Sergei Vladimirovich Polunin (russian: Сергей Владимирович Полунин, ua, Сергій Володимирович Полунін, ''Serhiy Volodymyrovych Polunin''; born 20 November 1989) is a Russian

ballet dancer A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

, actor and model. He has Ukrainian, Russian, and Serbian

citizenship Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

, but has "always regarded himself as Russian". Born in

Kherson Kherson (, ) is a port city of Ukraine that serves as the administrative centre of Kherson Oblast. Located on the Black Sea and on the Dnieper River, Kherson is the home of a major ship-building industry and is a regional economic centre. I ...

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

, Polunin started out in gymnastics before switching to ballet at the age of eight and attended the Kyiv State Choreographic Institute. After graduating, he joined the British Royal Ballet School at the age of 13 in 2003. Polunin has received numerous awards, including the

Prix de Lausanne The Prix de Lausanne is an international dance competition held annually in Lausanne, Switzerland. The competition is for young dancers seeking to pursue a professional career in classical ballet, and many former prize winners of the competition a ...

and Youth America Grand Prix in 2006, and in 2007 was named the

Young British Dancer of the Year The Young British Dancer of the Year Competition began in 2000. It is held annually at the Royal Ballet School, London and the Linbury Studio Theatre, Covent Garden. The competition is open to young British and British-trained classical dancers. Th ...

. In 2010, at the age of 20, Polunin became the Royal Ballet's youngest ever male principal dancer. After two years, he quit the ballet company to focus on a freelance career. As a freelance principal dancer, Polunin has been a guest artist at various theaters worldwide such as Royal Ballet,

Sadler's Wells Theatre Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue in Clerkenwell, London, England located on Rosebery Avenue next to New River Head. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500-sea ...

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...

Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre The Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre (russian: Московский академический Музыкальный театр имени народных артистов К. С. Станиславског ...

, La Scala Theatre,

Teatro San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent ...

and was a guest artist for the Bayerisches Staatsballet.

Early life

Sergei Polunin was born in

. From the age of four to eight, he trained at a

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

academy, and then spent another four years at the Kyiv State Choreographic Institute. His mother, Galina, moved with him to

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...

, while his father, Vladimir Polunin, worked in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...

to support them.

Dancing career

2003–2013: Early years

After Polunin graduated from the

Choreographic Academy (КДХУ), he joined the British Royal Ballet School at the age of 13 in 2003, sponsored by the

Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev ( ; Tatar/ Bashkir: Рудольф Хәмит улы Нуриев; rus, Рудо́льф Хаме́тович Нуре́ев, p=rʊˈdolʲf xɐˈmʲetəvʲɪtɕ nʊˈrʲejɪf; 17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet ...

Foundation. Polunin has received numerous awards, including the

and Youth America Grand Prix in 2006, and in 2007 was named the

. He became a first soloist at the Royal Ballet in 2009. In June 2010, at the age of 20, Polunin became the Royal Ballet's youngest ever male principal. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described Polunin as "a fabulous dancer, with a steely technique and beautiful line" in its review of ''

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...

'' (2011) when he danced as the Knave, who doubled as Alice's romantic interest. After two successful years with the Royal Ballet, on 24 January 2012, Polunin announced his resignation from the company with immediate effect. He said he had become so unhappy that, "the artist in imwas dying." Several months later, in summer 2012, Polunin was invited to Russia by the

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since th ...

of ballet of the two Russian theatres, Igor Zelensky, and became a principal dancer with the Stanislavsky Music Theatre and Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. In early April 2013, it was reported that Polunin had walked out on the Schaufuss Ballet's performance of ''Midnight Express'' just days before its opening night.

2014–present: International recognition

He was first shown in the international spotlight in the role of Slavemaster/Sheppard in the 25th Anniversary '' The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall''. Polunin was shortlisted as the best male dancer for the 2014

National Dance awards The National Dance Awards are presented annually in the United Kingdom by The Critics' Circle, and are awarded to recognise excellence in professional dance. They are widely regarded as the most prestigious award presented for dance in the UK, ...

in the U.K. In 2014, Polunin started his collaboration with the famed American photographer and music director

David LaChapelle David LaChapelle (born March 11, 1963) is an American photographer, music video director and film director. He is best known for his work in fashion, photography, which often references art history and sometimes conveys social messages. His pho ...

and took part in his new projects, including a dance video to the song "

Take Me to Church "Take Me to Church" is a song by Irish singer-songwriter Hozier. It was released as his debut single on 13 September 2013, originally featuring on his extended play of the same name, before being featured as the opening track of his 2014 debut ...

