Shattering, cinematic and brave. – Simon Morrison, author of Bolshoi Confidential

An inspiring tale of survival. – Luke Jennings, dance critic and author of ‘Killing Eve’

Christina Ezrahi vividly charts this brutal and uplifting story, bringing alive an extraordinary resourcefulness and determination to survive. – Helen Rappaport, author of ‘The Race to Save the Romanovs’

Nina Anisimova’s story is extraordinary – heroic and harrowing in equal measure, a snapshot of the best and worst of Stalin’s Russia – and Christina Ezrahi does it vivid, gripping justice. – Judith Mackrell, author of ‘Going with the Boys’

‘Nina Anisimova’s story is extraordinary – heroic and harrowing in equal measure, a snapshot of the best and worst of Stalin’s Russia – and Christina Ezrahi does it vivid, gripping justice.’ — Judith Mackrell, author of The Unfinished Palazzo

“Dancing for Stalin is an unfiltered, extraordinary portrait of Anisimova’s fierce and restless character, and a tale on the power of art in the most miserable of circumstances. Ultimately, the book poses difficult questions on human nature under oppression —including whether it is worth enduring hardship and injustice in a bid to simply survive.” — The Calvert Journal

“An interest in history isn’t needed to be enthralled by this captivating true story. Ezrahi does a brilliant job of bringing Nina’s story back to life.” — One Dance UK Magazine

‘Christina Ezrahi has uncovered a remarkable, untold episode in Soviet ballet history, which she brings to life through her customary rigorous research, clarity of expression and elegance of prose.’ — Baroness Deborah Bull

A remarkable true story of suffering and injustice, of courage, resilience and triumph.

Nina Anisimova was one of Russia’s most renowned ballerinas and one of the first Soviet female choreographers. Yet few knew that her exemplary career concealed a dark secret.

In 1938, at the height of Stalin’s Great Terror, Nina was arrested by the secret police, accused of being a Nazi spy and sentenced to forced labor in a camp in Kazakhstan. Trapped without hope – and without winter clothes in temperatures of minus 40 degrees – her art was her salvation, giving her a reason to fight for her life.

As Nina struggled to survive in the Gulag, her husband fought for her release in Leningrad. Against all odds, she was ultimately freed and astonishingly managed to return to her former life, just as war broke out. Despite wartime deprivation and the suffocating grip of Stalin’s totalitarian state, Nina’s irrepressible determination set her on the path to become an icon of the Kirov Ballet.