(Alexandra Guryanova’s article appeared in Russia Beyond the Headlines, 4/29.)

Ballet and 'body-ballet'

Classical ballet is one of Russia's most famous international brands. Ballet has always been popular in the country and that remains true to this day, despite enrolling in a school being quite difficult, not to mention expensive.

It is important to specify that classical ballet is a lot like professional sports – to achieve excellence, one has to start at a very early age. For this reason, most of the schools only accept preschoolers (or, in rarer cases, children under the age of nine).
– http://rbth.com/arts/2015/04/29/moving_to_the_rhythm_russias_growing_love_affair_with_dance_45653.html)