Zhanna Ayupova was born in Petrozavodsk. In 1984 she graduated from the Leningrad Choreographic School (coached by Ninel Kurgapkina) and was invited to become a member of the Kirov Ballet Company (Mariinsky Theatre). From 1987 Zhanna Aupova appeared as a featured soloist with the company preforming both lyric and dramatic parts. From 2000 to 2013 she had been coaching ballet dancers at the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

From 2013 – First Vice-rector and Artistic Director of the Vaganova Ballet Academy.

Over the course of her dance career Zhanna Ayupova has performed a great number of roles in major classical and neo-classical works. Her most prominent roles include Giselle (Giselle), Princess Aurora (The Sleeping Beauty), Marie (The Nutcracker), Raymonda (Raymonda), Kitri (Don Quixote), Nikiya (La Bayadère), Odette/Odile (Swan Lake), Manon (Manon), Soloist (Theme and Variations), Soloist (Symphony in C), Terpsichore (Apollo), Young Lady (Le Spectre de la Rose) and many others.

Zhanna Ayupova is a prize winner of the Moscow International Ballet Competition (1985).

In 2008 she was honored with the title People's Artist of Russia.

Margarita Kullik is the tutor of the prestigious and old company of the Mariinsky Theatre, where she stands out as one of the best in the world in her profession.

She graduated in 1981 at the Vaganova Academy with the legendary Natalia Dudinskaia and Irina Trofimova as her teachers. She immediately entered the Mariinsky Ballet, where she quickly rose to the position of a principal star. Kullik premiered numerous roles for this prestigious company such as La Fille Mal Gardée (choreography by Oleg Vinogradov) and Cinderella (choreography by Alexei Ratmanski). As the first dancer she assumed the lead roles in Don Quixote, Cinderella, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, The Sylphide, The Corsair, Romeo and Juliet, among many others, and toured different countries. Among her awards it stands out the prize of the International Ballet Competition of Varna (Bulgaria) in 1983.

Since 2013 Margarita Kullik has been a tutor at the Mariinsky Ballet and her remarkable work is palpable in the excellence of her pupils (such as Renata Shakirova and Kim Kimin), and has elevated her to the top and enshrined as a legend.

During more than 25 years she was the main tutor of one of the most important neoclassical dance theatres, in Saint Petersburg.

She graduated from the Vaganova Academy in 1967. And from this time was the first dancer in the Chamber Ballet directed by Gusev, where she danced leading roles in ballets such as Giselle, Don Quijote, Korsar and others. Since the 70´s she was the first dancer in the most prestigious theaters; She was the big star in“Choreographic Miniatures” of Leonid Yakobson, an excellent and very recognized worldwide choreographer. In most ballet encyclopedias she was considered as one of the most virtuous ballerinas of the XX century. She is a big living legend of ballet, and it´s a real honor to have her in our course.

Since the end of her dance career until today, Tatiana has excelled and left an indelible mark as a mentor and tutor of many professional artists, giving them the stamp of ballet stars.

She has given large number of master classes all over the world: United States , European Union countries, Japan and others.

Among her disciples we can highlight:  Natalia Osipova,Vera Arbuzova, Nina Zmievets, Svetlana Bednenko and other soloists of the big theaters like Eifman Ballet, Mikhailovsky Theatre, Jacobson Ballet Theatre etc.

Worldwide recognized and one of the best representatives of St. Petersburg ballet culture, educated in the best traditions of academic dance. She´s actual and one of the most acclaimed teachers of Vaganova Academy.

Upon graduating with honors, Galina has completed specialization courses in the class of NATALIA DUDINSKAYA AND IRINA TROFIMOVA at Vaganova Academy.

After she worked as first soloist at the Theatre of Choreographic Miniatures of Leonid Jacobson, an exceptional and principal choreographer of Kirov Theatre (now Mariinsky), in his time. With the company Galina danced around the world with great success.

In 1998 she graduated as a classical ballet teacher in Vaganova Ballet Academy. Since then she has acquired an extensive teaching practice and methodical didactic in ballet.

Currently, she teaches ballet in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg, basically on elementary and intermediate levels. Also, Galina gives Stage Practice classes for children in the Mariinsky Theatre.

She has given numerous master classes in Japan, Denmark, Italy and other countries.

More information on: http://vaganovaacademy.ru/academy/structure/kafedri/classica/enikeeva.html

She was born on September 29, 1949 in Leningrad. She graduated from the Vaganova Academy, under the teachings of V.S. Kostrovitskayay V.M. Stankevich.

In 1968 she entered the Mikhailovsky Theater where she played numerous solo roles, where she remained for almost thirty years.

In 1993 she entered the Vaganova Ballet Academy, in the pedagogical department. Since 1996, she is a classical dance teacher of elementary grades. In 2007 she was elected to the post of assistant professor of the methodology of classical and duo-classical dance teaching.

Oliver Matz received his ballet training at the State Ballet School of Berlin and joined the State Opera of Germany in 1980, serving the company as a soloist and international ambassador for 25 years.

Oliver has received numerous national and international awards, such as the bronze medal at the International Ballet Competition in Varna and the gold medals at the International Ballet Competitions in Helsinki and Jackson.

In recognition of his outstanding artistic achievements, he was appointed Berliner Kammertänzer by the Berlin Culture Senator in 1995, being the first dancer to receive this honor. For his achievements throughout his career, he was appointed Honorary Member of the State Opera of Germany in 2004.

Renowned figures and internationally famous choreographers such as Ray Barra, Patrice Bart, Michael Baryshnikov, Maurice Béjart, William Forsythe, Pierre Lacotte, Hans van Manen, Rudolf Nurejew, Roland Petit, Uwe Scholz, Yuri Vamos and Wladimir Wassiljev created roles for him as well as reinterpretations of classic narrative ballets.

He has danced around the world as a guest artist and in international galas, including performances with internationally renowned ballet companies such as the American Ballet Theater in New York, the Bavarian State Ballet, the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the National Ballet of Finland, the National Ballet of Canada, the Royal Ballet of London and the Stuttgart Ballet.

He has also danced with leading international dancers such as Eva Evdokimova, Isabelle Guérin, Sylvie Guillem, Evelyn Hart, Margaret Illmann, Alessandra Ferri, Ludmilla Semenjaka and Steffi Scherzer.

In addition to his duties and responsibilities as a chief executive, he enjoys great success as a teacher in Zurich Dance Academy, teaching ballet classes for boys. Many of his students participate in world-renowned companies and have won important prizes in the main international ballet competitions.

He has been a member of the Prix de Lausanne Jury 2018.

Yulia Kasenkova is an acclaimed teacher at the Vaganova Academy, outstanding because of all her achievements in such a short pedagogic career.

Yulia Kasenkova graduated from Vaganova Ballet Academy, and joined the Mariinsky Ballet Company as a soloist from 1993 to 2014. She received a teaching degree from Vaganova Academy in 2010, and was immediately hired as a coach by Mikhailovsky Theatre. She joined Vaganova Academy in 2013, teaching international trainees, before being promoted in 2014. She has been teaching upper school classes ever since.

Yulia has only been teaching for 7 years, but she has already received major awards for her work and achieved some great results with her students. It is such a privilege to have this gifted teacher in our faculty.

After training at the State Ballet School Berlin for seven years, Steffi Scherzer joined the German State Opera Berlin, where she was appointed prima ballerina in 1984.

She has danced the leading parts and title roles of the entire classical and neoclassical repertoire. Steffi has won numerous major prizes and awards at both national and international ballet competitions, as well as received many acclaimed performing arts and critics awards. She has made guest appearances around the world, and has worked with many of the most renowned choreographers such as Rudolf Nurejev, Patrice Bart, Maurice Béjart, William Forsythe, Pierre Lacotte, Roland Petit, and Uwe Scholz. She is an honorary member of the German State Opera Berlin and is one of Germany’s most outstanding classical dancers. Steffi's students have achieved top places and won many prizes at national and international competitions.

Polina Semionova was born in Moscow and studied at the Bolshoi Ballet School. At 17 years old, she joined the Berlin State Opera Ballet as a principal dancer. In September 2012 joined American Ballet Theatre as a Principal Dancer.

Her repertoire includes:
Odette-Odile in Swan Lake; Nikiya in La Bayadere; Marie in The Nutcracker; Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty;Swanilda in Coppellia; Kitri in Don Quixote;Giselle, Myrta in Giselle; Tatiana in John Cranko's Onegin; Sieglinde and Brunhilde in Maurice Bejart's Ring um den Ring; Manon in Manon; Juliet in John Cranko's,Sir Kenneth McMillan's, Leonid Lavrovskij's, Nacho Duato's Romeo and Juliet; Scheherazade; Les Sylphides; Carmen in Roland Petit'sCarmen; Sylvia in Sir Frederick Ashton's Sylvia.Principal roles in Jerome Robbins' Afternoon of a Faun; George Balanchine's Ballet Imperial, Apollo (Terpsichore), A Midsummer Night's Dream, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Diamonds, Theme and Variations, Symphony in C; William Forsythe's The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, Herman Schmermann; John Neuemeyer 's Nutcracker, Midsummer Night's Dream, The Lady of the Camellias, Kylian's Return to the Strange Land.

She has also appeared in works by Nacho Duato, Mauro Bigonzetti, Patrice Bard, Renato Zanella, Uwe Scholz, Alexey Ratmanskij, Twyla Tharp, Anthony Tudor, Christian Spuck...

Semionova has also danced as a guest artist with La Scala, American Ballet Theatre, Bayerische State Opera, Mikhailovskiy Theatre, Semper Opera, English National Ballet, Tokyo Ballet, Vienna State Opera Ballet, Zurich Ballet, Maryinsky Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Opera del Roma ..

Awards include:

• a gold medal at the Moscow International Ballet Competition in 2001,
• First Prize at the Vaganova-Prix Ballet Competition in St. Petersburg ,
• the Junior Prize at the Nagoya International Ballet Competition in 2002;
• Daphne Prize (2004);
• German Critics Choice Award (2005);
• Dancer of the Year (2007);
• Prize of Heinz Spoerli( 2007);
• Prize Benois de la Dance(2014);
• Kammertänzerin (2017);
• Dancer of the Year (2018).

In 2013 she became a professor of Staatliche Ballett Schule in Berlin, Germany.

Carolina Borrajo was born in Zaragoza, Spain. She was trained at the María de Ávila Ballet School in her native town and at the School of the Hamburg Ballet.

After her first engagement at the Ballet Clasico de Zaragoza, she was a soloist at Bonn Opera, at the Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden and at the Lucerne Theatre. She received her diploma as a children's dance teacher and stage dance teacher at the State University of Performing Arts in Mannheim.

In August 2008 she took up a position on the teaching faculty of the School of the Hamburg Ballet.

Borrajo will attend Russian Masters Ballet Camp as representative of the Ballet School of Hamburg, to do auditions for the students.

Daniel Camargo born in Sorocaba, Brazil, started ballet at the age 10 in Ourinhos. In 2005 he joined the John Cranko Ballet School and graduated in 2009. He was a student of the famous Russian teacher Peter Pestov.

After his graduation, where he performed the technically demanding Solo named Notations I – IV which Uwe Scholz created for Vladimir Malakhov in 1996, he was taken into the Stuttgart Ballet’s Corps de ballet for the season 2009/2010.

Promoted to Soloist at the beginning of the season 2012/2013 after debut in the role of Basilio in Maximiliano Guerra’s Don Quijote. One season later promoted to Principal Dancer.

He made his debut with Dutch National Ballet as a guest artist in 2015 and joined as principal dancer in 2016 for the next three years.

Parallel to that he has been dancing as a Guest Principal with the most prestigious ballet companies of the world such as the Australian Ballet, Tokyo Ballet, Czech National Ballet, Kremlin Ballet, Mariinsky Ballet, Royal Ballet and many others.

Since the season 2019/2020 Daniel is an acclaimed Guest Principal Dancer, performing with several ballet companies worldwide.

Now she is lecturer in theoretical disciplines: the history of ballet, ballet criticism, ballet composition, analysis of the ballet performance. O. Rozanova created her own author’s curriculum.

Participant of Russian and international scientific symposia. The authors of several books and more than four hundred articles about ballet published in Russian and foreign editions. Winner of the prize of the magazine "Ballet" "Soul of Dance" in the nomination "Press Leader" (2017).

She is the author of lecture series on ballet art at the Mikhailovsky and Mariinsky theaters. Published in Europe, USA, Mexico.

Anna was born in Siberia. She started to dance at 5 years old and graduated from the Krasnoyarsk Ballet School in Siberia. 

Anna started her career with the Siberian State ballet (Krasnoyarsk, Russia) as a soloist. Later she became a guest-principal dancer with Mikhailovsky theatre (Saint-Petersburg) and Tatarstan state ballet (Kazan). Since 2012 Anna joined Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre ballet company as a principal dancer. During this period of dancing with Russian ballet companies her repertoire was very diverse. 

At 2015 she joined Dutch National Ballet as a principal dancer. Since that moment Anna became an international guest-principal dancer .She worked with Teatro Colon (Argentina) for “La Bayadere” by Natalia Makarova,  with Semperoper Dresden ballet for “Manon” by K.McMillan. Currently Anna is working with Staatsballet Berlin as a guest.

Anna’s repertoire is very diverse. During her carrier she dances principal roles in almost all well known classical ballets as “Nutcracker” , “Sleeping beauty”, “La Bayadere”, ”Gizelle”, “Copelia”, “La fille mal gardee”, “La Sylphide” , “Snow Maiden”, “Don Quihote”, ”Romeo and Juliette”, “Swan lake” and others. Her repertoire also includes main roles in lots of neoclassical ballets by such a famous choreographers as K.McMillan, J.Robbins, J.Kranko, G.Balanchine, A.Ratmansky, C.Wheeldon , Hans van Manen ,D.Dawson,Y.Grigorovich, Rudi van Danzig ,Ted Brandsen and others. In a different time her partners on stage were Sergei Polunin, Ivan Vasiliev, Leonid Sarafanov and others. 

In a studio legendary Natalia Makarova, Guillaume Graffine, Alexey Ratmansky, Michael Messerer , Patricia Neary, Patricia Ruann , Karl Burnett, Olga Evreinoff, Yukari Saito,Yannick Boquen ,Larissa Lezhnina, Rachel Beaujean and many others helped her to improve her skills of dance. At 2008 and 2010 she won gold medals on International ballets competitions in Krasnoyarsk and Perm. She is a winner of «Dance Open 2018- miss virtuosity» prize in Sankt Petersburg.

Currently Anna is working successfully with Dutch National ballet as a principal dancer and participates lots of  Ballet Galas around the world.

Direct disciple of N.I. Kovmira, who is the most valued professor of male technique in the middle and advanced levels in classical dance.

Andrey Yermolenkov was born on 06.02.1969 in Leningrad. He graduated from Vaganova Academy in 1987. In 1987-1989 he worked at the Maly Theater of Opera and Ballet (Mikhailovsky Theatre). 

Since 1989 he worked as a soloist in the Ballet Theatre under the direction of Eifman. 

During his career he performed all the current repertoire. In 2007 he graduated from the Pedagogical Faculty of Vaganova Academy as a teacher and tutor. Since 2006 he has been teaching classical dance in the middle and advanced levels in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg.

Last and very great addition to the constellation of stars which is Russian Masters. Formed by the great ballet legend, Natalia Dudinskaya. Elena Alkanova was a soloist at the Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky Theatre, the two best ballet companies in the world. Actually she´s focused already for more than 20 years in her work teaching classical ballet in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg.

Born January 29, 1954 in Leningrad. In 1972 she graduated from the Leningrad Academic Choreography School. She studied at Vaganova in Natalia Dudinskaya's class and was accepted into the company of the Mariinsky Theatre, where she performed roles in the ballets “Sleeping Beauty”, “Swan Lake”, “Le Corsaire” and others. From 1975 to 1993 soloist in Mikhailovsky. Today she is perhaps one of the best professors of classical dance in the world.

More information on: http://vaganovaacademy.ru/academy/structure/kafedri/classica/alkanova.html

Elena Yevseyeva was born in Izhevsk.
In 2001 she graduated from the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet (class of Marina Vasilieva).

From 2001 to 2008 she was a soloist with the Mikhailovsky Theatre, where she performed in the ballets The Nutcracker (Masha), The Sleeping Beauty (Aurora, Diamond Fairy), La Bayadère (Gamzatti), Don Quixote (Kitri), Le Corsaire (Medora),Raymonda (Raymonda), Giselle (Giselle), Chopiniana (Mazurka, Seventh Waltz), Swan Lake (Odette-Odile), Cipollino (Radish),Spartacus (Aegina).

Repertoire at the Mariinsky Theatre:

• La Sylphide (the Sylph);
  
• Giselle (Zulma, Classical Duet);
  
• La Bayadère (Gamzatti, Shades); 
• Le Corsaire (Gulnare, Trio of Odalisques);
  
• “Paquita” Grand pas (Variation), choreography by Marius Petipa; 
• Swan Lake (Friends of the Prince);
  
• Don Quixote (Kitri, Flower Girls);
  
• Chopiniana (Nocturne, Eleventh Waltz, Prelude, First Waltz);
  
• Les Noces (Soloist);
  
• The Fountain of Bakhchisarai (Maria);
  
• The Nutcracker (Masha, Classical Trio);
  
• The Young Lady and the Hooligan (the Young Lady);
• Shurale (Syuimbike);
• Walpurgis Night (Bacchante); 
• The Legend of Love (Shyrin, Gold Dance);
• Pas de quatre (Carlotta Grisi, Fanny Cerrito);
• George Balanchine’s ballets Apollo (Polyhymnia), La Valse, Symphony in C (III. Allegro vivace), Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Butterfly);
• The Nutcracker (Masha);
• Cinderella (Cinderella, Khudyshka);
• William Forsythe’s ballets In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated and Approximate Sonata;
  
• Ondine (Two Naiads);
• Glass Heart (Clock);
• and many others.
  

