Famous Russian Choreographers

Latvian-born Russian-American dancer and choreographer Mikhail Baryshnikov was a prominent male classical dancer of the 1970s and 1980s. Born in Latvian SSR, he moved to America where he joined the New York City Ballet. Within years, he became one of the most widely recognized contemporary ballet dancers in the world. He is also a dramatic actor.

Born into a Tatar Muslim family, Rudolf Nureyev grew up to gain fans both for his exceptional ballet skills and for his sharp cheek bones. One of the greatest male ballet dancers ever, he gained fame performing with stars such as Margot Fonteynhe. A closeted homosexual, he died of AIDS.

Kristina Rihanoff is a Russian professional ballroom dancer, author, choreographer, and instructor. She achieved popularity after competing in the popular British television dance contest, Strictly Come Dancing. Also known for her philanthropic efforts, Kristina Rihanoff works closely with a children's charity named The Dot Com Foundation, which helps children handle challenging situations.

Vaslav Nijinsky was a ballet dancer and choreographer. He is counted among the greatest male dancers of the early 20th century. He was known for the intensity of his characterizations. He was brilliant and could dance en pointe, a rare skill few male dancers of his era possessed. He suffered from mental health issues in his later life. 

Michel Fokine was a Russian dancer and choreographer whose pieces are performed internationally to this day. Fokine is credited with choreographing the works of popular dancers like Anna Pavlova. Renowned for his groundbreaking works, such as Le Pavillon d'Armide, Michel Fokine has been portrayed in a couple of films, namely Nijinsky and A Woman for All Time.

Maya Plisetskaya was a legendary Soviet and Russian ballerina. Growing up in a war-torn region, she had a difficult childhood. She sought solace in ballet and pursued a career as a dancer. She was remarkably fluid in her movements and soon became internationally renowned. She later became a ballet director and choreographer. She was married to composer Rodion Shchedrin. 

Apart from being a renowned Russian ballerina, Lydia Lopokova was also the wife of well-known economist John Maynard Keynes and was thus known as Lady Keynes. She toured across Europe and America and appeared in plays such as The Lady of the Slipper and Age of Reason.

Léonide Massine was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer who created Les Présages, the first symphonic ballet in the world. Between 1915 and 1921, Massine worked at Sergei Diaghilev's popular company Ballets Russes where he served as the principal choreographer. In 2002, Léonide Massine was inducted into the National Museum of Dance and Hall of Fame.

Nikolai Morozov is a Russian retired ice dancer, choreographer, and figure skating coach. Morozov represented Belarus at the 1998 Winter Olympics and World Championships. He is credited with coaching Japanese figure skater Shizuka Arakawa at the 2006 Olympics where she won the gold medal. Nikolai Morozov also coached Miki Ando to a couple of world titles.

Tamara Karsavina was a Russian ballet dancer who served as a principal artist at Sergei Diaghilev's popular company The Ballets Russes. Karsavina also taught ballet and is credited with co-founding modern British ballet. After settling in Britain, Tamara Karsavina popularized the dance form in Britain and helped establish The Royal Academy of Dance as well as The Royal Ballet.

Russian ballerina Alina Somova was initially pushed into sports by her mother but later moved to ballet. Now the principal dancer at the Mariinsky Ballet, she has also won many awards, such as a Golden Mask for her performance as the Tsar-Maiden in the ballet The Little Humpbacked Horse.

Igor Moiseyev was a Russian choreographer best remembered as the 20th-century's greatest choreographer of character dance. He helped popularize character dance, a style similar to folk dance with more theatrics and professionalism. Over the course of his illustrious career, Igor Moiseyev received several prestigious awards, such as the Lenin Prize, USSR State Prize, and Russian Federation State Prize.

Bolshoi Ballet principal dancer Ivan Vasiliev is best known for his performances in ballets such as Don Quixote and The Nutcracker. Named an Honoured Artist of Russia, he has also won several awards, such as the Soul of Dance Prize and the International Dance Association Prize.

