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elfboyeros · 1 month ago

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Who was Bela Pavlova?

⚠️Warning: Death, Mention of Abuse, Dark themes, etc aka the Bela Pavlova backstory stuff

So I mentioned this to @/jj-pines and @/lerenee that I imagine that there were films made of Bela's life because she basically disappeared at her peak at stuff and then I randomly thought of the Film Mommie Dearest and the video Kennie JD did on it and I was like: I bet the Youtube True Crime girlies would eat a story like Bela's alive so the fic was made that power wrote in a day! Read all about the nerds I create here and here

Calypso does what any girl does when doing her makeup in the morning, watch a True Crime Video on YouTube.

’ Ello, my darlings, it’s me Deliah Darling and we have an interesting story today!

The young woman, with a darker complexion and colorful braids, is on screen in front of a dark, almost gothic background, barefaced as she speaks with a British accent.

I say that like all the stories I talk about are not interesting, but this one is different! We talk about a lot of true crime on this channel, but today isn’t really true crime, I mean there is a criminal element, it’s unsolved murder which you all know is one of my favorite things to cover, but what we are talking about today is just fantasizing.

Today we are going to be talking about Bela Pavlova or the Russian Swan.

Calypso stops mid-putting on her moisturizer to look over at her phone in shock, one of her favorite make-up/true crime “influencers” talking about her mother! A picture pops up on the screen of Belladonna or Bela in her prime as a ballerina in the 1900s

This is Bela Pavlova, not to be confused with Anna Pavlova the first ballerina to tour the world. As a side note before we get into it, Anna and Bela are not related, however, Bela is often confused with Anna as if they are the same person.

Calypso continues to do her make-up routine just slower than normal.

I wanted to cover Bela today because her history especially in the ballerina world is… while there is no other way to say it but just plain insane. Her history is a huge mystery, involving death, murder, and kidnapping! Her life has been turned into 3 movies! Bela Pavlova, is a beautiful woman with a crazy life. Let’s get started.

The Intro for Delilah’s channel began as Calypso slowly opened her primer, hopefully, she wouldn’t have to write a full essay of information to clarify her mother’s life, she really likes Delilah’s videos she doesn’t want to unsubscribe. When the intro stopped Delilah had a makeup brush in hand before she started talking.

Bela Gorelov was born in 1881 on the 1st of July to Igor and Violetta Gorelov in Moscow, Russia. Violetta was a dressmaker and Igor worked “odd jobs” or something like that. See there were these books published in 1985 and then again, this year, which I’ll go into more detail about later, that had Bela’s dairies since her mother died and in them, Bela writes about all these jobs her father had and there is never a concrete answer for what he did besides chronically drink.

Well, that’s correct. It is interesting to mention her mother’s books as a source, Delilah seems to have done her research.

Bela had a normal childhood, started ballet at the age of eight, and guys she was incredibly talented, this girl started as a professional ballerina at the age of 14 she was good! However, her lovely little ballerina life wasn't sunshine and rainbow, because in 1891 when she was 10 Violetta died at the age of 23 of Cholera, leaving her in the care of her father and her maternal grandmother Apollinariya Urusov, who was also a dressmaker. What’s sad is that according to Bela’s dairy entries, as her father started to drink more he quote: “Became someone I didn’t recognize anymore, mama has been gone for a year and the man I am faced with every day is no longer my father, but simply Igor Gorelov the man that barely looks over me.” Even more heartbreaking Bela loved her mother and grandmother and when Apollinariya died in 1896 Bela was devasted!

Bela had just started doing professional ballet, a year before when she was 14! Then a year later. Her grandmother died, leaving her with her alcoholic father who was not very kind to her as when Bela turned 16, she was married off to Sergei Pavlova a 19-year-old construction worker, making her Bela Pavlova.

Calypso cringes at the sound of Sergei’s name, as Delilah let out a sarcastic laugh.

So Sergei… he was…

Delilah laughs once again

I’m trying to think of a way to define this man that will not get me demonetized, but I can’t! Sergei was an abuser. He smoked, he drank, and he sadly abused Bela for their entire marriage. However, their horrific marriage didn’t stop Bela from being a talented ballerina, she was best known for being Aurora in a production of Sleeping Beauty, playing Flora in a production of The Awakening of Flora, and the white and black swan in several different productions of Swan Lake during 1888-1900. I think because her “best roles” were from Swan Lake that’s another reason why she and Anna Pavlova, anyway.