Elena has toured with the Mariinsky Ballet Company to Spain, France, Great Britain and Germany.

More information on the website of the Mariinsky Theatre.

Formed by Ludmila Safronova, one of the last students of Agrippina Vaganova, Anna Podlesnaya has graduated summa cum laude as ballerina and after as a teacher at the Vaganova Academy.

She worked with legendary teachers such as Alla Shelest, Alla Osipenko, Lyudmila Kunakova and Ninel Petrova, Lyudila Safronova.

Anna Podlesnaya represents the St. Petersburg´s school in its purest form, even to receive the epithet “Vaganova’s granddaughter.” After an acclaimed career as a Principal Dancer, she became an outstanding teacher. Her excellence as Teacher is shown in details such as the correct position of hands and feet, she combines attention to detail with great sympathy and sensitivity when working with children.

In 2011 Ivan Zaytsev joined the ballet company of one of the best theatres of the world - Mikhailovsk, where very soon he became a Principal dancer, his repertoire includes solo and principal roles in La Sylphide, Le Corsaire, Cipollino, Don Quixote, Laurencia, The Flames of Paris, La Fille mal gardée, and Class Concert
as well as productions of Nacho Duato The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Multiplicity, Forms of Silence and Emptiness, Prelude, Invisible, and White Darkness. Ivan has toured with the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company to Japan, USA, Germany etc.

He start his career from Krasnodar Ballet School in 1997 and while studying he was training at the Yury Grigorovich Ballet Theatre where he performed roles in the ballets Spartacus, Romeo and Juliet, Raymonda, The Golden Age, The Nutcracker, and Cipollino.
In 2002 Ivan graduated from Krasnodar Ballet School and entered the Department of Choreography at St. Petersburg State University for Culture and Arts.
After graduation from the University in 2007, he joined Leonid Jacobson Ballet Theatre in St. Petersburg, where he danced Romeo (Romeo and Juliet), Jose (Passion for Carmen), Siegfried (Swan Lake), Prince (The Nutcracker), Albrecht (Giselle), and Rodin (The Kiss).

After participation in the 11th Moscow International Ballet Competition in 2009, he was invited to join Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre. Ivan´s parties in Eifman Ballet were:

• Basil in Don Quixote, 
• Onegin in Onegin, 
• Vronsky in Anna Karenina, 
• Ekaterina´s son in Russian Hamlet, 
• The Prince,
  
• The Young man & The Joker in Chaikovsky.
  

More information on the website of the Mikhailovsky theatre.

Tatiana graduated from the Vaganova Academy in 1989. Since then her professional ballet career started in the State Opera and Ballet Theatre of Conservatory of St. Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov.

Since 1990 Tatiana Cherkashina has been the soloist of this theatre. Her work as a ballet dancer and her labor in the cultural scope of the country has been recognized several times by most prestigious national awards from the Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation.
In 2008 she got the official grade of Teacher of Classical Ballet in the Vaganova Academy and has been teaching classical dance for over 10 years.

Tatiana Cherkashina has offered already various master classes of classical ballet in Norway, Israel and Japan.

Her major jobs:
• Soloist – “Classical Syphony” S. Prokofiev
• “Grand pa Classic” F. Ober/ V. Gazovsky
• Ballet dancer – “Petrushka” I. Stravinsky/M- Fokin
• Princess Aurora, princess Florina – “The Sleeping Beaty” P. Chaikovsky / M. Petipa (under reducción of Dolgushin)
• "Opus №45" А. Berg\ G.Contreras
• Ballet dancer – «Dreams» P. Chaikovsky/N. Dolgushin
• Odetta-Odilia – “The Swan Lake” P. Chaikovsky/ L. Ivanov, М. Petipa (under reducción of N. Dolgushin)
• Gisele – “Gisele” А. Аdan / Corrali, G. Perro, М. Petipa
• Fairy Drazhe – “The Nutcracker” P. Chaikovsky/V.Vaionen, L.Ivanov, N. Dolgushin
• "Grand Pa" soloist – "Pajita" L. Minkus / M. Petipa
• Julietta– "Epitafia" Т. Albinoni/N. Dolgushin
• Kitri – "Don Quijote" L. Minkus/A. Gorsky (under reducción of N. Dolgushin)
• Pimpinella – "Pulchinello" I. Stravinsky/K. Chubashev
• "Choreographic Miniatures” L. Yakobson

More information on <a target="_blank" href="http://vaganovaacademy.ru/academy/structure/kafedri/classica/tcherkashina.html"><b><u>Vaganova Academy website</u></b></a>.<br>

Bakhtiar was born in the city of Saryozeke, Almaty region. He graduated from the Almaty Choreographic School named after A.V. Seleznev (2003-2011). From 2011 to 2013 - soloist of Astana Opera and Ballet Theatre. Since 2013 he had been a soloist of State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after Abay. Since 2015 he has been the principal soloist of Astana Opera.

Awards:
Prize-winner at the VII International Competition of Choreographic Schools of Siberia (Novosibirsk, 2008);
Diploma of the International KIBC Contest (South Korea, 2009);
Prize-winner at the International Contest of Ballet Artists "Arrow" (2010);
The holder of the scholarship of the First President of RK NA. Nazarbayev (2010-2011);
Laureate of the 1st prize of the International Festival of Creative Youth "Shabyt" (2012);
The winner of the II Prize of the International Ballet Competition "Grand Prix of Siberia" (Krasnoyarsk, 2014);
Grand Prix of the V International Ballet Competition in Istanbul (Turkey, July 8, 2016);
Laureate of the 1st Prize of the XIII International Dance Contest in Seoul (South Korea, August 10, 2016);
Grand Prix of the III International Ballet Competition in Astana (September 16, 2016);
Grand Prix of the International Competition of Ballet Dancers VKIBC (New York, USA, 2017);
Prize-winner at the XIII International Competition of Ballet and Choreographers in Moscow (Russia, 2017).

Repertoire:
Spartacus (Spartak A. Khachaturyan)
Benvolio ("Romeo and Juliet" by S. Prokofiev)
The Jester ("The Swan Lake" by P. Tchaikovsky)
Syrym ("Karagoz" G. Zhubanova)
Nutcracker-Prince (The Nutcracker by P. Tchaikovsky)
Nurali ("The Fountain of Bakhchisarai" by B. Asafyev)
Solor (La Bayadère by L. Minkus)
Quasimodo (Notre Dame de Paris)
Basil (Don Quixote by L. Minkus)
Lesko ("Manon" to the music of J. Massenet)

Alexey graduated from the Perm State Choreographic School in 1985 (class of V.N. Tolstukhin).

After that he entered the Gorky Opera and Ballet Theater named after Alexander Pushkin. He danced all the solo ballet repertoire of the theater.
He was invited to Leningrad, to the International Foundation of Leonid Yakobson - the Maly Ballet of the Mariinsky Theatre. There Alexey danced leading parts in classical ballets and solo parts of the concert repertoire of the troupe led by O.M. Vinogradov.

In the late 90's he entered the Academy of Russian Ballet named after A.Ya.Vaganova at the Pedagogical Faculty (class of V.V. Rumyantseva). Throughout the training he taught in classes and rehearsed parts for concerts.

After graduating from the Academy he worked as a choreographer at the SABT Theatre and the Academy of the theatre in South Africa. Upon his return to Russia, he began teaching at the ARB in the Department of Classical and Duet-Classical Dance.

PARTIES: Pas de Trois (Swan Lake), Spartacus, Crassus (Spartacus), Albert (Giselle), Harlequin (Harlequinade).

Graduate at Royal Swedish Ballet School
Awarded with numerous international prizes

Evgeniya Victory Gonzalez was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. In 2015 she completed her education at the Royal Swedish Ballet School. During her time in Stockholm, she has appeared several times in roles at the Royal Swedish Opera.

From 2015 to 2018 she was a dancer at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg.

Since April 2018 she is a member of the ensemble of the Bavarian State Opera as Corps de Ballet Dancer.

Awards:
First prize in the international competition "Jeune Ballet Mediterranean" in Grasse 2014
Third prize at "The Nordic Baltic Ballet Competition" in Sweden 2014

Due to her spectacular curriculum and teaching experience Polina is the best representative of professional ballet environment to transmit Character Dance.

Polina is also a tutor and lecturer in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg, as well as character dance soloist of the Mariinsky Theatre, considered one of the leading ballet theaters.

Her work in our intensiveы marked a turning point in our students. This discipline is vital and crucial for a ballet artist. It has its origin and development in Russia but in Europe unfortunately there are not many well formed specialists. Dance character usually marks a fundamental difference between one dancer and another, and can even decide their fate.

During the Russian Masters courses Polina teaches Character Dance to all professional groups.

Some notes about her professional activity:
Polina was born in St. Petersburg. In 1994 she graduated from the Vaganova Academy in the class of NATALIA DUDINSKAYA y ALISA STROGOYA, prominent legends in the history of ballet.

More information on Vaganova Academy website.

One of the most outstanding European artists and choreographers, Denis Untila, will be one of the invited artistsfor the Stars Gala.

Denis Untila began his dance career in his homeland, Moldova, and completed his training by graduating from the Vienna Conservatory. He joined the Ballet Kiel in 2001 under the direction of Mario Schröder as a soloist. He performed as a guest dancer in Schröder’s choreography “The Wall” in Essen in 2004. Further guest appearances have taken him to the Moldovan National Opera, and to Salzau, France and Italy (“Europe Dance”), then to the ballet company of the Vienna State Opera, where he performed in “The Nutcracker” and as Oscar in Vladimir Malakhov’s ballet “A Masked Ball”.

Since the autumn of 2006 Denis has been a member of the Aalto Ballet Essen, firstly as a group dancer with solo obligations and then from 2009 as a soloist with group commitments. On the Aalto stage he has danced solo roles as Dmitri (“The Brothers Karamazov“), Valerio (“Leonce and Lena”), Blue Bird (“Sleeping Beauty”), Bécaud (“La vie en rose”), Lillas Pastia (“Carmen/Boléro”), Moritz (“Max and Moritz), as well as further soloist roles in “Homage to Queen” and “Irish Soul”. He has also choreographed “The Soldier’s Tale” (Family Concert), “Game” (“PTAH”) and together with Michelle Yamamoto, “Alice” (“PTAH II”), "Jo“ and "Passacaglia“ ("PTAH III“). In the 2012/2013 season he choreographed his first full-length ballet “Othello” for the Aalto Theatre. Denis Untila is the winner of the Aalto Stage Prize for young artists 2012. After successfully creating „Vibrations“ for Essener Philharmonie, he presents a new choreography in 2018: „Moving Colours“, together with Armen Hakobyan.

Maria Khoreva is one of the greatest promises of the ballet world in many years. Graduated in 2018 at the Vaganova Academy with the class of the famous professor Lyudmila Kovaleva, Khoreva joined the Mariinsky Ballet Theatre that same year.

In October 2018, she danced the lead role in Paquita, something extremely unusual for such a recent graduate, and at the end of the month she was promoted from Dance Corps to First Soloist, a rank just one step below the main dancer.


More information is on the website of the Mariinsky theatre.

Born in Vladivostok, he studied at the Dnepropetrovsk Ballet School in Ukraine and later at the Belarus State Ballet School in Minsk, graduating in 2006. While still a student, Vasiliev danced Basilio in Don Quixote and Ali in Le Corsaire with the Belarus National Ballet. In 2006, he was invited to join the Bolshoi Ballet as a soloist, making his debut with the Company, at the age of 17, as Basilio in Don Quixote. He was promoted to principal dancer in 2010.

In 2011, he joined the Mikhailovsky Ballet as a principal dancer. Vasiliev’s repertoire with the Mikhailovsky includes principal roles in Don Quixote, Giselle, ou Les Wilis, The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, La Fille mal gardée, Swan Lake, La Bayadère, Laurencia, La Sylphide, The Flames of Paris, Le Corsaire, Spartacus, and his own ballets.

In 2012–2013, Ivan Vasiliev was a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. In 2015, he made his debut as a choreographer with his Ballet no. 1. In 2016, he staged the one-act ballets Morphine, Blind Affair, and Bolero and the full-length ballet A Christmas Carol which are included in the repertoire of the Mikhailovsky Theatre. In May 2016, Vasiliev’s ballet Love is All Around premiered at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and in February 2017 – at the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

He has been recognized for his artistic excellence at the international ballet competitions in Varna, Moscow, and Perm. He is also the winner of the Triumph Youth Prize, British Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards, and the Benois de la Danse Award. In 2014, he was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Russia.

Alexander Omar graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 2004 and the same year he joined the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company.

His repertoire included the roles of Tybalt (Romeo and Juliet, chor. by Nikolay Boyarchikov; chor. by Oleg Vinogradov), Spartacus, Crix and centurions (Spartacus, chor. by George Kovtun), Moor’s Friend (The Moor’s Pavane, chor. by Jose Limon), Gringoire (Esmeralda), solo in the Indian dance (La Bayadère), the role of Fairy Carabosse (The Sleeping Beauty, rev. by Nikolay Boyarchikov), Mr Drosselmeyer, Abdurrahman and solo role in panaderos (Raymonda), Rose waltz and Spanish dance (The Nutcracker, chor. by Nikolay Boyarchikov), Ali and Isaac Lanquedem (Le Corsaire, rev. by Farukh Ruzimatov).

Xander was born in England, and studied at there at the Royal Ballet School. After the School he joined The Royal Ballet Company, in August 2005. Here Xander's repertoire included: 'The Sleeping Beauty' (Lilac Fairy Cavalier), 'The Nutcracker' (Arabian Dance, Waltz of the Flowers), 'Swan Lake' (Cadets, Mazurka), 'La Fille Mal Gardee' (Colas' Friends), 'Les Patineurs' (Brown Boys), McGregor's 'Dido and Aeneas' and Fenton's 'Song Without Words' and 'Seacastles'. Xander created roles in Wheeldon's 'DGV: danse a grand vitesse', Tuckett's 'The Seven Deadly Sins' and Fenton's 'Monument'. He also choreographed for The Royal Ballet's 'Draftworks' program.

In 2009, Xander was invited to join The Mariinsky Ballet by its ballet director Yuri Fateyev and joined the company in January 2010 aged 23 as its first and only British dancer. His repertoire includes: Prince Siegfried (Swan Lake), Count Albrecht (Giselle), Prince Desiré (The Sleeping Beauty), Romeo (Romeo & Juliet), The Nutcracker Prince (The Nutcracker ch. Vainonen), Vronsky (Anna Karenina ch. Ratmansky), Jean de Brienne (Raymonda), Male Principal (Le Parc), Vaslav (The Fountain of Bakhchiserai), Andrés (Paquita), The Golden Slave (Scheherazade), The Poet (Chopiniana/Les Sylphides), John the Baptist (Salome ch. Faski), Ashton's Sylvia (Aminta) and Marguerite & Armand (Armand), Balanchine ballets including Apollo, Jewels (Emeralds & Diamonds), Serenade (Waltz, Elegy) and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Demetrius), Hans Van Manen's 'Adagio Hammerklavier' & 'Variations For Two Couples', Millepied's 'Without' & 'La nuit s'achève' and McGregor's 'Infra'. His repertoire as a guest artist also includes Gauthier's 'Ballet 101', 'Le Spectre de la Rose', and Ashton's 'The Dream' (Oberon).

Xander has toured with the Mariinsky Ballet to Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Oman, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, the UK, and the USA, and has been a guest artist with English National Ballet, The Kremlin Ballet, The Ballet Company of the Opera National Bucharest, The Stanislavsky Ballet and has also performed with 'Roberto Bolle and Friends'.

Xander was the recipient of the Taglioni Award in the category “Best Young Male Dancer” (Berlin, 2014), the recipient of the Léonide Massine Prize in the category “Emerging Talent on the International Scene" (Positano, Italy, 2014) and won the UK Critics' Circle National Dance Awards 'Outstanding Male Performance (Classical)' category for 'Apollo' 2014.

Dancer and teacher with extensive experience.

Olga graduated Perm Professional Ballet School, Russia in 1993.

After that she immediately joined The Opera and Ballet Theatre of Perm as a dancer, ascending to the category of soloist. With the company Pavlova danced the great ballets of the classical repertoire.

To pursue her teaching career, graduated Bolshoi Theatre Academy as a Classical Dance teacher.

Finally, she moved to Spain to focus fully on her pedagogical role, teaching at the Artis Reus School and all RMB programs.

Born in Moscow. In 2006, she graduated from the Moscow Ballet Academy, and joined the Bolshoi Ballet Company. She rehearsed with Tatiana Golikova. Now she is rehearsing with Nina Semizorova.

In repertoire:

• Phrygia, sweetheart to Spartacus (Grigorovich’s Spartacus);
• Anastasia (Grigorovich’s Ivan the Terrible);
• Myrtha, the Queen of Wilis (Vladimir Vasiliev’s Giselle);
• Giselle (Grigorovich’s Giselle);
• Olga (John Cranko’s Onegin);
• Princess Shireen (Grigorovich’s A Legend of Love);
• Sylphide (Johan Kobborg’s La Sylphide);
• Bella (Yuri Possokhov’s A Hero of Our Time);
• Marie (Grigorovich’s Nutcracker)
  

And many others

More information on the page of the Bolshoi theatre.

Mikhail Sivakov graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1998, in the class of Konstantin Shatilov, and the same year he joined the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

He performed the roles of James (La Sylphide), Ahmet and Ali (Le Corsaire, rev. by Pyotr Gusev), Phoebus (Esmeralda), Solor (La Bayadère), Jean de Brien (Raymonda), Blue Bird and Fleur de Pois’s Cavalier (The Sleeping Beauty), Basilio and Espada (Don Quixote), Mikado (Princess of the Moon, or The Tale of Taketori, chor. by Nikolay Boyarchikov), Spartacus (Spartacus, chor. by Georgy Kovtun), Rose Waltz (The Nutcracker).
Now his repertoire includes roles in Swan Lake, Giselle, ou Les Wilis, The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, Laurencia, Cipollino, Without Words, Nunc Dimittis.

