Universal Ballet

Background

To create a world culture of heart and an ideal world of peace through cultural arts, on May 12, 1984, True Parents decided to establish Universal Ballet. Founded with the vision of “Heavenly Art Creating a World of Beauty,” Universal Ballet is Korea's oldest privately funded professional ballet company.

Since its first performance of “Cinderella,” the company has grown to become Asia's best-known ballet company, having given more than 1,800 performances in 16 countries in addition to Korea.

1. Ballet is a Western dance form, and the West is a Christian cultural realm. The Christian cultural realm is the culture of the bride. And this bride has fervently desired to make the Lord her bridegroom and settle in the family and the nation. The bride longs for the bridegroom.

I hope that you can express your resolution to represent this union of the bride and bridegroom, that you can resolve the historical sorrow of God, and that you can dance the dance of liberation to move the entire universe. That is why I gave this company the name “Universal.” (350-168, 2001/08/05)

2. Western society, the Christian cultural realm, considers ballet the most refined art form. This art attained its place of supremacy in Russia. I founded Universal Ballet in 1984. I called for training and preparation to make it the best company in the world.

The Little Angels folk ballet that I founded in 1962 has attained a position of eminence in the world of Eastern art and culture, and Universal Ballet has done the same in the world of Western art and culture.

This is a surprising historical fact, an accomplishment that will be praised in the future. In this way, I laid a cornerstone that will stand forever in the new world culture. (310-269, 1999/07/22)

3. I have invisible strength. I founded Universal Ballet in the field of the arts. The Western world is proud of its culture of ballet, and I am standing at its forefront. Western people have their cultural art forms, and they are proud of them, but if you were to ask whether those art forms include hopeful messages or more profound meanings that will lead to a brighter future, you would find that they do not.

Along with the rest of Western culture, western ballet is gradually declining. It does not have a spiritual foundation and vision. Because it has developed an individualistic tendency, it lacks substance, and the traditional spirit of ballet has vanished.

I realized this and I took the lead. Although our race, religion, customs, and nationalities are different, I am transcending all of that and bringing the fruits of civilizations together, establishing a new tradition.

Now that this is plain for all to see, 14 years after I founded the ballet company in 1984, the Western world is following my lead. From both the spiritual and the cultural viewpoints, we have ascended to the highest position.
(293-148, 1998/05/26)

4. When I went out into the world, I had no doubts whatsoever. My mind was clear. All kinds of people came and went, and all sorts of incidents took place. Nonetheless, I rushed forward toward one single goal. I prepared everything for you to develop.

All preparations have been made for you to enter the world's league of advanced nations. The existence of Universal Ballet attests to this. You have no idea how touching the story behind the company's founding was.

It was so moving that The New York Times covered it with three full-page articles. Such a touching story is unparalleled in history. We made great leaps forward from there, and Universal Ballet has become a leading ballet company.
(292-316, 1998/04/27)

5. I founded two companies for dance and musical performance, the Little Angels and Universal Ballet.

Both in the West and the East, I have eminent performing arts groups that can sing and dance, bringing joy. To reach that level, performers have to practice over and over again, continually. Only a person who practices the same motion unceasingly hundreds and thousands of times can become a champion.

I noticed that the traditional spirit of ballet had faded because America and the free world had become an empire of individualism. However, because Universal Ballet has attached great importance to establishing and maintaining a vertical tradition, and persevered through a difficult course, it is now a top-class company.

That does not mean that you can now be arrogant. This is only the beginning. The whole world is waiting for you. Hence, to become the best, you need to seek perfection through continuous practice.

If you do so, you will have a wonderful foundation for the future. Dance, as part of the world of art, is a display of culture and spirit. We will come to own the arts, both eastern and western. The Little Angels represent the Eastern arts, and Universal Ballet represents the Western arts. (294-100, 1998/06/14)

6. You should pin your hopes on Universal Ballet. High-ranking women in Western society cannot preserve their dignity if they are incapable of appreciating a ballet performance. By establishing that standard, you can bring together all the women of Europe, Russia, the United States, and Latin America.

If we were to do so, we would have an enormous organization that connects the leading women of the world. Through the Women's Federation for World Peace, I am planning to link Korea with Japan, and Japan with America and Europe.