Calypso has major respect for Delilah she has done respect for Bela Pavlova, however, this is only the beginning of the hour-long video.

In Early December of 1901, Bela wakes up, goes to a local restaurant for breakfast with a cousin, goes to the dress shop that her mother's side of the family-owned to pick up a dress, takes that dress back home, then goes to the theatre that she would perform another production of swan lake where she would play both the white swan and the black swan.

This would be her last production of Swan Lake and the last time she would perform on a stage, as that evening, she would disappear.

Calypso chuckles lightly patting her concealer, at the somber tone taken. Horrible events happened that night, whatever, Calypso knows the outcomes of all the events that took place that night, and in retrospect, the event is not as somber as it is being made out.

Now there many stories that happened that night, but no one will ever know truly what happened. However the facts are that Bela went to her dressing room after the ballet concluded, Sergei came to visit her, and early the next morning Sergei was found deceased, the room beyond disheveled, blood everywhere, and Bela nowhere to be found.

“Thank you, Daddy,” Calypso mutters, dusting her face with powder foundation.

Now

Delilah clapped her hands, her make-up barely finished as she had been talking with her hands and stopping for periods of time to explain things.

I am going to go over the theories of what could have happened that night, and then because of the autobiography, I will go over what is believed to have happened that night! So a major theory that is believed is that Bela killed Sergei and ran away, however, I have very little faith that this is true as Sergei was a hefty guy, and Bela had like the ideal ballerina body. I can’t imagine her killing anyone with her bare hands.

Calypso chuckles once again, Belladonna has in fact killed many individuals, but yeah as Bela she didn’t kill anyone.

Another theory is that Bela was kidnapped. Many people around the ballet scene said at the time when questioned about Bela, based on different sources that there was a large pale man with white hair who had become infatuated with Bela. Many believe that this white-haired man kidnapped Bela or even murdered her from the theatre. However, we have the Book “The True Life of The Russian Swan-The Dairy of Bela Pavlova” which is an autobiographical book that compiled all of Bela’s Dairy entries from the age of 10 up until her presumed death, which according to her dairy was not 20 like most believed before the book was published in the 80’s.

Even knowing all the facts, Calypso is still integrated, while filling in her eyebrows.

So that white-haired man does exist, but a lot of people online believe he doesn’t for some reason even though this book exists! The man’s name was Wolfgang Von Koch.

Not completely incorrect for the book Belladonna changed Wilhelm’s name so as not to trace the book back to them.

Wolfgang Von Koch was a man from Germany born 29th of January 1861. Bela said in her diary that he had a love for travel, and it surprised her when he said that he lived in Romania instead of Germany. Quote: “He told me Romania with a German Accent, I asked him “how come?” He simply replied, “I enjoy the mountains in Romania.” How could you move to one place just because of the mountains? He is beautiful, tall, built, and distinguished. Much older than I am, but if I were not married I would always make attempts to be in his view.”

“Momma and Daddy are so cute,” Calypso giggles softly.

So Wolfgang was in Russia on his travel, went to the ballet one night, and saw Bela on stage and is enamored with her immediately! She’s this beautiful, talented, ballerina but she has a unique appearance. Bela had poliosis is caused by low amounts of melanin and melanocytes in your hair follicle and occurs when you have a white streak in your hair, contrary to your natural hair color. Bela’s hair was black, and it had this white chunk in the front, even her eyebrows and her eyelashes had white in them! Like guys there are pictures of her in her book and this woman was gorgeous! Who won’t fall in love with her?

Delilah is right, Belladonna is gorgeous.

Anyway! Wolfgang was able to have tiny conversations with Bela after the ballet finished and they got to know each other over the almost 3 months he was in Russia. Many people think on the day she disappeared she actually met Wolfgang for breakfast, but that’s not true as Bela states in her dairy recalling that day “I never thought that when I sat down with Vera that morning, I never expect to be leaving Russia late that night!” So, according to Bela as she wrote in her dairy Wolfgang came to her dressing room after everyone had presumably left the theatre to get her gifts of carnations and chocolate-covered cherries, not only because he thought she deserved them, but because it was his last night in Russia before he went home. When Wolfgang made it to her dressing room, he found Sergei abusing Bela and went into a blind rage killing Sergei.