“A tall, and with noble elongated lines, she perfectly embodies the modern type of the Petersburg ballerina - elegant and aristocratic.” - Ballet Magazine.

Sofia Gumerova graduated from the Russian Ballet Academy in 1995. And from the same year, she entered the troupe and to 2016 she has been the first soloist of the Mariinsky Theater.

In 2010 Sofia received the title of honored Artist of Russia.

Sofia’s repertoire includes more than 30 roles, including the beloved Giselle (Giselle, Manna, Mirta), Swan Lake (Odette - Odile, large swans), La Bayadere (Nikia, Grand pas, trio of shadows), Corsair (Medora, a trio of odalisks), La Sylphide (La Sylphide), the Sleeping Beauty (Princess Aurora, Candide Fairy, Princess Florine), Raymonda (Raymonda, Clemance, Grand pas), Don Quixote (Kitri, Street Dancer, Queen of the Dryads), Michel Fokine’s ballets The Dying Swan, Chopiniana, and many many others!

Repertoire also includes:
Ondine (Queen of the Sea); choreography by Pierre Lacotte,
Reverence; choreography by David Dawson,
the duet from the ballet The Ghostly Ball; choreography by Dmitry Bryantsev,
Goya-Divertissement (Duchess of Alba); choreography by José Antonio,
Like an Old Organ Grinder; choreography by Alexei Miroshnichenko,
Pas de quatre (Carlotta Grisi, Lucile Grahn); choreography by Anton Dolin
and Euphoria; choreography by Nikita Dmitrievsky.

Sofia Gumerova works as a pedagogue at the Vaganova Academy and a teacher at the Conservatory of Rimsky Korsakov at the department of directing ballet. In addition, she gives master classes all over the world.

In 1986 he graduated from the Saratov Choreographic Conservatory in the class of GENNADY ALBERT, who was a direct disciple with Rudolf Nureyev, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Alla Osipenko of mythical Alexander Pushkin, considered a legend among teachers of classical ballet..

During his soloist career he worked at the Theatre of Boris Eifman, Gorki Theatre, Theatre K.Tachkin and others. He participated in productions of famous Mariinsky Theatre choreographers, among others worked with Ignatev and Ganibalova.

Graduated with honors from the Vaganova Academy as a teacher in the class of LUDMILA SAFRONOVA, who confirmed that it is one of the great hopes and best Vaganova methodists.

She has the historical privilege to be the daughter and disciple of the great Tatiana Sevastianova. Graduated with honors at the Vaganova Academy, as an artist and teacher in ballet class of Udalenkova.

After her soloist career in various ballet companies, she became supervisor and teacher of great Russian ballet companies, including the prestigious Ballet L. Yakobson.

She was a guest soloist in the ballet company of the Leningrad Conservatory named after Rimskiy-Korsakov.

In 1993 she was invited to the ballet company of Prague as soloist.
From 1995-1998 she was a soloist of the State Theatre in Brno.
Since 1998, soloist in the company .L.Yakobson.
She participated in tours around Russia and the world.

Leonid Sarafanov is one of the biggest stars of the moment. Globally acclaimed by the public and critics.

He has received numerous international awards of first level such as the BENOIS AWARD (known as the Oscar of Dance), First Prize in the Moscow International Competition, First Prize in the International Competition of Paris, prize in Rudolf Nureyev International Competition in Budapest and many others.

In 2000 Leonid graduated from Kiev State Academy of Choreography and entered as a soloist the National Ballet of Ukraine. After that he began his work at the Mikhailovsky Theater where he is currently the principal star.

In 1996 she graduated from Vaganova Academy of Ballet as a student of legendary Inna Zubkovskaya. She has been working since then with the Mariinsky Ballet where she dances soloist roles.

In addition, she graduated as teacher from the Vaganova Academy and the last four years she has been giving lessons in this prestigious school to the intermediate levels.

She has performed, among other soloist roles, the Sylph from La Sylphide by August Bournonville, Aurora and Princess Florine from The Sleeping Beauty by Marius Petipa and more neoclassical choreographies such as The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude by William Forsythe.

The Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta praises her versatility by saying that “her feet can command any tempi, emotions and styles”.
In our courses Ms. Ivanova will teach the intermediate levels. We are honored and lucky to be able to work with such a talented and professional teacher.

In 2011 Ivan Zaytsev joined the ballet company of one of the best theatres of the world - Mikhailovsk, where very soon he became a Principal dancer, his repertoire includes solo and principal roles in La Sylphide, Le Corsaire, Cipollino, Don Quixote, Laurencia, The Flames of Paris, La Fille mal gardée, and Class Concert
as well as productions of Nacho Duato The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Multiplicity, Forms of Silence and Emptiness, Prelude, Invisible, and White Darkness. Ivan has toured with the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company to Japan, USA, Germany etc.

He start his career from Krasnodar Ballet School in 1997 and while studying he was training at the Yury Grigorovich Ballet Theatre where he performed roles in the ballets Spartacus, Romeo and Juliet, Raymonda, The Golden Age, The Nutcracker, and Cipollino.
In 2002 Ivan graduated from Krasnodar Ballet School and entered the Department of Choreography at St. Petersburg State University for Culture and Arts.
After graduation from the University in 2007, he joined Leonid Jacobson Ballet Theatre in St. Petersburg, where he danced Romeo (Romeo and Juliet), Jose (Passion for Carmen), Siegfried (Swan Lake), Prince (The Nutcracker), Albrecht (Giselle), and Rodin (The Kiss).

After participation in the 11th Moscow International Ballet Competition in 2009, he was invited to join Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre. Ivan´s parties in Eifman Ballet were:

• Basil in Don Quixote, 
• Onegin in Onegin, 
• Vronsky in Anna Karenina, 
• Ekaterina´s son in Russian Hamlet, 
• The Prince,
  
• The Young man & The Joker in Chaikovsky.
  

More information on the website of the Mikhailovsky theatre.

• FIRST PRIZE WINNER (2012) “THE BEST EDUCATIONAL WORK OF ALL RUSSIA”.
• AWARD WINNER “TEACHING SKILLS TO HIGH 2008″. International Festival Competition “Coast of Hope” (St.Petersburg, Russia).
• WINNING PRIZE “FOR HIGH PROFESSIONALISM” (OF ALL RUSSIA), festival of competition “Frost 2009″ (Kazan)
• CERTIFICATE OF MERIT OF THE MINISTRY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AND THE RUSSIAN UNION OF WORKERS OF CULTURE.
• ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AT THE HIGH SCHOOL OF DANCE Dyagilev in Yekaterinburg.
• AND MANY MORE AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS AS THEIR OWN BOTH STUDENTS …
  

After graduating in 1978 from the Academy of Perm worked in theaters under the command of acknowledged masters of choreography, as I.Belsky, N.Kasatkina, V.Vasilyev and Jerry Bevington (USA), George Aleksidze ( Georgia), Armando Jorge (Portugal), Alla Sigalova (Russia), Lucas Vedzhetti (Italy), Pal Frenak (France), Karine Saporta (France)., as Coryphée danced all classic and contemporary repertory of this time.

A part of his long and brilliant career as a dancer she graduated in 1993 at the Faculty of Art History.

Fireproof, meticulous perfectionist and, since 2002 and currently continues to refine its qualities of teaching at the Vaganova Academy.

Since 1996 she started her career of ballet teacher, highlighting both that soon became ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AT THE HIGH SCHOOL OF DANCE Dyagilev in Yekaterinburg.

She has composed many choreographic pieces that have gained international recognition.
Winner of numerous international awards:
* Festival “Bravo!” Monpellier (France) as “” Best Actress of the Year ”
N.Pavlikova your teaching career highlights:
2008 – Winner of “Regarding high pedagogical skills” International Festival Competition “Coast of Hope” (St.Petersburg, Russia) award.
2009 – Winner of “For high professionalism” All-Russian festival of “Frost 2009″ (Kazan) competition; Certificate of Merit from the Ministry of the Russian Federation and the Russian Union of cultural workers;
2011 – Diploma “For the preservation of the classical heritage” International Festival Competition “Dance Exclusive ‘; First prize for the teaching of international competition “festivapya (Prague) – dance festival”;
2011 – Diploma of II Degree of regional competition on the program and educational activities to ensure art schools for children;
2012 – Winner of “Best choreography” International Competition of classical dance “invites Nutcracker”; AWARD WINNER “To the best pedagogical work” of all Russia, choreography contest “falling stars”.

The students of Natalia Pavlikova successfully continue their studies in Perm and Vaganova Academy plus many other prestigious institutions.
Students in NAPavlikovoy he was awarded the following diplomas and certificates:
2008 – Grand Prize at the International Festival “Costa de la Esperanza” (St. Petersburg); Grade I winners IV International Festival-Contest “Amistad. The sun. The world” (Bulgaria) .; winners of the regional contest “Ural Stars”;
2009 – Winner of the First Grade All-Russian Festival-Contest “Jack Frost” (Kazan);
2011 – The winners of the I and II degree of the International Festival Competition “Dance Exclusive‘;
2012 – Winner of II degree of the International Competition of classical dance “invites Nutcracker”; Grand Prix of the All-Russian Contest of choreography “falling stars”;
2013 – Winner of Title III of the regional festival-contest “Spring Fantasy”.

Russian Masters, Where everything is possible.

The current Deputy Artistic Director and Manager of Ballett Dormtund and NRW Junior, Slava Tutukin, has been one of the best contemporary representatives of the Vaganova expression in all its glory. Tutukin has been a real star of classical, neoclassical and contemporary ballet and now he manages some of the most impotant ballet companies of Germany.

We are glad of having this special guest, that will give a talk about Professional Orientation and will be one of the invited directors for Ballet Auditions.

Splashes of his CV:

• Considered one of the most talented young dances of present century, has worked as a soloist in the best ballet companies in the world (including The Mikhailovsky Theatre), even making the leap to the big screen in the tv most important Germany;
• He has given numerous master classes throughout the world with overwhelming success.
• Slava won the prestigious “Farukh Ruzimatov” prize in 2007;
• and Rieti prize in Italy in 2009.

Winner of “The Best Teacher of Complementary Education" award by the city hall of St. Petersburg (2012)
Winner of the Educational Achievements Competition (2012)

Svetlana Efimova was born in Leningrad in 1966. She graduated from the Vaganova Academy (Professor A. I. Trofimova, 1984).
During 1990 - 1992 she was a soloist of the theatre "Russky Ballet" in St. Petersburg. Then for a year she developed her career as a ballet dancer at the Symphony State Capella of St. Petersburg under the leadership of Georgy Aleksidze. Until 1998 Svetlana danced in the Maliy Ballet of the Mariinsky Theatre and then until 2008 she worked at the Ballet Theatre of Konstantin Tachkin in St. Petersburg.

The repertoire of Svetlana includes among others: ballet "Paquita" (Grand Pas, variation), "Les Sylphides" (Eleventh Waltz), "Fairy Doll" (Pas de trois), "Giselle" (Vilisa, friends), "The Nutcracker" (Waltz of the snowflakes, pink Waltz), "Swan lake" (Pas de trois, the Hungarian dance, little swans), "La Vivandière" (Pas de six). As a performer she worked with choreographers: Oleg Vinogradov, Giorgy Aleksidse, Dmitry Bryantsev.

She graduated from the Faculty of Education of the Vaganova Ballet Academy (2010). Since 2008 Svetlana has been a teacher and tutor of the School of Classical Ballet where she has acquired an extensive pedagogical practice as well as vast experience in teaching methods.

Anton Waldbauer was born in a small city in Russia and began his studies at the Gymnasium of Arts.

After participating in the prestigious competition Prize de Lausanne, he received an invitation to continue his studies at the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet. He graduated from the Academy with honors in 2003.
Then he entered the Department of Modern Dance at the Higher School of Arts (Frankfurt, Germany) and at the end, of course, joined the European Ballet (London).

In 2004, he accepted an invitation to the role of lead soloist in the State Opera and Ballet Theater of the Komi Republic (Russian Federation).
Where for two seasons he has been playing the leading parts in the classical repertoire and participating in new Theater productions.

In 2006, she took part in the 10th Anniversary Ballet Competition in Moscow, where she won a diploma for the best choreography, with his debut work “6 Seconds”. In the same year, he returned to Europe and began to dance with the prestigious Netherlands Dance Theater. Where Anton became the first Russian artist in the 50th history of the troupe.

In 2009 he joined the Kullberg Ballet (Stockholm, Sweden).
And in 2010 he returned to Holland to the main troupe of the Dutch Dance Theater. Where, over the years of his work, Anton had collaborated with many prestigious choreographers, such as Jiri Kylian, Ohad Naharin, Paul Lightfoot, Johan Inger, Wim Vandekeybus, Crystal Pite, Sharon Eyal, Sasha Waltz, and many others.

In 2013, at the invitation of Johannes Oman, he became the first soloist and the main artist in all-new productions of the Royal Swedish Ballet.
In 2014, he acted as a guest artist at the Nobel Gala.
In 2016, he received the Pina Bausch Prize and collaborates with Familie Flöz, a troupe of physical theater from Berlin.

Since 2012, Anton has been actively engaged in teaching modern dance, improvisation, and choreography. He is currently a guest teacher at many prestigious centers/schools throughout Europe.
Anton is also actively engaged in his productions and his choreographic works were presented in the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Russia, France, and Spain. His first short film, 33 Questions, was presented at the Stockholm Dance Festival.

A brilliant talented dancer and ballet teacher.

Her career as a principal dancer began in 1981 when after graduating from prestigious Perm Ballet College she became an excellent prima. She has received worldwide recognition acting in the best scenes of more than 30 countries.

Following her professional career she was introduced in the education sector and very successfully Tatiana is imparting ballet classes specializing in Elementary levels.

Gentian Doda was a dancer at The Akhundov Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, Teatro Arena di Verona, Teatro Regio di Parma, Compañía de Victor Ullate's Ballet Company and The Spanish National Dance Company directed by Nacho Duato.

From 2005 until 2010 with The Spanish National Dance Company directed by Nacho Duato he was creating every year a new premier for CND 2 and for the main company CND.

In 2011, Gentian received the First Choreography Awards in the Copenhagen and Hanover contest, as well as in Rotterdam International Duet Choreography Competition by the Scapino Ballet.

Since then, he has created world premieres for New York Choreographic Institute, Scapino Ballet, National Dance School in Santo Domingo and Ballet Nuremberg, State Theatre at Gärtnerplat, The Teatro Massimo in Palermo. In August 2014, he was offered the position of First Ballet Master of the The Berlin State Ballet where he was working for four years.

In the season 2017/18 he premiered two new shows, “This Silence” at the Juilliard School in New York, and “was bleibt” with Staatsballett Berlin at Komische Oper.

In the last season (2020) he premiered at Mikhailovsky theatre, St. Petersburg, a magnificent ballet “La Bayadere” as an assistant of Nacho Duato.

He is currently working in Berlin in new independent productions and has been commissioned a new creation with the Greek National Ballet.

Ballet dancer and teacher.

Born in Kiev. From the age of 5, she began to study at the Deryugins' Gymnastics School in Kiev.

At the age of 10 she entered the Kiev Choreography School. Danced solo parts in the ballet "Theme with Variations" staged by V. Kovtun, The great classical pas from the ballet "Paquita", Pas de six from the ballet "Markitanka", Naina from the opera "Ruslan and Lyudmila", "Revived frescoes" from the ballet " Humpbacked Horse ", pas de deux from the ballet" The Venetian Carnival "," Classical pas de deux "by D. Balanchine.

After graduation, she came to St. Petersburg. From 1995 to 2010 she worked at the Academic Ballet Theater of Boris Eifman.

She took part in all theater performances (Russian Hamlet, Giselle (girlfriends), Pinocchio (Fox Alice, Red Giselle, Tchaikovsky, Requiem, My Jerusalem, Don Juan And Moliere "," Karamazov "," Seagull "," Anna Karenina "...).

In 2010-2011 she worked at the Helen Prokopieva DanceTheater "The Fortress Ballet". Danced in the performances "Attempt of tenderness", "Wait for an Angel", "Singing in July".

Marianna participated in the theatrical project "Lessons of Tango and Love" in which the People's Artist of the USSR Alisa Freindlikh, Varvara Vladimirova and the Dance Theater "The Fortress Ballet" took part. Producer and choreographer of the play is Elena Prokopyeva.

She graduated from the Russian Ballet Academy of  Vaganova specializing in "Pedagogy of the ballet".

She taught classical dance at the St. Petersburg Music Hall Theater. From 2011 to the present she is a teacher of choreography at the Academy of figure skating. She also teaches classical dance lessons at the DAR Dance Academy.

Education

Graduated as Bachelor of arts in Classical Ballet 1990 - 1998 Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet , Saint Petersburg, Russia
Graduated summa cum laude as a Teacher in February of 2020 Moscow State Academy of Choreography, Russia (commonly known as Bolshoi Ballet Academy)

Teaching Experience

Since 2019 - freelance ballet teacher in The Netherlands, specialized in teaching the Vaganova method of classical Ballet

Ballet Mistress 2017 - 2018
Ballet de Catalunya - Barcelona, Spain
● Daily classes and rehearsals
● Presented Grand Pas from "Paquita" (version of Mariinsky theater) and Gala Concert of classical repertoire, as a Premier presentation of the “Ballet de Catalunya”
● Collaborated as assistant choreographer in the creation of "The Nutcracker"

Invited Ballet Teacher July 2018
Festival " +Danza " - San Salvador, El Salvador.
● Guest teacher - Master classes of ballet, Pas de deux and classical repertoire - advanced level.
● Integrating classical repertoire in the Gala concert of the Festival

Ballet Teacher 2014 - 2019
Dansa Spin - Barcelona, Spain
● Classical ballet and repertoire - advanced, intermediate and beginners level.
● Choreographed and directed ballet performances for national and international competitions and annual shows.
In May of 2016 her students won of the first prize, with her choreography "Nocturne" at the national dance competition "Anaprode", Tarragona, Spain.
In April 2019 - second price for Ksenia,s choreography “Rolling in the Deep” at the international competition “Dance World Cup”, Burgos, Spain.