" by Hozier in February 2015. The video went viral and exposed Polunin to a wider audience. Polunin was the subject of the 2016 documentary film ''Dancer'', directed by Steven Cantor, analyzing his childhood, training, and rise to international fame. In 2017, he set up Project Polunin, which aims to create new dance and ballet works for both stage and film. Project Polunin aims to bring together dancers, contemporary artists, musicians and choreographers from various creative backgrounds to work together. In June 2018, a promotional video starring Polunin was featured in a grand ceremony of the reopening of the

National Museum of Serbia The National Museum of Serbia ( sr, / ) is the largest and oldest museum in Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in the central zone of Belgrade on a square plot between the Republic Square, formerly Theatre Square, and three streets: Čika Ljubina ...

after 15 years of renovation and in July of the same year, Polunin performed on the Main Stage of the Serbian EXIT festival for the grand opening ceremony of 18th festival edition. His performance was inspired by the festival's theme, dubbed EXIT Freedom. The company was reincorporated as Polunin Ink in 2018. In January 2019, Polunin was invited to perform in the Paris Opéra Ballet's ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoye ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, link=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failur ...

''. The Ballet revoked the invitation 48 hours later after being notified of Polunin's recent homophobic and sexist

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

posts that sparked international outrage, including from dancers within the company. Vladimir Putin in Sevastopol (2019-09-13)

Polunin and his company, Polunin Ink introduced three new productions of ballet in 2019. The first was "Rasputin", choreographed by Yuka Oishi and premiered in London Palladium in June; the show received generally negative reviews from London critics but was later successfully shown in cities such as Zurich and Tashkent. The second was on 26 August 2019, Polunin danced the role of Romeo in ''Romeo and Juliet'' choreographed by

Johan Kobborg Johan Kobborg (born 5 June 1972) is a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, director and visual artist. He is most noted as a ballet dancer, having been a principal dancer with both the Royal Danish Ballet and the Royal Ballet in London, as well a ...

and with

Alina Cojocaru Alina Cojocaru (born 27 May 1981) is a Romanian ballet dancer. She was previously a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet and a lead principal with the English National Ballet. Early years Alina Cojocaru was born and raised in Bucharest, Roman ...

as Juliet, in the

Arena of Verona The Verona Arena ( it, Arena di Verona ) is a Roman amphitheatre in Piazza Bra in Verona, Italy built in 30 AD. It is still in use today and is internationally famous for the large-scale opera performances given there. It is one of the bes ...

to over 10,000 members in the audience and to critical acclaim. As the year closed, the third production of Polunin Ink, "Little Red and the Wolf", choreographed by Ross Freddie Ray, music composed by Kirill Richter, and performed by Sergei Polunin, Laura Fernandez-Gromova, Johan Kobborg and premiered in Zaryadye Concert Hall, Moscow on 29 and 30 December 2019. In 2019, he also performed in Dubai, Israel, Munich, and Shanghai. Noteworthy was the performance on 7 September 2019 when he was invited to dance at the ancient Buddhist temple Ninna-ji in Kyoto, Japan. Branded as the "Encounter of the East and the West", efforts were put into illustrating the theme with artists from Europe and Asia performing on the stage. Polunin's outfit was a carefully crafted

kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

specially designed and made by artist Kamida Kazumak and with the calligraphy of the '' Heart Sutra'', which teaches the illusion of the phenomenal world, written on the outfit by calligrapher, Tomoko Kawao. The performance was later broadcast nationwide in Japan. Polunin was recognized as the Personality of the Year by Danza & Danza Awards 2019 (Premio D&D-Mario Bedendo), for which the jury wrote: "A multi-faceted artist... he and his Polunin Ink company scored not one but two goals in 2019",Buzzi, Maria Luisa (Chair of the Jury) & etc., "Special: Danza& Danza Awards 2019", ''Danza International'' No. 17 January/February 2020, p.15. namely, "a 'modern' take on the twentieth-century classic ''Romeo & Juliet'' where Polunin gave a powerful, passionate performance opposite Alina Cojocaru", and “''Rasputin'' a memorable dance-drama in which Sergei outdid himself". Polunin fully supported the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...

and was invited to speak and perform at government-organized ceremonies. He was censured after performing/dancing to a song dedicated to fallen Russian soldiers while on tour in Uzbekistan. He performed in full military uniform which Uzbek authorities said deviated from the planned programme.

