Fanaticism in the Ballet World

I've been reflecting on last week's attack on Sergei Filin. In many ways it's brought the best and the worst of ballet to the world's attention.

There are fanatics in all walks of life; in sport, in business, in medicine, in law... it is not a normal mindset but it exists throughout our society. I would hate it if fanaticism on this extremist level came to be associated with ballet more generally; yes there are fanatics in the ballet world, and yes one of them appears to have attacked Sergei Filin in the most horrific manner. However, the vast majority of those working in ballet, even at the highest most competitive level, find the attack every bit as reprehensible as the rest of the population.