“W, Daddy,” Calypso muttered finishing her eyeshadow.

Bela wrote in her diary, “I never knew a man could make a murder look so divine.” She wanted Wolfgang to take her out of Russia so she could start a new life away from a horrible life in Russia, and he did just that, he allowed her to go back home to gather her things, let her visit her mother and grandmother’s graves one last time and they left Russia, and she never returned.

Now, Bela ended up living with Wolfgang in Romania in his home presumably in the mountains and they ended up getting married. According to Bela, they had a wonderful life together, they ended up having a child on June 5th, 1908, and they named her Violetta after Bela’s mother. She died sometime in January 1935, as her last entry was on December 29th, 1935, which means she died at the age of 54 however the book never says.

Mostly lies, but, of course, the ending of the book is fiction.

Now the reason I wanted to cover Bela Von Koch is because early this year there was a movie made—

“A shit movie!” Calypso scoffs.

—About Bela’s life simply called “Bela” and guys this movie is bad! Especially because “The True Life of The Russian Swan”was published in the 80’s! THIS BOOK WAS PUBLISHED IN 1985 BY BELA’S GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER! THEY HAD THE BLUEPRINT FOR THE FILM AND NO ONE BOTHERED TO ACUTALLY READ THIS FUCKING BOOK! What’s even worse, is the book was made in retaliation to a film that came out in 1982 called “The Russian Swan”.

“Which is another bad movie,” Calypso mutters finishing her eyeliner.

“The Russian Swan” is based on a golden age short film from 1947 of the same name which depicts the last performance of Bela Pavlova, the 1947 film is the only good film about Bela in my opinion, it’s just a silent film in which the actress does ballet and it is implied at the end that she was murdered, but the 1982 movie… Guys this film is even worse, oh my god!

Delilah dragged her hands along her face.

The Russian Swan the film boils my bones guys! First, the Bela in the 1982 movie doesn’t have poliosis, the most distinguishing feature of this woman and they got it wrong! They mix her with Anna Pavlova saying that she performed “The Dying Swan,” which is false, again Bela and Anna are not the same person, the reason the book of her diary was published was that they got so many things wrong about Bela that her great-granddaughter, Madalina Dumitru, was so upset with the film that she made the discussion to comply all of Bela’s dairies and publish for the public, disavowing the film and calling it a “a piece of horrific fiction I wish hadn’t been made for the screen.”

Actually, Belladonna’s own words at the time hidden behind a pen name, truly disgusted by the film when it came out in the 80’s she decided to publish her deepest thoughts to explain her what her life was rather in the fictional depiction.

The book was republished this year a few weeks ago because yet again another piss poor film about Bela was released and Madaline who is now in her sixty’s said on the rerelease of the book, “What bother’s me about the Film Bela is that it seems that my book of my great-grandmother’s dairy entries was not sourced nor was I connected about the film. This is yet another American film—” All of these films are made by the United States for some reason “—That made Bela Pavlova a work of fiction rather than treat her like the human being she was!” With the republishing, there are new dairy entries throughout it as more of Bela’s dairies and letters were found that were added, which was interesting, I highly recommend both versions of the book they are good reads.

“No thanks,” Calypso mutters before putting on lipstick.

Bela Pavlova is an interesting person to research. She was the amazing talented ballerina with the air of mystery! I did ballet for years as a child and teenager and I heard about Bela Pavlova all the time when we would talk about Swan Lake! I remember watching the film from the 80’s and being so disappointed because the film was so disgusting in its portrayal of Bela. Then I read the book and was so angry! So when Bela came out, I went to see it in theatres and of my god I left halfway through it because it was so horrible! I felt bad for Bela and her family’s behavior! Both films go with the angle that she was kidnapped! The modern film which could confirm that she left with Wolfgang willing, portrayed her as a young girl that was kidnapped by an evil man obsessed with her!

Delilah groaned loudly.

She was a talented ballerina—

“She is a talented ballerina,” Calypso muttered leaning back in her vanity chair attempting to pop her back as she stretched.

