Where were you born?
I was born in Alexandria when it was part of USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics), but now is in Ukraine.
Do you have brothers or sisters?
I have a sister. She’s a soloist of the same company.
Where did you train to dance and how old were you when you started?
I was 10 years old when I started and I graduated from the Moscow Ballet Academy.
How long have you been with the Bolshoi Ballet?
Now about 15 years!
Do you live close to the theatre? If not how far do you travel every day?
I live close to the Bolshoi Theatre, thankfully.
How many performances would you do, do you know, in an average year?
The Bolshoi is a huge theatre. It has around 500 shows in a season. A big part of that are ballet performances. I’m in almost of all of them, so I can say around 250 performances per year.
How often do you tour overseas?
It depends. On average two times a year I tour with the company.
What are your favourite works to perform?
I love Spartacus. There are not many ballets for men and that is one of them. I’m in the Spartacus team and it is breathtaking to dance.
Do you have a favourite role?
I love drama in ballet and the emotional roles.
What do you do on your days off?
I do many “to do” stuff that I miss while working for the company. Spending that time out of the theatre if it’s possible and trying to get time for movie editing. I love it!
You created the website Balletbase.com; could you explain when and why you created it? Who is the website mainly for?
It was created as a database in 2008 and transformed into a social networking site in 2009 with an “only by invitation” membership. The purpose is very simple. When you join a company it represents you on their official web site, with a biography etc but it is deleted when you change companies. So, there was no professional database similar to the iMDB site for the movie world. Moreover most dancers disappear at the end of their careers as if they had never been. I disagree with that and want to keep every dancer on record for dance history. Everyone is important.
What has been a highlight of your time with the Bolshoi?
The moment I was accepted to the company; a dream come true.
What do you always take to a performance?
Absolutely nothing special. It’s most important though to bring yourself to the stage on time!
What is your best characteristic or physical feature?
I think I’m a good communicator. In ballet my best physical feature is my height. I’m somewhere in the middle, so I can dance with the tall and small groups.
And your worst?
I have not enough concentration. Sometimes I can’t choose what direction to take.
What couldn’t you live without?
My wife, and our baby who will be born in a month.
Visit: www.balletbase.com
This article was first published in the August-September issue of Dance Australia.