British-born ballet star unites Russian exiles in a dance of defiance

Xander Parish, who fled St Petersburg in March, talks about his performance this weekend with Russian and Ukrainian artistes

When the dancer Xander Parish made his return to the London stage in Swan Lake, visiting Covent Garden five years ago as a member of a renowned Russian ballet company, it was a moment of triumph. The Yorkshire-born star was, after all, the first Brit to have been accepted by the Mariinsky Ballet - known as the Kirov in Soviet times. And after the curtain came down the company promoted Parish to the status of principal dancer.

How times change. This March Parish turned his back on his new home in St Petersburg. He and his Russian wife, the dancer Anastasia Demidova, fled the country in protest at the invasion of Ukraine in February. On 12 November, Parish was due to take a further stand.