Six months after the bombs started to fall on Kyiv in 2022, choreographer Yuliia Lopata danced again.

Even though her life to that point had been dedicated to the transformative power of dance, there didn’t seem much point to it anymore once Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine brought death to daily life, emptying entire towns and rallying ordinary citizens from all walks of life to enlist in the Ukrainian military. It wasn’t like dance was going to win the war. The goal was to get through the day alive.

Still, as family, friends and even a few fellow dancers took up arms, Lopata took to her feet. Not as an escape or a dalliance. As her own act of defiance. As her contribution to boosting the morale of her beleaguered friends and neighbors. As a testament to what women are capable of

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