Alexei Ratmansky was not just a phenomenal ballet dancer but also rescued the Bolshoi Ballet from a financial disaster as its artistic director. One of his best-known works as a choreographer was for Dreams of Japan. He was the first artist-in-residence at the American Ballet Theatre.

Yury Grigorovich is a Soviet and Russian choreographer and dancer. One of the most popular and successful ballet dancers of his generation, Grigorovich dominated the Russian ballet scene for over three decades. Grigorovich has also headed the juries of several international competitions in classical ballet. He has also received several awards, such as the Lenin Prize and Ludvig Nobel Prize.

Irina Zenovka is a Russian choreographer who works with the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team. In addition to choreographing the Russian national team, Irina Zenovka is also credited with choreographing routines for several successful rhythmic gymnasts like Evgeniya Kanaeva, Daria Dmitrieva, Margarita Mamun, and Dina Averina among others.

Sulamith Messerer was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer. Messerer is credited with establishing the foundation for Japan's classical ballet; she played a major role in the establishment of Japan's dance company, Tokyo Ballet. Sulamith Messerer is also remembered for her association with the popular Bolshoi Theatre where she performed as a prima ballerina for 25 years. 

Konstantin Sergeyev was a Russian danseur, choreographer, and artistic director. He worked as a choreographer at the popular Mariinsky Theatre and went on to become the company's head choreographer. He contributed immensely to the success of the company which earned him several awards, including four Stalin Prizes. In 1957, he was named a People's Artist of the USSR.

Alexander Alexeyevich Gorsky was a Russian ballet choreographer. A contemporary of Marius Petipa, Gorsky is best remembered for restaging the former's classical ballets like The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Swan Lake. Alexander Alexeyevich Gorsky is also remembered for valuing acting skills over dance technique which made him one of the most controversial ballet choreographers of his generation.

Makhmud Esambayev was a Soviet and Chechen ballet master, dancer, choreographer, and actor. Counted among the most popular dancers of the Soviet Union, Makhmud Esambayev was honored with several prestigious awards, including the Hero of Socialist Labour and People's Artist of the USSR titles.

Christian Johansson was a ballet teacher and choreographer. He is best remembered for working at the Imperial Russian Ballet where he served as a ballet master. Johansson is widely regarded as one of the most prominent teachers in the history of Russian ballet. Christian Johansson is credited with influencing a generation of ballet dancers.

Leonid Lavrovsky was a Russian ballet choreographer best remembered for choreographing Sergei Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. In 1944, he was chosen as the Bolshoi Theater's head ballet master, thanks to the success and popularity of Romeo and Juliet. At the Bolshoi, Leonid Lavrovsky restaged Romeo and Juliet in 1946 for which he received the prestigious Stalin Prize.

Rostislav Zakharov was a Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, and opera director. He is best remembered for choreographing Cinderella (1945) and The Fountain of Bakhchisaray (1934). He also worked as a professor and taught at the Russian Academy of the Arts in Moscow. In 1969, Rostislav Zakharov was honored with the People's Artist of the USSR.

Nicholas Sergeyev was a Russian ballet choreographer, dancer, and teacher. He served as a theatre director of the Imperial Russian Ballet at the Maryinsky Theatre in St Petersburg. From 1919 onwards, he produced ballets for several leading western companies. Nicholas Sergeyev is credited with preserving the records of the Lev Ivanov and Marius Petipa choreographies of classical ballets.

A renowned Bolshoi Ballet dancer, Vasily Tikhomirov is best remembered for his performance in The Red Poppy with his wife Yekaterina Geltzer. His powerful and masculine moves added to the typical Bolshoi Ballet style of dance. He developed the Bolshoi school markedly after the 1917 Revolution.

A resident of Los Angeles, USA since 2017, Russian dancer cum choreographer, Polina Glen, is also a qualified electrical power installer, travel guide and translator. Beginning her career as a model in her home country, she eventually ran her own dance school in St. Petersburg before moving to USA. Active on social media, she has a huge following on Instagram