Ballet Teacher 2014 - till present time Russian Masters Ballet Camp Alicante, Spain
● Classical ballet and physical strength - intermediate and beginners level.

Dancing Experience

1998 - 2005 " St.Petersburg State Academic Ballet Theater of Leonid Jacobson" , Russia, performing classical repertoire as "The Swan Lake", "Giselle", "The Nutcracker", "Spartacus", "Carmen" and "The Miniatures of Leonid Jacobson".

2003 - Festival of modern Choreography "White Nights", dedicated to Celebration of 300 years of Saint Petersburg.
Received a People's Choice Award for dancing neoclassical choreography «Alone», created by russian neoclassical choreographer L. Ivanova.

2005 - 2006 "Universal Ballet Company" Seoul, South Korea
Performing in "Don Quixote", "Giselle" and "The Nutcracker".

2006 - 2013 WEP Productions MSC, Italy - soloist of international ballet.

Languages

English: Fluent speaking and writing
Spanish: Fluent speaking and writing
Russian: Native Language
Dutch : Basic speaking

Elena Kukseva is a highly respected ballet master who holds a teaching certificate from the prestigious Vaganova Ballet Academy, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Mrs. Kukseva received her early professional ballet training and experience from the Perm State Choreographic Academy. In 1986, upon graduation from Perm she accepted a position in the Nijzgorod Ballet Theatre where she had the opportunity to demonstrate her technical brilliance and theatrical mastery by performing many leading roles in classical ballets, such as "Gisele", Spanish Dance in "Swan Lake", Gypsy in "Don Quichote". In 1991 she transitioned to the Small Mariinsky Ballet Company in Leningrad to dance under the direction of Leonid Yakobson.

Mrs. Kukseva toured nationally and internationally performing such recognizable works as 9 Tangos and Bach, Wedding Cortege, Arlekinade, Roden's Sculptures and Pas-de-trois Rossini.

She currently lives and works in St. Petersburg, Russia. Since 2014, Elena is a regular guest of Russian Masters Ballet, teaching at holiday Workshops and Winter Intensives, helping RMB students achieve new heights in ballet training, in line with world requirements.

One of the most outstanding European artists and choreographers, Denis Untila, will give classes of Contemporary Dance to the students of RMBC 2018. A unique opportunity to learn from the best.

Denis Untila began his dance career in his homeland, Moldova, and completed his training by graduating from the Vienna Conservatory. He joined the Ballet Kiel in 2001 under the direction of Mario Schröder as a soloist. He performed as a guest dancer in Schröder’s choreography “The Wall” in Essen in 2004. Further guest appearances have taken him to the Moldovan National Opera, and to Salzau, France and Italy (“Europe Dance”), then to the ballet company of the Vienna State Opera, where he performed in “The Nutcracker” and as Oscar in Vladimir Malakhov’s ballet “A Masked Ball”.

Since the autumn of 2006 Denis has been a member of the Aalto Ballet Essen, firstly as a group dancer with solo obligations and then from 2009 as a soloist with group commitments. On the Aalto stage he has danced solo roles as Dmitri (“The Brothers Karamazov“), Valerio (“Leonce and Lena”), Blue Bird (“Sleeping Beauty”), Bécaud (“La vie en rose”), Lillas Pastia (“Carmen/Boléro”), Moritz (“Max and Moritz), as well as further soloist roles in “Homage to Queen” and “Irish Soul”. He has also choreographed “The Soldier’s Tale” (Family Concert), “Game” (“PTAH”) and together with Michelle Yamamoto, “Alice” (“PTAH II”), "Jo“ and "Passacaglia“ ("PTAH III“). In the 2012/2013 season he choreographed his first full-length ballet “Othello” for the Aalto Theatre. Denis Untila is the winner of the Aalto Stage Prize for young artists 2012. After successfully creating „Vibrations“ for Essener Philharmonie, he presents a new choreography in 2018: „Moving Colours“, together with Armen Hakobyan.

Born in Leningrad. Graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1998.

Joined the Mariinsky Ballet сompany the same year. Her repertoire included La Sylphide (Nancy, Sylphs), La Bayadère (Manu, Bayadères, Trio of Shades), The Sleeping Beauty (Carefree Fairy, Playfulness Fairy, Little Red Riding Hood), Swan Lake (Cygnets, Neapolitan Dance), Raymonda (Grand pas, variation), Le Corsaire (Trio of Odalisques), Don Quixote (Amour) etc.

Prize-winner at the International Vaganova-Prix Competition (2nd prize, St Petersburg, 1998).

Since 2019 she has been a coach with the Mariinsky Ballet, working with Vaganova Ballet Academy students engaged in the theatre’s performances.

Anna was born in Siberia. She started to dance at 5 years old and graduated from the Krasnoyarsk Ballet School in Siberia.

Anna started her career with the Siberian State ballet (Krasnoyarsk, Russia) as a soloist. Later she became a guest-principal dancer with Mikhailovsky theatre (Saint-Petersburg) and Tatarstan state ballet (Kazan). Since 2012 Anna joined Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre ballet company as a principal dancer. During this period of dancing with Russian ballet companies her repertoire was very diverse.

At 2015 she joined Dutch National Ballet as a principal dancer. Since that moment Anna became an international guest-principal dancer .She worked with Teatro Colon (Argentina) for “La Bayadere” by Natalia Makarova,  with Semperoper Dresden ballet for “Manon” by K.McMillan. Currently Anna is working with Staatsballet Berlin as a guest.

Anna’s repertoire is very diverse. During her carrier she dances principal roles in almost all well known classical ballets as “Nutcracker” , “Sleeping beauty”, “La Bayadere”, ”Gizelle”, “Copelia”, “La fille mal gardee”, “La Sylphide” , “Snow Maiden”, “Don Quihote”, ”Romeo and Juliette”, “Swan lake” and others. Her repertoire also includes main roles in lots of neoclassical ballets by such a famous choreographers as K.McMillan, J.Robbins, J.Kranko, G.Balanchine, A.Ratmansky, C.Wheeldon , Hans van Manen ,D.Dawson,Y.Grigorovich, Rudi van Danzig ,Ted Brandsen and others. In a different time her partners on stage were Sergei Polunin, Ivan Vasiliev, Leonid Sarafanov and others.

In a studio legendary Natalia Makarova, Guillaume Graffine, Alexey Ratmansky, Michael Messerer , Patricia Neary, Patricia Ruann , Karl Burnett, Olga Evreinoff, Yukari Saito,Yannick Boquen ,Larissa Lezhnina, Rachel Beaujean and many others helped her to improve her skills of dance. At 2008 and 2010 she won gold medals on International ballets competitions in Krasnoyarsk and Perm. She is a winner of «Dance Open 2018- miss virtuosity» prize in Sankt Petersburg.

Currently Anna is working successfully with Dutch National ballet as a principal dancer and participates lots of  Ballet Galas around the world.

The merits of this living legend of ballet say it all: Honoured Artist of Russia, People's Artist of Russia as well as Winner of the International Ballet Competition of Varna and the International Ballet Competition of Moscow, among many others.

Kunakova was the principal dancer of the Kirov Ballet (now Mariinsky) for almost 20 years. She has been a teacher at the Vaganova Academy and has taught all over the world. She is currently one of the head teachers and répétiteurs of the Mariinsky Theater, where she trains the principal stars of the company. At the same time, since 2001 she works with the Ballet Konstantin Tachkin of Saint Petersburg.

Asiya Lukmanova graduated in Rudolf Nureyev Choreographic School in 2002. Graduated summa cum laude in Vaganova Ballet Academy.

She became a star ballet dancer in the Saint-Petersburg Ballet Theatre K.Tachkin.

At the age of 17 years old she danced her first soloist part: Kitri, in “Don Quijote”. At 25 years old she became a Promotor in one of the biggest music festivals of Spain nowadays, with more than 30,000 attendants: Electromar festival.

Nowadays she drives her best ever proyect: Russian Masters Ballet. She wants to expand all over the globe the best classical ballet traditions and with fair prices to broke limits and help students to improve and become the best.

Russian Masters organisation is glad to introduce the teacher of historical and character dances: Aleksandra Lebedeva. She will be working with us in the next courses and she has been recommended specifically by the Vaganova Academy.

Graduated from the Vaganova Academy of Dance, she has worked since 1997 in the Mariinsky Theatre as a dancer. Since 2018 she is also a student of the pedagogical faculty of the Vaganova Academy. She also conducts rehearsals of the students from the Academy sometimes.

She has a lot of experience working the historical repertoire on the Mariinsky Theatre stage. She performed as a soloist in “The Fountain of Bakhchisarai'' (Krakowiak), "The Swan Lake'' (mazurka) “Don Quixote'' (Gipsy), “The Nutcracker'' (Lady) and "Polovtsian dances'' and she has also danced every kind of historical dances such as quadrilles, minuets, sarabandes, polonaises and other kind of dances highly used in classical repertoire.

During the course of historical dance, students will study and get familiar with the following dances from Mariinsky Theatre: the Minuet from “Rigoletto”, the Quadrille from “The Queen of swords” and the Polonaise from “Eugene Onegin”, among other pieces and apart from the theoretical material following the methodology of the Vaganova Academy.

Iliya has been the soloist of the prestigious Eifman Ballet theatre from 2004 to 2011.

From 2011 up to 2014 he has worked as a soloist in the famous Yacobson Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia.

He graduated as an artist and after as a teacher at the Vaganova Academy.
The list of his repertoire is very long and diverse. He danced principal parts in classical ballets as "Swan Lake" and "Giselle" to neoclassical of Boris Eifman.

During Russian Masters Ballet Camps Iliya Osipov gives classes of Acting.

In 1997 Elena graduated from Vaganova Academy (Class of Professor N.Dudinskay).
In 2008, Elena received a diploma in higher education at Vaganova Academy (bachelor of art ballet).

Her awards, like a dancer:
1st prize, Gold medal - Open ballet competition "Arabesque - 2000" in Perm, Russia (2000);
1st Prize, Gold medal - International Ballet Competition in Kazan, Russia (2001).

Elena's career grew rapidly.
1997-2001 she became a ballet soloist in Mikhailovsky Theater;
from 2001 to 2009 - ballet soloist in Mariinsky Theater (St. Petersburg, Russia, tutor in the theater N.Kurgapkina);
from 2009 to 2011 she was a ballet soloist at the Semperoper (Dresden, Germany).

Among her roles: Odette / Odilia (Swan Lake); Masha (The Nutcracker); Gamzatti (La Bayadere); Middle Duet (chor. A.Ratmansky); Puppet Fairy (Puppet Fairy); Kitri (Don Quixote); Giselle (Giselle); Gulnara / Pas de de Medora (Corsair); Aurora / Princess Florina (Sleeping Beauty); La Sylphide (La Sylphide); Pas de deux Tarantella and Solo in Theme and Variations (chor. J. Balanchine); Pas de deux classique de D.Ober; also performed numerous roles in William Forsythe's ballets, etc.

Elena has many years of experience as a tutor and as a teacher. 2013-2014 Elena was a tutor at the Academic Ballet Theater L.Jacobs on and teacher in Boris Eifman Dance Academy (classic dance, work with preparatory groups), from 2016 to 2019 she was a tutor at the Boris Eifman Theater, rehearsed with many troupe dancers, including Maria Abashova. Since 2019 Elena became a teacher at Vaganova Academy (classic dance).

Maria Vikulina will teach Acting in Russian Masters Ballet 2018.

She is currently an actress of the Ekaterinburg Young Spectator Theater.
In 2009 she graduated with honors from the Ural Music College in piano class (teacher Alexandrina Gerlach). She also received a choreographic training at the school of the Ballet-Plus Theater.

In 2013, she graduated with honors from Ekaterinburg State Theater University with a degree in Drama Theater and Cinema Artist (course master Andrey Rusinov, assistant professor of the Acting Department, laureate of the M. Tsarev People's Artist of the USSR award for successful training of the actors).
In 2013 she was admitted to the troupe of the Ekaterinburg Young Spectator Theater. On the stage of this theater in 2005 the creative debut of Maria took place - she played the role of the Beautiful Ballerina in the play "The Steadfast Toy Soldier" (directed by Vyacheslav Kokorin).

The most significant roles are:
The Little Mermaid (the play The Little Mermaid, directed by Roman Theodory), Cinderella (Cinderella performance, director Dmitry Kasimov), Anya Ranevskaya (The Cherry Orchard, directed by Anatoly Proudin), Görlin Kelliger (The Lonely West , director Semyon Serzin), Laura (performance "Glass Menagerie", director Anna Gusarova) and many others.

Maria takes part in various theatrical projects of the city.

On the stage of "House of Actor" she plays in the plays:
"Seagull" (the role of Nina Zarechnaya, director Irina Pavlova),
"Spring waters" (the role of Gemma, directed by Irina Pavlova),
"Per Gynt" (solo performance, director Daniil Andreev).

Maria also takes part in the productions of the Chamber Theater and the Theater of the Word.

Winner of several national and international awards, currently a collaborator in the prestigious Mikhailovsky theater, professional photographer with more than 20 years of experience in the artistic world. Our students will have an exclusive opportunity to be portrayed by this magnificent artist, whose work has been recognized by the most emblematic museums of St. Petersburg and is part of the collection of numerous exhibition halls both in Russia and abroad.

More information about the individual and group sessions as well as the free pack of Russian Masters Ballet at info@russianmatersballet.com

Sergey Shcherbakov, specialist in commercial and art photography, member of the Creative Union of Photographers of Russia.

Featured awards:

• "Photographer of a year, 2005" (Reportage, series);
• Stipendium of International Project "Network Baltic" in graphic - center "Grafikens Huns", Sweden, 2004.
  

The works of Sergey are exposed in the collections of:
State Russian Museum, Saint Petersburg
Museum of the History of the City of St. Petersburg
National Center of Photography "Rosphoto", Saint Petersburg
Graphic-Center "Grafiken Hus", Sweden
and many more.

Participant in more than 15 exhibitions

10 individual exhibitions

Instagram.com/Shcherbakov.foto

Ira Yakovleva is one of the most important ballet photographers in St. Petersburg and her international reputation has led her to work with the greatest ballet stars of the globe. Her training and previous career as a professional dancer bring to her works a point of view of the highest technical and artistic quality that unites with the expressive strength and delicacy of her images.

Yakovleva graduated from the State Choreographic School of Kiev and joined the ballet theatre L. Yakobson of St. Petersburg. She has toured throughout Russia, Europe, America and Asia with this prestigious company. For the past 7 years she has been exclusively dedicated to dance photography, where she has achieved international success and collaborates with dance brands from all around the world including Scena Shop, Susha More, Sonumberone, Balletpapier, Baustelle Berlin, Wezzarium, KeithLink , Dance Wear for all, Zi dancewear, Nina Shterenberg, Katerina Kelberg, Lets go dress or Virtuozo.

Apart from photographing countless ballet stars individually, she is an assiduous collaborator with large institutions in Russia such as the Mariinsky Theater, Eifman Ballet, Eifman Ballet School, Balleroosha, SPB City Guide or Dance Open. As well as in magazines such as: La Personne, Beatrice Magazine, Kadance.

Ira Yakovleva joins Russian Masters as one of the great representatives of dance photography worldwide and it’s a real proud for us to have someone of her stature and thus swelling the number of experts who, in their respective fields, help to make Russian Masters a unique experience of the highest level.

Since 20 years in the world of photography Antonio Gervasi has collaborated as a photographer and assistant with important fashion photographers and stylists and grew up professionally in Milan.

Towards the end of the nineties has decided to start photographing the world and this has led him to travel for almost 15 years, turning the world twice and participating in expeditions to the North Pole and Antarctica collecting a large archive of images, and especially putting him in contact with different cultures giving him the opportunity to learn different languages.

He is Italian but is living in Spain and his work is mainly dedicated to ballet and dance.

Former ballet dancer who has become one of the world's most in-demand ballet photographers. Her work has been exhibited at the St. Petersburg State Museum Theatre and Music, Sheremetev Palace and other prestigious Russian venues.

She began her ballet training at age 3. She performed at the Institute of Culture before moving to St. Petersburg, Russia at age 19.

Her ballet photography has made her hugely popular on Instagram, where she shares images of renowned dancers with more than 200,000 followers.

Ieva Immertreija - ballet studio "Baleta Klase" owner, choreographer, pedagogue, costume designer for operas, theaters and ballets, children's games, theater of operetta and musicals, and owner of the brand "Ieva".

Ieva was a professional dancer, soloist of the dance company "Liesma" for 16 years, studied the pedagogy of classical ballet technique as well as the history of Russian ballet at the Vaganova Academy.

She has the degree of costume designer and technical specialist, of classical ballet pedagogue and choreographer, so she knows everything and from different angles on ballet costumes: as a dancer, as a designer and as a choreographer. Therefore, our students have a chance not only to study how to make headbands by themselves (and it is really important, since it is difficult and expensive to find a unique and original headband), but also have the opportunity to know interesting things about the history of ballet costumes and many other secrets. It is a beautiful opportunity to relax during manual work with a brilliant teacher of ballet fashion.