—and I just don’t understand what the point was of the movies! It’s as if the Crown was so inaccurate! Like Madaline was recently asked, in an interview, which of the three films was the best and of course she said the film from the 40s because quote: “It was inaccurate in the ending, but how could anyone know? The Russian Swan from 1947 is a beautiful short film, the ballerina in the film is gorgeous, but everything about the film is astonishing, especially for a film from the 40s. Again, the end is a bit teeth-grinding but I can understand how the idea of Bela being murdered is enthralling, moreover, no one knew what did or did not happen so 1947 is the best out of the three the other two should be burned!”

What was even funnier is when interviewed, Madaline was asked about some crazy theories and I wanna talk about one before we continue this video, because I believe it as a teenager and I think a part of me still believes it.

“Here we go,” Calypso chuckles.

So many people crazier then I believe that some of the dairy entries are fake that there is no Wolfgang, Violetta, that Madaline is actually a woman named Belladonna—

Calypso stares at her phone a bit shocked. “Belladonna” has never been mentioned in all that Calypso has seen on the internet about her mother, but then again she doesn’t look that hard.

—and Belladonna is actually Bela who is now a vampire and has been a vampire ever since the 1900s.

Delilah slammed her hand on the desk in front of her.

The theory is that Wolfgang is actually this man named Wilhelm Con Vester a German vampire that was of similar appearance as Wolfgang is, and Wilhelm Con Vester is the one that rescues Bela and takes her to Romania, she changed her name to Belladonna, he turns into a little vampy and they have been living amongst us ever since!

Will, that’s painfully accurate, internet people are good!

Apparently, Sergie had puncher wounds on his neck and was drained of all his blood, and after Bela went missing and was never heard of again, a woman named Belladonna Con Vester popped up in Romania out of nowhere and she has been in Romania ever since with her Husband Wilhelm, and honestly, she looks exactly like Bela!

And I mean we all know that vampires, werewolves, and shit exist so I wouldn’t be surprised if Belladonna was Bela, but from what I understand, Belladonna is living a very happy life with her husband, I think they run a funeral home together, so if she is Bela Pavlova she is now separated from that time of her life, which I completely understand. Like I can’t imagine what her life was like before she was saved, and if that were me, I would want to separate myself from all that and I would most definitely change my name if I could.

But this theory could be wrong, and Belladonna and Wilhelm aren’t connected at all. Madaline has said she has a child, that could be Belladonna, but I don’t know.

Anyway, that’s all I have for you all today, my darlings! Please give this video all your love and if you are new and enjoyed this video and want more, feel free to subscribe, I think since it is almost Halloween, I’ll talk about the Le Doux Werewolf family from New Orleans next, I find them really cool! Alright, bye-bye, my darlings.

Delilah blew a kiss to the camera

I’ll see you next time.

Calypso picks up her phone, scrolling to the comments, not bothering to read them she types, “Love your video! I consider myself a Bela Pavlova history nerd and respect you for all the research you put into your video. Whether the vampire theory is true I have no idea, but I have also seen theories that Wolfgang made it look like a vampire killed Bela’s husband so he wouldn’t be suspected of the murder, but I don’t know how true that is.”

“Bunny?” Belladonna calls while knocking on Calypso’s bedroom door before opening it, “Are you ready?”

“Yeah, momma,” Calypso replies, after sending the comment under the video, getting up from her vanity, and locking her phone.

“It took you longer than normal, everything okay?” Belladonna asked as her daughter approached her.

“I was just watching a really good video,” Calypso replies as her mother tucked some hair behind her ear, “It was about you actually.”

“Oh,” Belladonna chuckles, “Me or Bela?”

“Bela,” Calypso answers, “It was about those horrible movies!”

“Eck,” Belladonna sighs, “Come on, we have to go meet your father at the funeral home.”

“‘Kay.”

As Calypso followed Belladonna out of the house her phone vibrated Dalilah Darling had hearted her comment and even replied: “I saw that theory too, I like to think that Wolfgang is Wilhelm which is why included the theory, because my romantic heart likes to believe that Bela/Belladonna and Wilhelm are happily living it up as vamps.”

Calypso giggles a little before commenting: “Honestly me too.”

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