The performances of Universal Ballet and the Universal Ballet Academy can serve as a hub for a network of high-echelon leaders, a place where they can form personal relations and associations with one another that will be eternal.

Your connection to this preeminent ballet company can be your family's source of pride. In this way, the most prominent families in the world can be brought together. (236-084, 1992/11/03)

7. A ballet performance should be created based on the Unification Principle -- for instance, one that is about the difficulties I had to endure in prison. There is a person in Universal Ballet who can do that.

When it comes to choreography, that person may well be the best in the world.

Among ballets, “La Bayadère” is a very difficult one to perform. To begin with, the group dances are difficult, but the solo dances are so difficult that only dancers of the highest caliber can undertake them.

From a professional viewpoint, the personal skill of a ballerina can be assessed in a single moment. In the group dances, each dancer needs to keep in step and move with the others in perfect unity.

When the feet are lifted, they must not be lifted even a little too high. The sound of 50 or 100 dancers simultaneously descending from a jump must be like that of a single person. While watching their performance, I thought, “As good as they are, they need to practice a little more.” (325-324, 2000/07/02)

8. In the future, our dance groups must be very strict about relationships between men and women. Loose relationships between men and women are common in the entertainment industry. Performers often have this problem, and it is a disgrace according to the world.

We must change this. No matter how wonderful a performer is, if implicated in such an issue in even the smallest way, he or she cannot remain in Universal Ballet. In that way, we have to make a worldwide revolution by setting an example of alignment with God's Will. You should become the representatives who can bring an end to the current situation in the entertainment business, which has become the ground for promoting moral decay and social ills.

Those who understand this must initiate a revolution. Attempting to start a revolution with people who do not know about it or commit to it would be futile.

Based on theoretical and practical viewpoints that match internally and externally, we need to create publicly recognized, above-board standards.

Because this issue interested me in the field of the performing arts, I founded the Little Angels and Universal Ballet, which have now climbed to the top positions worldwide. (338-093, 2000/10/29)

Universal Ballet Academy and the mission of the arts

On March 25, 1989, True Parents officially announced plans for a ballet school affiliated with Universal Ballet to be established in Washington, DC, and on September 5, 1990, they officially opened the Universal Ballet Academy (UBA), now known as the Kirov Academy of Ballet of Washington, DC.

True Parents emphasized that the cultural arts should praise God and properly guide the younger generation.

9. If Universal Ballet as a performing arts group represents the East, then the Kirov Ballet represents the West. The world-class director of Russia's Kirov Ballet is the current director of UBA in Washington, DC, and Kirov's important instructors have come to teach there.

To western women, ballet is a topic of great interest. The wives of presidents and ministers of state generally appreciate ballet and have a sense for it, for if someone does not know about ballet, the person is considered devoid of European culture.

Therefore, when a renowned ballet company comes to perform, they all make a fuss about procuring tickets. To ensure that they do the same when our ballet company arrives, I have pushed the company to improve to the highest level. (234-158, 1992/08/10)

10. The opening ceremony for the Universal Ballet Academy will be held on September 5, 1990, in Washington, DC. Thanks to a request made by the Bush administration and the consent given by the Soviet government, we were able to issue an invitation allowing our academy's director, who is a Russian citizen, to work in the United States.

President Bush sent a letter and the Soviet government sent a reply, and thus the director of the Kirov Ballet was appointed as the UBA director. Now we can bring Kirov Ballet instructors to Washington, DC. It is a dull routine for them to work only in the Soviet Union.

We were able to open the academy in this way because they desire to bring their art to the free world as well. (205-187, 1990/09/01)

11. When a voice from the spirit world asked Oleg Vinogradov, the director of UBA, the question, “Will you keep working at the Kirov for the sake of the Soviet Union, or will you work with Father?” he said that he would choose to work with me. It is a mystery in the Western world how a man such as Oleg Vinogradov could come to cooperate with me.

Neither the Soviet government nor Western society understands it. Nobody understands it except God, me, him, and a small circle. When he was about to open the door to enter UBA, he received a revelation from Heaven saying, “Since this is a sacred place, take off your shoes before you enter. This is the place where you shall devote the rest of your life.”