Margarita Kullik is the tutor of the prestigious and old company of the Mariinsky Theatre, where she stands out as one of the best in the world in her profession.

She graduated in 1981 at the Vaganova Academy with the legendary Natalia Dudinskaia and Irina Trofimova as her teachers. She immediately entered the Mariinsky Ballet, where she quickly rose to the position of a principal star. Kullik premiered numerous roles for this prestigious company such as La Fille Mal Gardée (choreography by Oleg Vinogradov) and Cinderella (choreography by Alexei Ratmanski). As the first dancer she assumed the lead roles in Don Quixote, Cinderella, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, The Sylphide, The Corsair, Romeo and Juliet, among many others, and toured different countries. Among her awards it stands out the prize of the International Ballet Competition of Varna (Bulgaria) in 1983.

Since 2013 Margarita Kullik has been a tutor at the Mariinsky Ballet and her remarkable work is palpable in the excellence of her pupils (such as Renata Shakirova and Kim Kimin), and has elevated her to the top and enshrined as a legend.

During more than 25 years she was the main tutor of one of the most important neoclassical dance theatres, in Saint Petersburg.

She graduated from the Vaganova Academy in 1967. And from this time was the first dancer in the Chamber Ballet directed by Gusev, where she danced leading roles in ballets such as Giselle, Don Quijote, Korsar and others. Since the 70´s she was the first dancer in the most prestigious theaters; She was the big star in“Choreographic Miniatures” of Leonid Yakobson, an excellent and very recognized worldwide choreographer. In most ballet encyclopedias she was considered as one of the most virtuous ballerinas of the XX century. She is a big living legend of ballet, and it´s a real honor to have her in our course.

Since the end of her dance career until today, Tatiana has excelled and left an indelible mark as a mentor and tutor of many professional artists, giving them the stamp of ballet stars.

She has given large number of master classes all over the world: United States , European Union countries, Japan and others.

Among her disciples we can highlight:  Natalia Osipova,Vera Arbuzova, Nina Zmievets, Svetlana Bednenko and other soloists of the big theaters like Eifman Ballet, Mikhailovsky Theatre, Jacobson Ballet Theatre etc.

Worldwide recognized and one of the best representatives of St. Petersburg ballet culture, educated in the best traditions of academic dance. She´s actual and one of the most acclaimed teachers of Vaganova Academy.

Upon graduating with honors, Galina has completed specialization courses in the class of NATALIA DUDINSKAYA AND IRINA TROFIMOVA at Vaganova Academy.

After she worked as first soloist at the Theatre of Choreographic Miniatures of Leonid Jacobson, an exceptional and principal choreographer of Kirov Theatre (now Mariinsky), in his time. With the company Galina danced around the world with great success.

In 1998 she graduated as a classical ballet teacher in Vaganova Ballet Academy. Since then she has acquired an extensive teaching practice and methodical didactic in ballet.

Currently, she teaches ballet in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg, basically on elementary and intermediate levels. Also, Galina gives Stage Practice classes for children in the Mariinsky Theatre.

She has given numerous master classes in Japan, Denmark, Italy and other countries.

More information on: http://vaganovaacademy.ru/academy/structure/kafedri/classica/enikeeva.html

She was born on September 29, 1949 in Leningrad. She graduated from the Vaganova Academy, under the teachings of V.S. Kostrovitskayay V.M. Stankevich.

In 1968 she entered the Mikhailovsky Theater where she played numerous solo roles, where she remained for almost thirty years.

In 1993 she entered the Vaganova Ballet Academy, in the pedagogical department. Since 1996, she is a classical dance teacher of elementary grades. In 2007 she was elected to the post of assistant professor of the methodology of classical and duo-classical dance teaching.

Yulia Kasenkova is an acclaimed teacher at the Vaganova Academy, outstanding because of all her achievements in such a short pedagogic career.

Yulia Kasenkova graduated from Vaganova Ballet Academy, and joined the Mariinsky Ballet Company as a soloist from 1993 to 2014. She received a teaching degree from Vaganova Academy in 2010, and was immediately hired as a coach by Mikhailovsky Theatre. She joined Vaganova Academy in 2013, teaching international trainees, before being promoted in 2014. She has been teaching upper school classes ever since.

Yulia has only been teaching for 7 years, but she has already received major awards for her work and achieved some great results with her students. It is such a privilege to have this gifted teacher in our faculty.

Direct disciple of N.I. Kovmira, who is the most valued professor of male technique in the middle and advanced levels in classical dance.

Andrey Yermolenkov was born on 06.02.1969 in Leningrad. He graduated from Vaganova Academy in 1987. In 1987-1989 he worked at the Maly Theater of Opera and Ballet (Mikhailovsky Theatre). 

Since 1989 he worked as a soloist in the Ballet Theatre under the direction of Eifman. 

During his career he performed all the current repertoire. In 2007 he graduated from the Pedagogical Faculty of Vaganova Academy as a teacher and tutor. Since 2006 he has been teaching classical dance in the middle and advanced levels in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg.

Last and very great addition to the constellation of stars which is Russian Masters. Formed by the great ballet legend, Natalia Dudinskaya. Elena Alkanova was a soloist at the Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky Theatre, the two best ballet companies in the world. Actually she´s focused already for more than 20 years in her work teaching classical ballet in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg.

Born January 29, 1954 in Leningrad. In 1972 she graduated from the Leningrad Academic Choreography School. She studied at Vaganova in Natalia Dudinskaya's class and was accepted into the company of the Mariinsky Theatre, where she performed roles in the ballets “Sleeping Beauty”, “Swan Lake”, “Le Corsaire” and others. From 1975 to 1993 soloist in Mikhailovsky. Today she is perhaps one of the best professors of classical dance in the world.

More information on: http://vaganovaacademy.ru/academy/structure/kafedri/classica/alkanova.html

Formed by Ludmila Safronova, one of the last students of Agrippina Vaganova, Anna Podlesnaya has graduated summa cum laude as ballerina and after as a teacher at the Vaganova Academy.

She worked with legendary teachers such as Alla Shelest, Alla Osipenko, Lyudmila Kunakova and Ninel Petrova, Lyudila Safronova.

Anna Podlesnaya represents the St. Petersburg´s school in its purest form, even to receive the epithet “Vaganova’s granddaughter.” After an acclaimed career as a Principal Dancer, she became an outstanding teacher. Her excellence as Teacher is shown in details such as the correct position of hands and feet, she combines attention to detail with great sympathy and sensitivity when working with children.

Tatiana graduated from the Vaganova Academy in 1989. Since then her professional ballet career started in the State Opera and Ballet Theatre of Conservatory of St. Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov.

Since 1990 Tatiana Cherkashina has been the soloist of this theatre. Her work as a ballet dancer and her labor in the cultural scope of the country has been recognized several times by most prestigious national awards from the Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation.
In 2008 she got the official grade of Teacher of Classical Ballet in the Vaganova Academy and has been teaching classical dance for over 10 years.

Tatiana Cherkashina has offered already various master classes of classical ballet in Norway, Israel and Japan.

Her major jobs:
• Soloist – “Classical Syphony” S. Prokofiev
• “Grand pa Classic” F. Ober/ V. Gazovsky
• Ballet dancer – “Petrushka” I. Stravinsky/M- Fokin
• Princess Aurora, princess Florina – “The Sleeping Beaty” P. Chaikovsky / M. Petipa (under reducción of Dolgushin)
• "Opus №45" А. Berg\ G.Contreras
• Ballet dancer – «Dreams» P. Chaikovsky/N. Dolgushin
• Odetta-Odilia – “The Swan Lake” P. Chaikovsky/ L. Ivanov, М. Petipa (under reducción of N. Dolgushin)
• Gisele – “Gisele” А. Аdan / Corrali, G. Perro, М. Petipa
• Fairy Drazhe – “The Nutcracker” P. Chaikovsky/V.Vaionen, L.Ivanov, N. Dolgushin
• "Grand Pa" soloist – "Pajita" L. Minkus / M. Petipa
• Julietta– "Epitafia" Т. Albinoni/N. Dolgushin
• Kitri – "Don Quijote" L. Minkus/A. Gorsky (under reducción of N. Dolgushin)
• Pimpinella – "Pulchinello" I. Stravinsky/K. Chubashev
• "Choreographic Miniatures” L. Yakobson

More information on <a target="_blank" href="http://vaganovaacademy.ru/academy/structure/kafedri/classica/tcherkashina.html"><b><u>Vaganova Academy website</u></b></a>.<br>

Alexey graduated from the Perm State Choreographic School in 1985 (class of V.N. Tolstukhin).

After that he entered the Gorky Opera and Ballet Theater named after Alexander Pushkin. He danced all the solo ballet repertoire of the theater.
He was invited to Leningrad, to the International Foundation of Leonid Yakobson - the Maly Ballet of the Mariinsky Theatre. There Alexey danced leading parts in classical ballets and solo parts of the concert repertoire of the troupe led by O.M. Vinogradov.

In the late 90's he entered the Academy of Russian Ballet named after A.Ya.Vaganova at the Pedagogical Faculty (class of V.V. Rumyantseva). Throughout the training he taught in classes and rehearsed parts for concerts.

After graduating from the Academy he worked as a choreographer at the SABT Theatre and the Academy of the theatre in South Africa. Upon his return to Russia, he began teaching at the ARB in the Department of Classical and Duet-Classical Dance.

PARTIES: Pas de Trois (Swan Lake), Spartacus, Crassus (Spartacus), Albert (Giselle), Harlequin (Harlequinade).

Due to her spectacular curriculum and teaching experience Polina is the best representative of professional ballet environment to transmit Character Dance.

Polina is also a tutor and lecturer in Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg, as well as character dance soloist of the Mariinsky Theatre, considered one of the leading ballet theaters.

Her work in our intensiveы marked a turning point in our students. This discipline is vital and crucial for a ballet artist. It has its origin and development in Russia but in Europe unfortunately there are not many well formed specialists. Dance character usually marks a fundamental difference between one dancer and another, and can even decide their fate.

During the Russian Masters courses Polina teaches Character Dance to all professional groups.

Some notes about her professional activity:
Polina was born in St. Petersburg. In 1994 she graduated from the Vaganova Academy in the class of NATALIA DUDINSKAYA y ALISA STROGOYA, prominent legends in the history of ballet.

More information on Vaganova Academy website.

Alexander Omar graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 2004 and the same year he joined the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company.

His repertoire included the roles of Tybalt (Romeo and Juliet, chor. by Nikolay Boyarchikov; chor. by Oleg Vinogradov), Spartacus, Crix and centurions (Spartacus, chor. by George Kovtun), Moor’s Friend (The Moor’s Pavane, chor. by Jose Limon), Gringoire (Esmeralda), solo in the Indian dance (La Bayadère), the role of Fairy Carabosse (The Sleeping Beauty, rev. by Nikolay Boyarchikov), Mr Drosselmeyer, Abdurrahman and solo role in panaderos (Raymonda), Rose waltz and Spanish dance (The Nutcracker, chor. by Nikolay Boyarchikov), Ali and Isaac Lanquedem (Le Corsaire, rev. by Farukh Ruzimatov).

Dancer and teacher with extensive experience.

Olga graduated Perm Professional Ballet School, Russia in 1993.

After that she immediately joined The Opera and Ballet Theatre of Perm as a dancer, ascending to the category of soloist. With the company Pavlova danced the great ballets of the classical repertoire.

To pursue her teaching career, graduated Bolshoi Theatre Academy as a Classical Dance teacher.

Finally, she moved to Spain to focus fully on her pedagogical role, teaching at the Artis Reus School and all RMB programs.

Mikhail Sivakov graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1998, in the class of Konstantin Shatilov, and the same year he joined the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

He performed the roles of James (La Sylphide), Ahmet and Ali (Le Corsaire, rev. by Pyotr Gusev), Phoebus (Esmeralda), Solor (La Bayadère), Jean de Brien (Raymonda), Blue Bird and Fleur de Pois’s Cavalier (The Sleeping Beauty), Basilio and Espada (Don Quixote), Mikado (Princess of the Moon, or The Tale of Taketori, chor. by Nikolay Boyarchikov), Spartacus (Spartacus, chor. by Georgy Kovtun), Rose Waltz (The Nutcracker).
Now his repertoire includes roles in Swan Lake, Giselle, ou Les Wilis, The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, Laurencia, Cipollino, Without Words, Nunc Dimittis.

“A tall, and with noble elongated lines, she perfectly embodies the modern type of the Petersburg ballerina - elegant and aristocratic.” - Ballet Magazine.

Sofia Gumerova graduated from the Russian Ballet Academy in 1995. And from the same year, she entered the troupe and to 2016 she has been the first soloist of the Mariinsky Theater.

In 2010 Sofia received the title of honored Artist of Russia.

Sofia’s repertoire includes more than 30 roles, including the beloved Giselle (Giselle, Manna, Mirta), Swan Lake (Odette - Odile, large swans), La Bayadere (Nikia, Grand pas, trio of shadows), Corsair (Medora, a trio of odalisks), La Sylphide (La Sylphide), the Sleeping Beauty (Princess Aurora, Candide Fairy, Princess Florine), Raymonda (Raymonda, Clemance, Grand pas), Don Quixote (Kitri, Street Dancer, Queen of the Dryads), Michel Fokine’s ballets The Dying Swan, Chopiniana, and many many others!

Repertoire also includes:
Ondine (Queen of the Sea); choreography by Pierre Lacotte,
Reverence; choreography by David Dawson,
the duet from the ballet The Ghostly Ball; choreography by Dmitry Bryantsev,
Goya-Divertissement (Duchess of Alba); choreography by José Antonio,
Like an Old Organ Grinder; choreography by Alexei Miroshnichenko,
Pas de quatre (Carlotta Grisi, Lucile Grahn); choreography by Anton Dolin
and Euphoria; choreography by Nikita Dmitrievsky.

Sofia Gumerova works as a pedagogue at the Vaganova Academy and a teacher at the Conservatory of Rimsky Korsakov at the department of directing ballet. In addition, she gives master classes all over the world.

In 1986 he graduated from the Saratov Choreographic Conservatory in the class of GENNADY ALBERT, who was a direct disciple with Rudolf Nureyev, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Alla Osipenko of mythical Alexander Pushkin, considered a legend among teachers of classical ballet..

During his soloist career he worked at the Theatre of Boris Eifman, Gorki Theatre, Theatre K.Tachkin and others. He participated in productions of famous Mariinsky Theatre choreographers, among others worked with Ignatev and Ganibalova.

Graduated with honors from the Vaganova Academy as a teacher in the class of LUDMILA SAFRONOVA, who confirmed that it is one of the great hopes and best Vaganova methodists.

She has the historical privilege to be the daughter and disciple of the great Tatiana Sevastianova. Graduated with honors at the Vaganova Academy, as an artist and teacher in ballet class of Udalenkova.

After her soloist career in various ballet companies, she became supervisor and teacher of great Russian ballet companies, including the prestigious Ballet L. Yakobson.

She was a guest soloist in the ballet company of the Leningrad Conservatory named after Rimskiy-Korsakov.

In 1993 she was invited to the ballet company of Prague as soloist.
From 1995-1998 she was a soloist of the State Theatre in Brno.
Since 1998, soloist in the company .L.Yakobson.
She participated in tours around Russia and the world.

In 1996 she graduated from Vaganova Academy of Ballet as a student of legendary Inna Zubkovskaya. She has been working since then with the Mariinsky Ballet where she dances soloist roles.

In addition, she graduated as teacher from the Vaganova Academy and the last four years she has been giving lessons in this prestigious school to the intermediate levels.

She has performed, among other soloist roles, the Sylph from La Sylphide by August Bournonville, Aurora and Princess Florine from The Sleeping Beauty by Marius Petipa and more neoclassical choreographies such as The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude by William Forsythe.

The Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta praises her versatility by saying that “her feet can command any tempi, emotions and styles”.
In our courses Ms. Ivanova will teach the intermediate levels. We are honored and lucky to be able to work with such a talented and professional teacher.

• FIRST PRIZE WINNER (2012) “THE BEST EDUCATIONAL WORK OF ALL RUSSIA”.
• AWARD WINNER “TEACHING SKILLS TO HIGH 2008″. International Festival Competition “Coast of Hope” (St.Petersburg, Russia).
• WINNING PRIZE “FOR HIGH PROFESSIONALISM” (OF ALL RUSSIA), festival of competition “Frost 2009″ (Kazan)
• CERTIFICATE OF MERIT OF THE MINISTRY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AND THE RUSSIAN UNION OF WORKERS OF CULTURE.
• ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AT THE HIGH SCHOOL OF DANCE Dyagilev in Yekaterinburg.
• AND MANY MORE AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS AS THEIR OWN BOTH STUDENTS …
  

After graduating in 1978 from the Academy of Perm worked in theaters under the command of acknowledged masters of choreography, as I.Belsky, N.Kasatkina, V.Vasilyev and Jerry Bevington (USA), George Aleksidze ( Georgia), Armando Jorge (Portugal), Alla Sigalova (Russia), Lucas Vedzhetti (Italy), Pal Frenak (France), Karine Saporta (France)., as Coryphée danced all classic and contemporary repertory of this time.

A part of his long and brilliant career as a dancer she graduated in 1993 at the Faculty of Art History.

Fireproof, meticulous perfectionist and, since 2002 and currently continues to refine its qualities of teaching at the Vaganova Academy.

Since 1996 she started her career of ballet teacher, highlighting both that soon became ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AT THE HIGH SCHOOL OF DANCE Dyagilev in Yekaterinburg.

