Moscow ( CNN ) Joy Womack is taking part in her first ballet class of the day at the Kremlin Ballet Theatre , kicking her legs up to her head , jumping and spinning across the room . After class , she eats boiled sweets , one after another -- they are a cheap form of energy . The dancer , raised in California and Texas , left her parents and eight brothers and sisters behind when she arrived in Russia six years ago , aged 15 , speaking no Russian . She studied at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy and was one of the first Americans accepted from the school into the company . But in 2013 she left under a cloud -- media reports suggested she had claimed she was asked by an unnamed Boshoi official to pay $ 10,000 to dance in even small roles . The Bolshoi still stands by comments made at the time by its general director , Vladimir Urin . He asked the dancer to make an official complaint and defend her position legally , saying the theatre was ready to assist the law enforcement agencies to investigate the case and that `` if the facts are legally established , those responsible should be punished accordingly . '' The dancer did not pursue a case against the Bolshoi . When she left the Bolshoi in 2013 , Womack joined the Kremlin Ballet Theatre where she still works , aged 20 , as a principal ballerina ; dancing close to the Russian president 's office , next to the cathedrals inside the red walls of the Kremlin . The surroundings may be opulent but her pay packet is not : for her role as a principal dancer Womack says she is paid around $ 240 a month -- which works out at around $ 8 a day . The dancer says the amount of money she makes in dollars each month has fallen as the Russian ruble has weakened -- the currency has suffered , in part , from a low oil price and international sanctions imposed on Russia over its annexation of Crimea last year . Womack says a friend helps her with accommodation and she says she has to make the money stretch in order to buy food . `` For anyone paid a salary in rubles , especially since the crisis , it is extremely difficult . You have to decide what is worth more for you - experience or financial stability . I 'm at a point in my life where experience is worth more . '' Sitting in the wings of the stage , chatting in Russian to the other dancers and stretching before her rehearsal for Swan Lake , she says she has to make the $ 185 in her bank account last for the next few weeks . To earn extra money she dances bigger roles or takes part in events abroad . The Kremlin Ballet Theatre says Womack 's salary corresponds to her job title as a principal dancer and that , `` on average , the salary [ principal ] dancers are paid is significantly higher '' than $ 240 a month but that Womack could have been paid that equivalent in dollars `` depending on the exchange rate on the day and depending on how much she danced in productions the previous month . '' As an American , Womack says she is paid the same as her contemporaries and is treated just like the Russians . But she says that is not always the case offstage . `` It 's extremely difficult to watch the deteriorating relationships between the United States and Russia . The great thing about working for a Russian company is that we are focused on creating art but ... outside the ballet world it is difficult for foreigners ; the general tendency tends to be more nationalistic and they unfortunately judge foreigners by their cover . '' Although relations between the U.S. and Russia have taken a nosedive since Russia 's annexation of Crimea last March , Womack says she is `` very loyal '' to the Kremlin Ballet Theatre . `` I love the Russian system and I 'm very patriotic in that sense , '' she says . And despite the political situation -- and the money -- she says , `` Russia has a lot to offer , it is a beautiful place that creates stars and that itself is worth investing one 's career in .
20-year-old Americans dancer makes $ 240 a month at Kremlin Ballet Theatre . Joy Womack studied at Bolshoi Ballet Academy but left in cloud of controversy .