Knowing whose command this was, how could he have possibly disobeyed? That is why he acts almost as if this is his primary residence. (205-280, 1990/10/01)

12. In culture, what occupies the preeminent position are the fine arts. These fine arts include painting; however, things of beauty should not all be as static as paintings are; there needs to be living art as well.

Dancing is a composite, living art form, and this is particularly true of ballet. Dancing is an art that sometimes represents the folk culture of a nation. In ballet, the ballerina stands on the tip of her toes and rises, and thus she is praising God.

Having the background of such a traditional philosophy, ballet is the supreme art of Western civilization.

But what has become of it today? Even its music has been corrupted and completely submerged in carnal hedonism. I revived it to its original form and brought it back on track.

No matter how else the world may criticize me, they cannot help but praise me for laying such a foundation in the field of culture, starting decades ago. No one opposes me in this.

The New York Times wrote, “The Universal Ballet Academy is the Harvard of ballet schools.” So, the UBA has received the title, “the Harvard of ballet schools.” The Washington Post wrote similarly. This is a fact. I am the one who built a bridge between the United States and the Soviet Union, and the one who continues to have this influence. (205-279, 1990/10/01)

13. We have the Little Angels, a folk ballet, and Universal Ballet, a Western classical ballet, in Korea.

Now is the time of new origins, when Western and Eastern cultures can be transformed. That transformation, beginning in Korea, will resonate throughout heaven and earth and provide a pathway to reach above and below.

It follows a vertical line naturally, from the heights of heaven to the depths of hell, from which everything can flow out. Thus, when the flow from this pillar of oneness comes upon the world, it will provide clarity to the environment that looks to that pillar.

You should be grateful for this and make your life one with it. If the Korean people live in this hope, they will surely realize the position of the people of God's homeland and take pride in its value. (2010/02/02)

14. In America, you can watch movies on television 24 hours a day. You can watch any movie you like, be it an action movie, a war movie, or a romantic movie. All kinds of movies are aired, even pornographic movies.

Adolescents are easily dragged down. Because young people do not have their philosophy of life or traditional set of values, they act out anything they see. Adolescents watch such images and pursue the exciting side of them because the environmental conditions that would traditionally restrict them do not exist. That is why, as soon as they see it they instantly act it out.

Under such circumstances, this world will not go much further before it completely collapses. Men and women clinging to each other will fall into ruin. Moreover, as people take drugs they literally lose their minds and are degraded to a state devoid of human dignity. How to turn around such an environment is a serious problem.

In the future, if we are committed to building an ideal world, we need to delve into the roots of such global issues and resolve them.

In light of all these things, the question of how soon we can establish a traditional standard as a new cultural foundation in the field of the arts is grave. It is the most time-sensitive issue in the cause of uniting the world. (241-197, 1992/12/26)

15. When I went to America, I thought, “How can I prevent the young people of America, the leading country of the democratic world, from rushing along the downward trend led by the audiovisual media?”

Television is a big issue. In America, television broadcasting runs nonstop, 24 hours a day. Movies and music are broadcast continuously, and children watch with interest. The visual media spearheads the current crisis and intoxicates American young people.

Young people of the world are completely turning to Satan's world, so we need to do something. The only way to defend against this trend is through the audiovisual media.

To counter this very problem, I founded the Little Angels, a folk ballet, revived the New York City Symphony, founded Universal Ballet, and even created cutting-edge rock bands. (241-190, 1992/12/26)

16. If I have the time, I plan to meet performers in Las Vegas and move their hearts. I am also aiming to renew a renowned opera house, the Manhattan Center.

I am going to build this one in New York and then others in London and Tokyo and have famous people from around the world come and perform there. Furthermore, I will find a company to help talented young people become famous worldwide.

We have our newspaper, which is a natural medium for publicity, so we can popularize new fashions. We will guide artists to become pure, moral, and excellent performers who win everyone's hearts.

This is the reason I founded the Little Angels and the New Hope Singers. And now I have acquired the New York City Symphony, which I intend to raise as well to the world level. (090-262, 1977/01/03)