She has composed many choreographic pieces that have gained international recognition.
Winner of numerous international awards:
* Festival “Bravo!” Monpellier (France) as “” Best Actress of the Year ”
N.Pavlikova your teaching career highlights:
2008 – Winner of “Regarding high pedagogical skills” International Festival Competition “Coast of Hope” (St.Petersburg, Russia) award.
2009 – Winner of “For high professionalism” All-Russian festival of “Frost 2009″ (Kazan) competition; Certificate of Merit from the Ministry of the Russian Federation and the Russian Union of cultural workers;
2011 – Diploma “For the preservation of the classical heritage” International Festival Competition “Dance Exclusive ‘; First prize for the teaching of international competition “festivapya (Prague) – dance festival”;
2011 – Diploma of II Degree of regional competition on the program and educational activities to ensure art schools for children;
2012 – Winner of “Best choreography” International Competition of classical dance “invites Nutcracker”; AWARD WINNER “To the best pedagogical work” of all Russia, choreography contest “falling stars”.

The students of Natalia Pavlikova successfully continue their studies in Perm and Vaganova Academy plus many other prestigious institutions.
Students in NAPavlikovoy he was awarded the following diplomas and certificates:
2008 – Grand Prize at the International Festival “Costa de la Esperanza” (St. Petersburg); Grade I winners IV International Festival-Contest “Amistad. The sun. The world” (Bulgaria) .; winners of the regional contest “Ural Stars”;
2009 – Winner of the First Grade All-Russian Festival-Contest “Jack Frost” (Kazan);
2011 – The winners of the I and II degree of the International Festival Competition “Dance Exclusive‘;
2012 – Winner of II degree of the International Competition of classical dance “invites Nutcracker”; Grand Prix of the All-Russian Contest of choreography “falling stars”;
2013 – Winner of Title III of the regional festival-contest “Spring Fantasy”.

Russian Masters, Where everything is possible.

Winner of “The Best Teacher of Complementary Education" award by the city hall of St. Petersburg (2012)
Winner of the Educational Achievements Competition (2012)

Svetlana Efimova was born in Leningrad in 1966. She graduated from the Vaganova Academy (Professor A. I. Trofimova, 1984).
During 1990 - 1992 she was a soloist of the theatre "Russky Ballet" in St. Petersburg. Then for a year she developed her career as a ballet dancer at the Symphony State Capella of St. Petersburg under the leadership of Georgy Aleksidze. Until 1998 Svetlana danced in the Maliy Ballet of the Mariinsky Theatre and then until 2008 she worked at the Ballet Theatre of Konstantin Tachkin in St. Petersburg.

The repertoire of Svetlana includes among others: ballet "Paquita" (Grand Pas, variation), "Les Sylphides" (Eleventh Waltz), "Fairy Doll" (Pas de trois), "Giselle" (Vilisa, friends), "The Nutcracker" (Waltz of the snowflakes, pink Waltz), "Swan lake" (Pas de trois, the Hungarian dance, little swans), "La Vivandière" (Pas de six). As a performer she worked with choreographers: Oleg Vinogradov, Giorgy Aleksidse, Dmitry Bryantsev.

She graduated from the Faculty of Education of the Vaganova Ballet Academy (2010). Since 2008 Svetlana has been a teacher and tutor of the School of Classical Ballet where she has acquired an extensive pedagogical practice as well as vast experience in teaching methods.

Anton Waldbauer was born in a small city in Russia and began his studies at the Gymnasium of Arts.

After participating in the prestigious competition Prize de Lausanne, he received an invitation to continue his studies at the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet. He graduated from the Academy with honors in 2003.
Then he entered the Department of Modern Dance at the Higher School of Arts (Frankfurt, Germany) and at the end, of course, joined the European Ballet (London).

In 2004, he accepted an invitation to the role of lead soloist in the State Opera and Ballet Theater of the Komi Republic (Russian Federation).
Where for two seasons he has been playing the leading parts in the classical repertoire and participating in new Theater productions.

In 2006, she took part in the 10th Anniversary Ballet Competition in Moscow, where she won a diploma for the best choreography, with his debut work “6 Seconds”. In the same year, he returned to Europe and began to dance with the prestigious Netherlands Dance Theater. Where Anton became the first Russian artist in the 50th history of the troupe.

In 2009 he joined the Kullberg Ballet (Stockholm, Sweden).
And in 2010 he returned to Holland to the main troupe of the Dutch Dance Theater. Where, over the years of his work, Anton had collaborated with many prestigious choreographers, such as Jiri Kylian, Ohad Naharin, Paul Lightfoot, Johan Inger, Wim Vandekeybus, Crystal Pite, Sharon Eyal, Sasha Waltz, and many others.

In 2013, at the invitation of Johannes Oman, he became the first soloist and the main artist in all-new productions of the Royal Swedish Ballet.
In 2014, he acted as a guest artist at the Nobel Gala.
In 2016, he received the Pina Bausch Prize and collaborates with Familie Flöz, a troupe of physical theater from Berlin.

Since 2012, Anton has been actively engaged in teaching modern dance, improvisation, and choreography. He is currently a guest teacher at many prestigious centers/schools throughout Europe.
Anton is also actively engaged in his productions and his choreographic works were presented in the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Russia, France, and Spain. His first short film, 33 Questions, was presented at the Stockholm Dance Festival.

A brilliant talented dancer and ballet teacher.

Her career as a principal dancer began in 1981 when after graduating from prestigious Perm Ballet College she became an excellent prima. She has received worldwide recognition acting in the best scenes of more than 30 countries.

Following her professional career she was introduced in the education sector and very successfully Tatiana is imparting ballet classes specializing in Elementary levels.

Gentian Doda was a dancer at The Akhundov Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, Teatro Arena di Verona, Teatro Regio di Parma, Compañía de Victor Ullate's Ballet Company and The Spanish National Dance Company directed by Nacho Duato.

From 2005 until 2010 with The Spanish National Dance Company directed by Nacho Duato he was creating every year a new premier for CND 2 and for the main company CND.

In 2011, Gentian received the First Choreography Awards in the Copenhagen and Hanover contest, as well as in Rotterdam International Duet Choreography Competition by the Scapino Ballet.

Since then, he has created world premieres for New York Choreographic Institute, Scapino Ballet, National Dance School in Santo Domingo and Ballet Nuremberg, State Theatre at Gärtnerplat, The Teatro Massimo in Palermo. In August 2014, he was offered the position of First Ballet Master of the The Berlin State Ballet where he was working for four years.

In the season 2017/18 he premiered two new shows, “This Silence” at the Juilliard School in New York, and “was bleibt” with Staatsballett Berlin at Komische Oper.

In the last season (2020) he premiered at Mikhailovsky theatre, St. Petersburg, a magnificent ballet “La Bayadere” as an assistant of Nacho Duato.

He is currently working in Berlin in new independent productions and has been commissioned a new creation with the Greek National Ballet.

Ballet dancer and teacher.

Born in Kiev. From the age of 5, she began to study at the Deryugins' Gymnastics School in Kiev.

At the age of 10 she entered the Kiev Choreography School. Danced solo parts in the ballet "Theme with Variations" staged by V. Kovtun, The great classical pas from the ballet "Paquita", Pas de six from the ballet "Markitanka", Naina from the opera "Ruslan and Lyudmila", "Revived frescoes" from the ballet " Humpbacked Horse ", pas de deux from the ballet" The Venetian Carnival "," Classical pas de deux "by D. Balanchine.

After graduation, she came to St. Petersburg. From 1995 to 2010 she worked at the Academic Ballet Theater of Boris Eifman.

She took part in all theater performances (Russian Hamlet, Giselle (girlfriends), Pinocchio (Fox Alice, Red Giselle, Tchaikovsky, Requiem, My Jerusalem, Don Juan And Moliere "," Karamazov "," Seagull "," Anna Karenina "...).

In 2010-2011 she worked at the Helen Prokopieva DanceTheater "The Fortress Ballet". Danced in the performances "Attempt of tenderness", "Wait for an Angel", "Singing in July".

Marianna participated in the theatrical project "Lessons of Tango and Love" in which the People's Artist of the USSR Alisa Freindlikh, Varvara Vladimirova and the Dance Theater "The Fortress Ballet" took part. Producer and choreographer of the play is Elena Prokopyeva.

She graduated from the Russian Ballet Academy of  Vaganova specializing in "Pedagogy of the ballet".

She taught classical dance at the St. Petersburg Music Hall Theater. From 2011 to the present she is a teacher of choreography at the Academy of figure skating. She also teaches classical dance lessons at the DAR Dance Academy.

Education

Graduated as Bachelor of arts in Classical Ballet 1990 - 1998 Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet , Saint Petersburg, Russia
Graduated summa cum laude as a Teacher in February of 2020 Moscow State Academy of Choreography, Russia (commonly known as Bolshoi Ballet Academy)

Teaching Experience

Since 2019 - freelance ballet teacher in The Netherlands, specialized in teaching the Vaganova method of classical Ballet

Ballet Mistress 2017 - 2018
Ballet de Catalunya - Barcelona, Spain
● Daily classes and rehearsals
● Presented Grand Pas from "Paquita" (version of Mariinsky theater) and Gala Concert of classical repertoire, as a Premier presentation of the “Ballet de Catalunya”
● Collaborated as assistant choreographer in the creation of "The Nutcracker"

Invited Ballet Teacher July 2018
Festival " +Danza " - San Salvador, El Salvador.
● Guest teacher - Master classes of ballet, Pas de deux and classical repertoire - advanced level.
● Integrating classical repertoire in the Gala concert of the Festival

Ballet Teacher 2014 - 2019
Dansa Spin - Barcelona, Spain
● Classical ballet and repertoire - advanced, intermediate and beginners level.
● Choreographed and directed ballet performances for national and international competitions and annual shows.
In May of 2016 her students won of the first prize, with her choreography "Nocturne" at the national dance competition "Anaprode", Tarragona, Spain.
In April 2019 - second price for Ksenia,s choreography “Rolling in the Deep” at the international competition “Dance World Cup”, Burgos, Spain.

Ballet Teacher 2014 - till present time Russian Masters Ballet Camp Alicante, Spain
● Classical ballet and physical strength - intermediate and beginners level.

Dancing Experience

1998 - 2005 " St.Petersburg State Academic Ballet Theater of Leonid Jacobson" , Russia, performing classical repertoire as "The Swan Lake", "Giselle", "The Nutcracker", "Spartacus", "Carmen" and "The Miniatures of Leonid Jacobson".

2003 - Festival of modern Choreography "White Nights", dedicated to Celebration of 300 years of Saint Petersburg.
Received a People's Choice Award for dancing neoclassical choreography «Alone», created by russian neoclassical choreographer L. Ivanova.

2005 - 2006 "Universal Ballet Company" Seoul, South Korea
Performing in "Don Quixote", "Giselle" and "The Nutcracker".

2006 - 2013 WEP Productions MSC, Italy - soloist of international ballet.

Languages

English: Fluent speaking and writing
Spanish: Fluent speaking and writing
Russian: Native Language
Dutch : Basic speaking

Elena Kukseva is a highly respected ballet master who holds a teaching certificate from the prestigious Vaganova Ballet Academy, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Mrs. Kukseva received her early professional ballet training and experience from the Perm State Choreographic Academy. In 1986, upon graduation from Perm she accepted a position in the Nijzgorod Ballet Theatre where she had the opportunity to demonstrate her technical brilliance and theatrical mastery by performing many leading roles in classical ballets, such as "Gisele", Spanish Dance in "Swan Lake", Gypsy in "Don Quichote". In 1991 she transitioned to the Small Mariinsky Ballet Company in Leningrad to dance under the direction of Leonid Yakobson.

Mrs. Kukseva toured nationally and internationally performing such recognizable works as 9 Tangos and Bach, Wedding Cortege, Arlekinade, Roden's Sculptures and Pas-de-trois Rossini.

She currently lives and works in St. Petersburg, Russia. Since 2014, Elena is a regular guest of Russian Masters Ballet, teaching at holiday Workshops and Winter Intensives, helping RMB students achieve new heights in ballet training, in line with world requirements.

One of the most outstanding European artists and choreographers, Denis Untila, will give classes of Contemporary Dance to the students of RMBC 2018. A unique opportunity to learn from the best.

Denis Untila began his dance career in his homeland, Moldova, and completed his training by graduating from the Vienna Conservatory. He joined the Ballet Kiel in 2001 under the direction of Mario Schröder as a soloist. He performed as a guest dancer in Schröder’s choreography “The Wall” in Essen in 2004. Further guest appearances have taken him to the Moldovan National Opera, and to Salzau, France and Italy (“Europe Dance”), then to the ballet company of the Vienna State Opera, where he performed in “The Nutcracker” and as Oscar in Vladimir Malakhov’s ballet “A Masked Ball”.

Since the autumn of 2006 Denis has been a member of the Aalto Ballet Essen, firstly as a group dancer with solo obligations and then from 2009 as a soloist with group commitments. On the Aalto stage he has danced solo roles as Dmitri (“The Brothers Karamazov“), Valerio (“Leonce and Lena”), Blue Bird (“Sleeping Beauty”), Bécaud (“La vie en rose”), Lillas Pastia (“Carmen/Boléro”), Moritz (“Max and Moritz), as well as further soloist roles in “Homage to Queen” and “Irish Soul”. He has also choreographed “The Soldier’s Tale” (Family Concert), “Game” (“PTAH”) and together with Michelle Yamamoto, “Alice” (“PTAH II”), "Jo“ and "Passacaglia“ ("PTAH III“). In the 2012/2013 season he choreographed his first full-length ballet “Othello” for the Aalto Theatre. Denis Untila is the winner of the Aalto Stage Prize for young artists 2012. After successfully creating „Vibrations“ for Essener Philharmonie, he presents a new choreography in 2018: „Moving Colours“, together with Armen Hakobyan.

Born in Leningrad. Graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1998.

Joined the Mariinsky Ballet сompany the same year. Her repertoire included La Sylphide (Nancy, Sylphs), La Bayadère (Manu, Bayadères, Trio of Shades), The Sleeping Beauty (Carefree Fairy, Playfulness Fairy, Little Red Riding Hood), Swan Lake (Cygnets, Neapolitan Dance), Raymonda (Grand pas, variation), Le Corsaire (Trio of Odalisques), Don Quixote (Amour) etc.

Prize-winner at the International Vaganova-Prix Competition (2nd prize, St Petersburg, 1998).

Since 2019 she has been a coach with the Mariinsky Ballet, working with Vaganova Ballet Academy students engaged in the theatre’s performances.

The merits of this living legend of ballet say it all: Honoured Artist of Russia, People's Artist of Russia as well as Winner of the International Ballet Competition of Varna and the International Ballet Competition of Moscow, among many others.

Kunakova was the principal dancer of the Kirov Ballet (now Mariinsky) for almost 20 years. She has been a teacher at the Vaganova Academy and has taught all over the world. She is currently one of the head teachers and répétiteurs of the Mariinsky Theater, where she trains the principal stars of the company. At the same time, since 2001 she works with the Ballet Konstantin Tachkin of Saint Petersburg.

Asiya Lukmanova graduated in Rudolf Nureyev Choreographic School in 2002. Graduated summa cum laude in Vaganova Ballet Academy.

She became a star ballet dancer in the Saint-Petersburg Ballet Theatre K.Tachkin.

At the age of 17 years old she danced her first soloist part: Kitri, in “Don Quijote”. At 25 years old she became a Promotor in one of the biggest music festivals of Spain nowadays, with more than 30,000 attendants: Electromar festival.

Nowadays she drives her best ever proyect: Russian Masters Ballet. She wants to expand all over the globe the best classical ballet traditions and with fair prices to broke limits and help students to improve and become the best.

Russian Masters organisation is glad to introduce the teacher of historical and character dances: Aleksandra Lebedeva. She will be working with us in the next courses and she has been recommended specifically by the Vaganova Academy.

Graduated from the Vaganova Academy of Dance, she has worked since 1997 in the Mariinsky Theatre as a dancer. Since 2018 she is also a student of the pedagogical faculty of the Vaganova Academy. She also conducts rehearsals of the students from the Academy sometimes.

She has a lot of experience working the historical repertoire on the Mariinsky Theatre stage. She performed as a soloist in “The Fountain of Bakhchisarai'' (Krakowiak), "The Swan Lake'' (mazurka) “Don Quixote'' (Gipsy), “The Nutcracker'' (Lady) and "Polovtsian dances'' and she has also danced every kind of historical dances such as quadrilles, minuets, sarabandes, polonaises and other kind of dances highly used in classical repertoire.

During the course of historical dance, students will study and get familiar with the following dances from Mariinsky Theatre: the Minuet from “Rigoletto”, the Quadrille from “The Queen of swords” and the Polonaise from “Eugene Onegin”, among other pieces and apart from the theoretical material following the methodology of the Vaganova Academy.

In 1997 Elena graduated from Vaganova Academy (Class of Professor N.Dudinskay).
In 2008, Elena received a diploma in higher education at Vaganova Academy (bachelor of art ballet).

Her awards, like a dancer:
1st prize, Gold medal - Open ballet competition "Arabesque - 2000" in Perm, Russia (2000);
1st Prize, Gold medal - International Ballet Competition in Kazan, Russia (2001).

Elena's career grew rapidly.
1997-2001 she became a ballet soloist in Mikhailovsky Theater;
from 2001 to 2009 - ballet soloist in Mariinsky Theater (St. Petersburg, Russia, tutor in the theater N.Kurgapkina);
from 2009 to 2011 she was a ballet soloist at the Semperoper (Dresden, Germany).

Among her roles: Odette / Odilia (Swan Lake); Masha (The Nutcracker); Gamzatti (La Bayadere); Middle Duet (chor. A.Ratmansky); Puppet Fairy (Puppet Fairy); Kitri (Don Quixote); Giselle (Giselle); Gulnara / Pas de de Medora (Corsair); Aurora / Princess Florina (Sleeping Beauty); La Sylphide (La Sylphide); Pas de deux Tarantella and Solo in Theme and Variations (chor. J. Balanchine); Pas de deux classique de D.Ober; also performed numerous roles in William Forsythe's ballets, etc.

