Istanbul

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).

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).

Now he performs solo roles in the new productions of the ballets Giselle, ou Les Wilis, Swan Lake, Le Corsaire, Laurencia, The Flames of Paris, Cipollino, and The Bronze Horseman.

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.

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.

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

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), "Cantina Girl" (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.

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.

In 1996 she graduated from Vaganova Academy of Ballet as a student of legendary Inma 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 Syphide 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 Rossiiskaya 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.