while competing and subsequently winning medals in international ballet competitions. Subsequently, she was a principal ballerina at the Universal Ballet in Seoul, Korea before returning to continue dancing in Russia, based out of Moscow. Living in Russia, she loved the appreciation of culture, and the opportunities for her art. During the pandemic, Womack took an offer to be an assistant to the director and prima ballerina of the Astrakhan Ballet, where she was based before the war.
When Ukraine was invaded, she was on a film set in Poland, where a biopic based on Womack’s life, to co-star Diane Krueger, is being filmed. As a result, she was unable to return to Russia. She felt this deep sense of grief; not only did she have to leave everything she owned and her life in Russia behind, but it was also the end of her hopes and dreams for her future. She was not prepared to have to start over professionally and imagine a new future without Russia. “It was a huge shock. I became homeless. I faced rejection after rejection—a humiliation that forced me to become resilient and self-sufficient in ways I had not known. I learned to just… continue, and not lose sight of what could be-despite losing my friends, my community, and my intended future career. Frankly, I’ve struggled since I left Russia—I’ve known rejection and disappointment, but on the other hand, I have been honored to find that there have been opportunities that would not have happened—people I have shared a stage with, teachers I have learned from, and now, the highlight of this last year—this invitation to be part of the Reunited in Dance. I am so honored and so excited. This opportunity represents, for me, hope. Hope for a new future and a chance to pursue my artform without compromise. Of course, I hope to find a good job, a stable job. I hope to be valued and challenged in ways I haven’t even imagined. What a turn for the best, if I could dance the roles I always dreamed of! But being here, being reunited with my friends from Russia; it feels like coming home... to share a stage with these colleagues as a testament to the idea that art is for everyone, and art is also a bridge that bridges cultures
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