Elena has many years of experience as a tutor and as a teacher. 2013-2014 Elena was a tutor at the Academic Ballet Theater L.Jacobs on and teacher in Boris Eifman Dance Academy (classic dance, work with preparatory groups), from 2016 to 2019 she was a tutor at the Boris Eifman Theater, rehearsed with many troupe dancers, including Maria Abashova. Since 2019 Elena became a teacher at Vaganova Academy (classic dance).

Maria Vikulina will teach Acting in Russian Masters Ballet 2018.

She is currently an actress of the Ekaterinburg Young Spectator Theater.
In 2009 she graduated with honors from the Ural Music College in piano class (teacher Alexandrina Gerlach). She also received a choreographic training at the school of the Ballet-Plus Theater.

In 2013, she graduated with honors from Ekaterinburg State Theater University with a degree in Drama Theater and Cinema Artist (course master Andrey Rusinov, assistant professor of the Acting Department, laureate of the M. Tsarev People's Artist of the USSR award for successful training of the actors).
In 2013 she was admitted to the troupe of the Ekaterinburg Young Spectator Theater. On the stage of this theater in 2005 the creative debut of Maria took place - she played the role of the Beautiful Ballerina in the play "The Steadfast Toy Soldier" (directed by Vyacheslav Kokorin).

The most significant roles are:
The Little Mermaid (the play The Little Mermaid, directed by Roman Theodory), Cinderella (Cinderella performance, director Dmitry Kasimov), Anya Ranevskaya (The Cherry Orchard, directed by Anatoly Proudin), Görlin Kelliger (The Lonely West , director Semyon Serzin), Laura (performance "Glass Menagerie", director Anna Gusarova) and many others.

Maria takes part in various theatrical projects of the city.

On the stage of "House of Actor" she plays in the plays:
"Seagull" (the role of Nina Zarechnaya, director Irina Pavlova),
"Spring waters" (the role of Gemma, directed by Irina Pavlova),
"Per Gynt" (solo performance, director Daniil Andreev).

Maria also takes part in the productions of the Chamber Theater and the Theater of the Word.

Zhanna Ayupova was born in Petrozavodsk. In 1984 she graduated from the Leningrad Choreographic School (coached by Ninel Kurgapkina) and was invited to become a member of the Kirov Ballet Company (Mariinsky Theatre). From 1987 Zhanna Aupova appeared as a featured soloist with the company preforming both lyric and dramatic parts. From 2000 to 2013 she had been coaching ballet dancers at the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

From 2013 – First Vice-rector and Artistic Director of the Vaganova Ballet Academy.

Over the course of her dance career Zhanna Ayupova has performed a great number of roles in major classical and neo-classical works. Her most prominent roles include Giselle (Giselle), Princess Aurora (The Sleeping Beauty), Marie (The Nutcracker), Raymonda (Raymonda), Kitri (Don Quixote), Nikiya (La Bayadère), Odette/Odile (Swan Lake), Manon (Manon), Soloist (Theme and Variations), Soloist (Symphony in C), Terpsichore (Apollo), Young Lady (Le Spectre de la Rose) and many others.

Zhanna Ayupova is a prize winner of the Moscow International Ballet Competition (1985).

In 2008 she was honored with the title People's Artist of Russia.

Oliver Matz received his ballet training at the State Ballet School of Berlin and joined the State Opera of Germany in 1980, serving the company as a soloist and international ambassador for 25 years.

Oliver has received numerous national and international awards, such as the bronze medal at the International Ballet Competition in Varna and the gold medals at the International Ballet Competitions in Helsinki and Jackson.

In recognition of his outstanding artistic achievements, he was appointed Berliner Kammertänzer by the Berlin Culture Senator in 1995, being the first dancer to receive this honor. For his achievements throughout his career, he was appointed Honorary Member of the State Opera of Germany in 2004.

Renowned figures and internationally famous choreographers such as Ray Barra, Patrice Bart, Michael Baryshnikov, Maurice Béjart, William Forsythe, Pierre Lacotte, Hans van Manen, Rudolf Nurejew, Roland Petit, Uwe Scholz, Yuri Vamos and Wladimir Wassiljev created roles for him as well as reinterpretations of classic narrative ballets.

He has danced around the world as a guest artist and in international galas, including performances with internationally renowned ballet companies such as the American Ballet Theater in New York, the Bavarian State Ballet, the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the National Ballet of Finland, the National Ballet of Canada, the Royal Ballet of London and the Stuttgart Ballet.

He has also danced with leading international dancers such as Eva Evdokimova, Isabelle Guérin, Sylvie Guillem, Evelyn Hart, Margaret Illmann, Alessandra Ferri, Ludmilla Semenjaka and Steffi Scherzer.

In addition to his duties and responsibilities as a chief executive, he enjoys great success as a teacher in Zurich Dance Academy, teaching ballet classes for boys. Many of his students participate in world-renowned companies and have won important prizes in the main international ballet competitions.

He has been a member of the Prix de Lausanne Jury 2018.

After training at the State Ballet School Berlin for seven years, Steffi Scherzer joined the German State Opera Berlin, where she was appointed prima ballerina in 1984.

She has danced the leading parts and title roles of the entire classical and neoclassical repertoire. Steffi has won numerous major prizes and awards at both national and international ballet competitions, as well as received many acclaimed performing arts and critics awards. She has made guest appearances around the world, and has worked with many of the most renowned choreographers such as Rudolf Nurejev, Patrice Bart, Maurice Béjart, William Forsythe, Pierre Lacotte, Roland Petit, and Uwe Scholz. She is an honorary member of the German State Opera Berlin and is one of Germany’s most outstanding classical dancers. Steffi's students have achieved top places and won many prizes at national and international competitions.

Carolina Borrajo was born in Zaragoza, Spain. She was trained at the María de Ávila Ballet School in her native town and at the School of the Hamburg Ballet.

After her first engagement at the Ballet Clasico de Zaragoza, she was a soloist at Bonn Opera, at the Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden and at the Lucerne Theatre. She received her diploma as a children's dance teacher and stage dance teacher at the State University of Performing Arts in Mannheim.

In August 2008 she took up a position on the teaching faculty of the School of the Hamburg Ballet.

Borrajo will attend Russian Masters Ballet Camp as representative of the Ballet School of Hamburg, to do auditions for the students.

Now she is lecturer in theoretical disciplines: the history of ballet, ballet criticism, ballet composition, analysis of the ballet performance. O. Rozanova created her own author’s curriculum.

Participant of Russian and international scientific symposia. The authors of several books and more than four hundred articles about ballet published in Russian and foreign editions. Winner of the prize of the magazine "Ballet" "Soul of Dance" in the nomination "Press Leader" (2017).

She is the author of lecture series on ballet art at the Mikhailovsky and Mariinsky theaters. Published in Europe, USA, Mexico.

Maria Khoreva is one of the greatest promises of the ballet world in many years. Graduated in 2018 at the Vaganova Academy with the class of the famous professor Lyudmila Kovaleva, Khoreva joined the Mariinsky Ballet Theatre that same year.

In October 2018, she danced the lead role in Paquita, something extremely unusual for such a recent graduate, and at the end of the month she was promoted from Dance Corps to First Soloist, a rank just one step below the main dancer.


More information is on the website of the Mariinsky theatre.

Born in Vladivostok, he studied at the Dnepropetrovsk Ballet School in Ukraine and later at the Belarus State Ballet School in Minsk, graduating in 2006. While still a student, Vasiliev danced Basilio in Don Quixote and Ali in Le Corsaire with the Belarus National Ballet. In 2006, he was invited to join the Bolshoi Ballet as a soloist, making his debut with the Company, at the age of 17, as Basilio in Don Quixote. He was promoted to principal dancer in 2010.

In 2011, he joined the Mikhailovsky Ballet as a principal dancer. Vasiliev’s repertoire with the Mikhailovsky includes principal roles in Don Quixote, Giselle, ou Les Wilis, The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, La Fille mal gardée, Swan Lake, La Bayadère, Laurencia, La Sylphide, The Flames of Paris, Le Corsaire, Spartacus, and his own ballets.

In 2012–2013, Ivan Vasiliev was a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. In 2015, he made his debut as a choreographer with his Ballet no. 1. In 2016, he staged the one-act ballets Morphine, Blind Affair, and Bolero and the full-length ballet A Christmas Carol which are included in the repertoire of the Mikhailovsky Theatre. In May 2016, Vasiliev’s ballet Love is All Around premiered at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and in February 2017 – at the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

He has been recognized for his artistic excellence at the international ballet competitions in Varna, Moscow, and Perm. He is also the winner of the Triumph Youth Prize, British Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards, and the Benois de la Danse Award. In 2014, he was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Russia.

Xander was born in England, and studied at there at the Royal Ballet School. After the School he joined The Royal Ballet Company, in August 2005. Here Xander's repertoire included: 'The Sleeping Beauty' (Lilac Fairy Cavalier), 'The Nutcracker' (Arabian Dance, Waltz of the Flowers), 'Swan Lake' (Cadets, Mazurka), 'La Fille Mal Gardee' (Colas' Friends), 'Les Patineurs' (Brown Boys), McGregor's 'Dido and Aeneas' and Fenton's 'Song Without Words' and 'Seacastles'. Xander created roles in Wheeldon's 'DGV: danse a grand vitesse', Tuckett's 'The Seven Deadly Sins' and Fenton's 'Monument'. He also choreographed for The Royal Ballet's 'Draftworks' program.

In 2009, Xander was invited to join The Mariinsky Ballet by its ballet director Yuri Fateyev and joined the company in January 2010 aged 23 as its first and only British dancer. His repertoire includes: Prince Siegfried (Swan Lake), Count Albrecht (Giselle), Prince Desiré (The Sleeping Beauty), Romeo (Romeo & Juliet), The Nutcracker Prince (The Nutcracker ch. Vainonen), Vronsky (Anna Karenina ch. Ratmansky), Jean de Brienne (Raymonda), Male Principal (Le Parc), Vaslav (The Fountain of Bakhchiserai), Andrés (Paquita), The Golden Slave (Scheherazade), The Poet (Chopiniana/Les Sylphides), John the Baptist (Salome ch. Faski), Ashton's Sylvia (Aminta) and Marguerite & Armand (Armand), Balanchine ballets including Apollo, Jewels (Emeralds & Diamonds), Serenade (Waltz, Elegy) and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Demetrius), Hans Van Manen's 'Adagio Hammerklavier' & 'Variations For Two Couples', Millepied's 'Without' & 'La nuit s'achève' and McGregor's 'Infra'. His repertoire as a guest artist also includes Gauthier's 'Ballet 101', 'Le Spectre de la Rose', and Ashton's 'The Dream' (Oberon).

Xander has toured with the Mariinsky Ballet to Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Oman, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, the UK, and the USA, and has been a guest artist with English National Ballet, The Kremlin Ballet, The Ballet Company of the Opera National Bucharest, The Stanislavsky Ballet and has also performed with 'Roberto Bolle and Friends'.

Xander was the recipient of the Taglioni Award in the category “Best Young Male Dancer” (Berlin, 2014), the recipient of the Léonide Massine Prize in the category “Emerging Talent on the International Scene" (Positano, Italy, 2014) and won the UK Critics' Circle National Dance Awards 'Outstanding Male Performance (Classical)' category for 'Apollo' 2014.

Born in Moscow. In 2006, she graduated from the Moscow Ballet Academy, and joined the Bolshoi Ballet Company. She rehearsed with Tatiana Golikova. Now she is rehearsing with Nina Semizorova.

In repertoire:

• Phrygia, sweetheart to Spartacus (Grigorovich’s Spartacus);
• Anastasia (Grigorovich’s Ivan the Terrible);
• Myrtha, the Queen of Wilis (Vladimir Vasiliev’s Giselle);
• Giselle (Grigorovich’s Giselle);
• Olga (John Cranko’s Onegin);
• Princess Shireen (Grigorovich’s A Legend of Love);
• Sylphide (Johan Kobborg’s La Sylphide);
• Bella (Yuri Possokhov’s A Hero of Our Time);
• Marie (Grigorovich’s Nutcracker)
  

And many others

More information on the page of the Bolshoi theatre.

Leonid Sarafanov is one of the biggest stars of the moment. Globally acclaimed by the public and critics.

He has received numerous international awards of first level such as the BENOIS AWARD (known as the Oscar of Dance), First Prize in the Moscow International Competition, First Prize in the International Competition of Paris, prize in Rudolf Nureyev International Competition in Budapest and many others.

In 2000 Leonid graduated from Kiev State Academy of Choreography and entered as a soloist the National Ballet of Ukraine. After that he began his work at the Mikhailovsky Theater where he is currently the principal star.

In 2011 Ivan Zaytsev joined the ballet company of one of the best theatres of the world - Mikhailovsk, where very soon he became a Principal dancer, his repertoire includes solo and principal roles in La Sylphide, Le Corsaire, Cipollino, Don Quixote, Laurencia, The Flames of Paris, La Fille mal gardée, and Class Concert
as well as productions of Nacho Duato The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Multiplicity, Forms of Silence and Emptiness, Prelude, Invisible, and White Darkness. Ivan has toured with the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company to Japan, USA, Germany etc.

He start his career from Krasnodar Ballet School in 1997 and while studying he was training at the Yury Grigorovich Ballet Theatre where he performed roles in the ballets Spartacus, Romeo and Juliet, Raymonda, The Golden Age, The Nutcracker, and Cipollino.
In 2002 Ivan graduated from Krasnodar Ballet School and entered the Department of Choreography at St. Petersburg State University for Culture and Arts.
After graduation from the University in 2007, he joined Leonid Jacobson Ballet Theatre in St. Petersburg, where he danced Romeo (Romeo and Juliet), Jose (Passion for Carmen), Siegfried (Swan Lake), Prince (The Nutcracker), Albrecht (Giselle), and Rodin (The Kiss).

After participation in the 11th Moscow International Ballet Competition in 2009, he was invited to join Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre. Ivan´s parties in Eifman Ballet were:

• Basil in Don Quixote, 
• Onegin in Onegin, 
• Vronsky in Anna Karenina, 
• Ekaterina´s son in Russian Hamlet, 
• The Prince,
  
• The Young man & The Joker in Chaikovsky.
  

More information on the website of the Mikhailovsky theatre.

The current Deputy Artistic Director and Manager of Ballett Dormtund and NRW Junior, Slava Tutukin, has been one of the best contemporary representatives of the Vaganova expression in all its glory. Tutukin has been a real star of classical, neoclassical and contemporary ballet and now he manages some of the most impotant ballet companies of Germany.

We are glad of having this special guest, that will give a talk about Professional Orientation and will be one of the invited directors for Ballet Auditions.

Splashes of his CV:

• Considered one of the most talented young dances of present century, has worked as a soloist in the best ballet companies in the world (including The Mikhailovsky Theatre), even making the leap to the big screen in the tv most important Germany;
• He has given numerous master classes throughout the world with overwhelming success.
• Slava won the prestigious “Farukh Ruzimatov” prize in 2007;
• and Rieti prize in Italy in 2009.

Anna was born in Siberia. She started to dance at 5 years old and graduated from the Krasnoyarsk Ballet School in Siberia.

Anna started her career with the Siberian State ballet (Krasnoyarsk, Russia) as a soloist. Later she became a guest-principal dancer with Mikhailovsky theatre (Saint-Petersburg) and Tatarstan state ballet (Kazan). Since 2012 Anna joined Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre ballet company as a principal dancer. During this period of dancing with Russian ballet companies her repertoire was very diverse.

At 2015 she joined Dutch National Ballet as a principal dancer. Since that moment Anna became an international guest-principal dancer .She worked with Teatro Colon (Argentina) for “La Bayadere” by Natalia Makarova,  with Semperoper Dresden ballet for “Manon” by K.McMillan. Currently Anna is working with Staatsballet Berlin as a guest.

Anna’s repertoire is very diverse. During her carrier she dances principal roles in almost all well known classical ballets as “Nutcracker” , “Sleeping beauty”, “La Bayadere”, ”Gizelle”, “Copelia”, “La fille mal gardee”, “La Sylphide” , “Snow Maiden”, “Don Quihote”, ”Romeo and Juliette”, “Swan lake” and others. Her repertoire also includes main roles in lots of neoclassical ballets by such a famous choreographers as K.McMillan, J.Robbins, J.Kranko, G.Balanchine, A.Ratmansky, C.Wheeldon , Hans van Manen ,D.Dawson,Y.Grigorovich, Rudi van Danzig ,Ted Brandsen and others. In a different time her partners on stage were Sergei Polunin, Ivan Vasiliev, Leonid Sarafanov and others.

In a studio legendary Natalia Makarova, Guillaume Graffine, Alexey Ratmansky, Michael Messerer , Patricia Neary, Patricia Ruann , Karl Burnett, Olga Evreinoff, Yukari Saito,Yannick Boquen ,Larissa Lezhnina, Rachel Beaujean and many others helped her to improve her skills of dance. At 2008 and 2010 she won gold medals on International ballets competitions in Krasnoyarsk and Perm. She is a winner of «Dance Open 2018- miss virtuosity» prize in Sankt Petersburg.

Currently Anna is working successfully with Dutch National ballet as a principal dancer and participates lots of  Ballet Galas around the world.

Iliya has been the soloist of the prestigious Eifman Ballet theatre from 2004 to 2011.

From 2011 up to 2014 he has worked as a soloist in the famous Yacobson Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia.

He graduated as an artist and after as a teacher at the Vaganova Academy.
The list of his repertoire is very long and diverse. He danced principal parts in classical ballets as "Swan Lake" and "Giselle" to neoclassical of Boris Eifman.

During Russian Masters Ballet Camps Iliya Osipov gives classes of Acting.

Winner of several national and international awards, currently a collaborator in the prestigious Mikhailovsky theater, professional photographer with more than 20 years of experience in the artistic world. Our students will have an exclusive opportunity to be portrayed by this magnificent artist, whose work has been recognized by the most emblematic museums of St. Petersburg and is part of the collection of numerous exhibition halls both in Russia and abroad.

More information about the individual and group sessions as well as the free pack of Russian Masters Ballet at info@russianmatersballet.com

Sergey Shcherbakov, specialist in commercial and art photography, member of the Creative Union of Photographers of Russia.

Featured awards:

• "Photographer of a year, 2005" (Reportage, series);
• Stipendium of International Project "Network Baltic" in graphic - center "Grafikens Huns", Sweden, 2004.
  

The works of Sergey are exposed in the collections of:
State Russian Museum, Saint Petersburg
Museum of the History of the City of St. Petersburg
National Center of Photography "Rosphoto", Saint Petersburg
Graphic-Center "Grafiken Hus", Sweden
and many more.

Participant in more than 15 exhibitions

10 individual exhibitions

Instagram.com/Shcherbakov.foto

Ira Yakovleva is one of the most important ballet photographers in St. Petersburg and her international reputation has led her to work with the greatest ballet stars of the globe. Her training and previous career as a professional dancer bring to her works a point of view of the highest technical and artistic quality that unites with the expressive strength and delicacy of her images.

Yakovleva graduated from the State Choreographic School of Kiev and joined the ballet theatre L. Yakobson of St. Petersburg. She has toured throughout Russia, Europe, America and Asia with this prestigious company. For the past 7 years she has been exclusively dedicated to dance photography, where she has achieved international success and collaborates with dance brands from all around the world including Scena Shop, Susha More, Sonumberone, Balletpapier, Baustelle Berlin, Wezzarium, KeithLink , Dance Wear for all, Zi dancewear, Nina Shterenberg, Katerina Kelberg, Lets go dress or Virtuozo.

Apart from photographing countless ballet stars individually, she is an assiduous collaborator with large institutions in Russia such as the Mariinsky Theater, Eifman Ballet, Eifman Ballet School, Balleroosha, SPB City Guide or Dance Open. As well as in magazines such as: La Personne, Beatrice Magazine, Kadance.

Ira Yakovleva joins Russian Masters as one of the great representatives of dance photography worldwide and it’s a real proud for us to have someone of her stature and thus swelling the number of experts who, in their respective fields, help to make Russian Masters a unique experience of the highest level.

Since 20 years in the world of photography Antonio Gervasi has collaborated as a photographer and assistant with important fashion photographers and stylists and grew up professionally in Milan.

Towards the end of the nineties has decided to start photographing the world and this has led him to travel for almost 15 years, turning the world twice and participating in expeditions to the North Pole and Antarctica collecting a large archive of images, and especially putting him in contact with different cultures giving him the opportunity to learn different languages.

He is Italian but is living in Spain and his work is mainly dedicated to ballet and dance.

Former ballet dancer who has become one of the world's most in-demand ballet photographers. Her work has been exhibited at the St. Petersburg State Museum Theatre and Music, Sheremetev Palace and other prestigious Russian venues.

She began her ballet training at age 3. She performed at the Institute of Culture before moving to St. Petersburg, Russia at age 19.

Her ballet photography has made her hugely popular on Instagram, where she shares images of renowned dancers with more than 200,000 followers.

Ieva Immertreija - ballet studio "Baleta Klase" owner, choreographer, pedagogue, costume designer for operas, theaters and ballets, children's games, theater of operetta and musicals, and owner of the brand "Ieva".

Ieva was a professional dancer, soloist of the dance company "Liesma" for 16 years, studied the pedagogy of classical ballet technique as well as the history of Russian ballet at the Vaganova Academy.

She has the degree of costume designer and technical specialist, of classical ballet pedagogue and choreographer, so she knows everything and from different angles on ballet costumes: as a dancer, as a designer and as a choreographer. Therefore, our students have a chance not only to study how to make headbands by themselves (and it is really important, since it is difficult and expensive to find a unique and original headband), but also have the opportunity to know interesting things about the history of ballet costumes and many other secrets. It is a beautiful opportunity to relax during manual work with a brilliant teacher of ballet fashion.

Polina Semionova was born in Moscow and studied at the Bolshoi Ballet School. At 17 years old, she joined the Berlin State Opera Ballet as a principal dancer. In September 2012 joined American Ballet Theatre as a Principal Dancer.

Her repertoire includes:
Odette-Odile in Swan Lake; Nikiya in La Bayadere; Marie in The Nutcracker; Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty;Swanilda in Coppellia; Kitri in Don Quixote;Giselle, Myrta in Giselle; Tatiana in John Cranko's Onegin; Sieglinde and Brunhilde in Maurice Bejart's Ring um den Ring; Manon in Manon; Juliet in John Cranko's,Sir Kenneth McMillan's, Leonid Lavrovskij's, Nacho Duato's Romeo and Juliet; Scheherazade; Les Sylphides; Carmen in Roland Petit'sCarmen; Sylvia in Sir Frederick Ashton's Sylvia.Principal roles in Jerome Robbins' Afternoon of a Faun; George Balanchine's Ballet Imperial, Apollo (Terpsichore), A Midsummer Night's Dream, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Diamonds, Theme and Variations, Symphony in C; William Forsythe's The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, Herman Schmermann; John Neuemeyer 's Nutcracker, Midsummer Night's Dream, The Lady of the Camellias, Kylian's Return to the Strange Land.

She has also appeared in works by Nacho Duato, Mauro Bigonzetti, Patrice Bard, Renato Zanella, Uwe Scholz, Alexey Ratmanskij, Twyla Tharp, Anthony Tudor, Christian Spuck...

Semionova has also danced as a guest artist with La Scala, American Ballet Theatre, Bayerische State Opera, Mikhailovskiy Theatre, Semper Opera, English National Ballet, Tokyo Ballet, Vienna State Opera Ballet, Zurich Ballet, Maryinsky Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Opera del Roma ..

Awards include:

• a gold medal at the Moscow International Ballet Competition in 2001,
• First Prize at the Vaganova-Prix Ballet Competition in St. Petersburg ,
• the Junior Prize at the Nagoya International Ballet Competition in 2002;
• Daphne Prize (2004);
• German Critics Choice Award (2005);
• Dancer of the Year (2007);
• Prize of Heinz Spoerli( 2007);
• Prize Benois de la Dance(2014);
• Kammertänzerin (2017);
• Dancer of the Year (2018).

In 2013 she became a professor of Staatliche Ballett Schule in Berlin, Germany.

Daniel Camargo born in Sorocaba, Brazil, started ballet at the age 10 in Ourinhos. In 2005 he joined the John Cranko Ballet School and graduated in 2009. He was a student of the famous Russian teacher Peter Pestov.

After his graduation, where he performed the technically demanding Solo named Notations I – IV which Uwe Scholz created for Vladimir Malakhov in 1996, he was taken into the Stuttgart Ballet’s Corps de ballet for the season 2009/2010.

Promoted to Soloist at the beginning of the season 2012/2013 after debut in the role of Basilio in Maximiliano Guerra’s Don Quijote. One season later promoted to Principal Dancer.

He made his debut with Dutch National Ballet as a guest artist in 2015 and joined as principal dancer in 2016 for the next three years.

Parallel to that he has been dancing as a Guest Principal with the most prestigious ballet companies of the world such as the Australian Ballet, Tokyo Ballet, Czech National Ballet, Kremlin Ballet, Mariinsky Ballet, Royal Ballet and many others.

Since the season 2019/2020 Daniel is an acclaimed Guest Principal Dancer, performing with several ballet companies worldwide.

Anna was born in Siberia. She started to dance at 5 years old and graduated from the Krasnoyarsk Ballet School in Siberia. 

Anna started her career with the Siberian State ballet (Krasnoyarsk, Russia) as a soloist. Later she became a guest-principal dancer with Mikhailovsky theatre (Saint-Petersburg) and Tatarstan state ballet (Kazan). Since 2012 Anna joined Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre ballet company as a principal dancer. During this period of dancing with Russian ballet companies her repertoire was very diverse. 

At 2015 she joined Dutch National Ballet as a principal dancer. Since that moment Anna became an international guest-principal dancer .She worked with Teatro Colon (Argentina) for “La Bayadere” by Natalia Makarova,  with Semperoper Dresden ballet for “Manon” by K.McMillan. Currently Anna is working with Staatsballet Berlin as a guest.

Anna’s repertoire is very diverse. During her carrier she dances principal roles in almost all well known classical ballets as “Nutcracker” , “Sleeping beauty”, “La Bayadere”, ”Gizelle”, “Copelia”, “La fille mal gardee”, “La Sylphide” , “Snow Maiden”, “Don Quihote”, ”Romeo and Juliette”, “Swan lake” and others. Her repertoire also includes main roles in lots of neoclassical ballets by such a famous choreographers as K.McMillan, J.Robbins, J.Kranko, G.Balanchine, A.Ratmansky, C.Wheeldon , Hans van Manen ,D.Dawson,Y.Grigorovich, Rudi van Danzig ,Ted Brandsen and others. In a different time her partners on stage were Sergei Polunin, Ivan Vasiliev, Leonid Sarafanov and others. 

In a studio legendary Natalia Makarova, Guillaume Graffine, Alexey Ratmansky, Michael Messerer , Patricia Neary, Patricia Ruann , Karl Burnett, Olga Evreinoff, Yukari Saito,Yannick Boquen ,Larissa Lezhnina, Rachel Beaujean and many others helped her to improve her skills of dance. At 2008 and 2010 she won gold medals on International ballets competitions in Krasnoyarsk and Perm. She is a winner of «Dance Open 2018- miss virtuosity» prize in Sankt Petersburg.

Currently Anna is working successfully with Dutch National ballet as a principal dancer and participates lots of  Ballet Galas around the world.

Elena Yevseyeva was born in Izhevsk.
In 2001 she graduated from the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet (class of Marina Vasilieva).

From 2001 to 2008 she was a soloist with the Mikhailovsky Theatre, where she performed in the ballets The Nutcracker (Masha), The Sleeping Beauty (Aurora, Diamond Fairy), La Bayadère (Gamzatti), Don Quixote (Kitri), Le Corsaire (Medora),Raymonda (Raymonda), Giselle (Giselle), Chopiniana (Mazurka, Seventh Waltz), Swan Lake (Odette-Odile), Cipollino (Radish),Spartacus (Aegina).

Repertoire at the Mariinsky Theatre:

• La Sylphide (the Sylph);
  
• Giselle (Zulma, Classical Duet);
  
• La Bayadère (Gamzatti, Shades); 
• Le Corsaire (Gulnare, Trio of Odalisques);
  
• “Paquita” Grand pas (Variation), choreography by Marius Petipa; 
• Swan Lake (Friends of the Prince);
  
• Don Quixote (Kitri, Flower Girls);
  
• Chopiniana (Nocturne, Eleventh Waltz, Prelude, First Waltz);
  
• Les Noces (Soloist);
  
• The Fountain of Bakhchisarai (Maria);
  
• The Nutcracker (Masha, Classical Trio);
  
• The Young Lady and the Hooligan (the Young Lady);
• Shurale (Syuimbike);
• Walpurgis Night (Bacchante); 
• The Legend of Love (Shyrin, Gold Dance);
• Pas de quatre (Carlotta Grisi, Fanny Cerrito);
• George Balanchine’s ballets Apollo (Polyhymnia), La Valse, Symphony in C (III. Allegro vivace), Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Butterfly);
• The Nutcracker (Masha);
• Cinderella (Cinderella, Khudyshka);
• William Forsythe’s ballets In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated and Approximate Sonata;
  
• Ondine (Two Naiads);
• Glass Heart (Clock);
• and many others.
  

Elena has toured with the Mariinsky Ballet Company to Spain, France, Great Britain and Germany.

More information on the website of the Mariinsky Theatre.

In 2011 Ivan Zaytsev joined the ballet company of one of the best theatres of the world - Mikhailovsk, where very soon he became a Principal dancer, his repertoire includes solo and principal roles in La Sylphide, Le Corsaire, Cipollino, Don Quixote, Laurencia, The Flames of Paris, La Fille mal gardée, and Class Concert
as well as productions of Nacho Duato The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Multiplicity, Forms of Silence and Emptiness, Prelude, Invisible, and White Darkness. Ivan has toured with the Mikhailovsky Ballet Company to Japan, USA, Germany etc.

He start his career from Krasnodar Ballet School in 1997 and while studying he was training at the Yury Grigorovich Ballet Theatre where he performed roles in the ballets Spartacus, Romeo and Juliet, Raymonda, The Golden Age, The Nutcracker, and Cipollino.
In 2002 Ivan graduated from Krasnodar Ballet School and entered the Department of Choreography at St. Petersburg State University for Culture and Arts.
After graduation from the University in 2007, he joined Leonid Jacobson Ballet Theatre in St. Petersburg, where he danced Romeo (Romeo and Juliet), Jose (Passion for Carmen), Siegfried (Swan Lake), Prince (The Nutcracker), Albrecht (Giselle), and Rodin (The Kiss).

After participation in the 11th Moscow International Ballet Competition in 2009, he was invited to join Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre. Ivan´s parties in Eifman Ballet were:

• Basil in Don Quixote, 
• Onegin in Onegin, 
• Vronsky in Anna Karenina, 
• Ekaterina´s son in Russian Hamlet, 
• The Prince,
  
• The Young man & The Joker in Chaikovsky.
  

More information on the website of the Mikhailovsky theatre.

Bakhtiar was born in the city of Saryozeke, Almaty region. He graduated from the Almaty Choreographic School named after A.V. Seleznev (2003-2011). From 2011 to 2013 - soloist of Astana Opera and Ballet Theatre. Since 2013 he had been a soloist of State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after Abay. Since 2015 he has been the principal soloist of Astana Opera.

Awards:
Prize-winner at the VII International Competition of Choreographic Schools of Siberia (Novosibirsk, 2008);
Diploma of the International KIBC Contest (South Korea, 2009);
Prize-winner at the International Contest of Ballet Artists "Arrow" (2010);
The holder of the scholarship of the First President of RK NA. Nazarbayev (2010-2011);
Laureate of the 1st prize of the International Festival of Creative Youth "Shabyt" (2012);
The winner of the II Prize of the International Ballet Competition "Grand Prix of Siberia" (Krasnoyarsk, 2014);
Grand Prix of the V International Ballet Competition in Istanbul (Turkey, July 8, 2016);
Laureate of the 1st Prize of the XIII International Dance Contest in Seoul (South Korea, August 10, 2016);
Grand Prix of the III International Ballet Competition in Astana (September 16, 2016);
Grand Prix of the International Competition of Ballet Dancers VKIBC (New York, USA, 2017);
Prize-winner at the XIII International Competition of Ballet and Choreographers in Moscow (Russia, 2017).

Repertoire:
Spartacus (Spartak A. Khachaturyan)
Benvolio ("Romeo and Juliet" by S. Prokofiev)
The Jester ("The Swan Lake" by P. Tchaikovsky)
Syrym ("Karagoz" G. Zhubanova)
Nutcracker-Prince (The Nutcracker by P. Tchaikovsky)
Nurali ("The Fountain of Bakhchisarai" by B. Asafyev)
Solor (La Bayadère by L. Minkus)
Quasimodo (Notre Dame de Paris)
Basil (Don Quixote by L. Minkus)
Lesko ("Manon" to the music of J. Massenet)

Graduate at Royal Swedish Ballet School
Awarded with numerous international prizes

Evgeniya Victory Gonzalez was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. In 2015 she completed her education at the Royal Swedish Ballet School. During her time in Stockholm, she has appeared several times in roles at the Royal Swedish Opera.

From 2015 to 2018 she was a dancer at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg.

Since April 2018 she is a member of the ensemble of the Bavarian State Opera as Corps de Ballet Dancer.

Awards:
First prize in the international competition "Jeune Ballet Mediterranean" in Grasse 2014
Third prize at "The Nordic Baltic Ballet Competition" in Sweden 2014

One of the most outstanding European artists and choreographers, Denis Untila, will be one of the invited artistsfor the Stars Gala.

Denis Untila began his dance career in his homeland, Moldova, and completed his training by graduating from the Vienna Conservatory. He joined the Ballet Kiel in 2001 under the direction of Mario Schröder as a soloist. He performed as a guest dancer in Schröder’s choreography “The Wall” in Essen in 2004. Further guest appearances have taken him to the Moldovan National Opera, and to Salzau, France and Italy (“Europe Dance”), then to the ballet company of the Vienna State Opera, where he performed in “The Nutcracker” and as Oscar in Vladimir Malakhov’s ballet “A Masked Ball”.

Since the autumn of 2006 Denis has been a member of the Aalto Ballet Essen, firstly as a group dancer with solo obligations and then from 2009 as a soloist with group commitments. On the Aalto stage he has danced solo roles as Dmitri (“The Brothers Karamazov“), Valerio (“Leonce and Lena”), Blue Bird (“Sleeping Beauty”), Bécaud (“La vie en rose”), Lillas Pastia (“Carmen/Boléro”), Moritz (“Max and Moritz), as well as further soloist roles in “Homage to Queen” and “Irish Soul”. He has also choreographed “The Soldier’s Tale” (Family Concert), “Game” (“PTAH”) and together with Michelle Yamamoto, “Alice” (“PTAH II”), "Jo“ and "Passacaglia“ ("PTAH III“). In the 2012/2013 season he choreographed his first full-length ballet “Othello” for the Aalto Theatre. Denis Untila is the winner of the Aalto Stage Prize for young artists 2012. After successfully creating „Vibrations“ for Essener Philharmonie, he presents a new choreography in 2018: „Moving Colours“, together with Armen Hakobyan.