Performances and projects

* The Woodsman
Red Riding Hood
with Johan Kobborg, Laura Fernandez-Gromova and choreography by Ross Freddie-Ray, music b
Kirill Richter
scenery designer Otto Bubeníček at th
Zaryadye Concert Hall
in Moscow on 29 and 30 December 2019. *Romeo. ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

'' with music by Sergei Prokofyev, with

in the role of Juliet, choreography by

, set designer: David Umemoto, lighting designer: Konstantin Binkin. World premiere in

Arena di Verona The Verona Arena ( it, Arena di Verona ) is a Roman amphitheatre in Piazza Bra in Verona, Italy built in 30 AD. It is still in use today and is internationally famous for the large-scale opera performances given there. It is one of the be ...

, 26 August 2019 * Rasputin. ''Rasputin'' with music b
Kirill Richter
with Alexey Lyubimov,

, Djordje Kalenic, Elena Ilinykh, choreography b
Yuka Oishi
set designer: Otto Bubeníček, lighting designer: Konstantin Binkin, costume designer:

Ulyana Sergeenko Ulyana Viktorovna Sergeenko (russian: Ульяна Викторовна Сергеенко; born 30 August 1979) is a Kazakh and Russian fashion designer. Early life Sergeenko was born into a family of linguists in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan, ...

. World premiere in

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 a ...

, 31 May 2019 * ''Sacré'', based on

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

Stravinsky's ' Sacre du Printemps', choreography b
Yuka Oishi
World premiere Origen Festival Cultural, Julier Pass 14 July 2018 * ''Sartori'', with music by Lorenz Dangel, with

Natalia Osipova Natalia Petrovna Osipova (russian: Наталья Петровна Осипова; born 18 May 1986) is a Russian ballerina, currently a principal ballerina with The Royal Ballet in London. Early life and training Born in Moscow, Osipova began ...

, Jason Reilly, Alexey Lyubimov, Thomas Waddington, choreography by Sergei Polunin, set design:

, costume design: Angelina Atlagic, lighting design: Christian Kass, director: Gabriel Marcel del Vecchio, World premiere

London Coliseum The London Coliseum (also known as the Coliseum Theatre) is a theatre in St Martin's Lane, Westminster, built as one of London's largest and most luxurious "family" variety theatres. Opened on 24 December 1904 as the London Coliseum Theatre ...

10 December 2017 * Spartacus. ''

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprisin ...

'' by Y. Grigorovich and

Aram Khachaturian Aram Ilyich Khachaturian (; rus, Арам Ильич Хачатурян, , ɐˈram ɨˈlʲjitɕ xətɕɪtʊˈrʲan, Ru-Aram Ilyich Khachaturian.ogg; hy, Արամ Խաչատրյան, ''Aram Xačʿatryan''; 1 May 1978) was a Soviet and Armenia ...

(premiere – 2014, Novosibirsk) * Rudolf. ''

Mayerling Mayerling is a small village (pop. 200) in Lower Austria belonging to the municipality of Alland in the district of Baden. It is situated on the Schwechat river, in the Wienerwald (''Vienna woods''), southwest of Vienna. From 1550, it was in t ...

'' by Sir

Kenneth MacMillan Sir Kenneth MacMillan (11 December 192929 October 1992) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer who was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977, and its principal choreographer from 1977 until his death. E ...

(premiere – 2013, Moscow) * Des Grieux. ''

L'histoire de Manon ''L'histoire de Manon'', generally referred to as ''Manon'', is a ballet choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan to music by Jules Massenet and based on the 1731 novel '' Manon Lescaut'' by Abbé Prévost. The ballet was first performed by The Royal ...

'' with choreography by Sir

* Aminta. '' Sylvia'' with choreography by

Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the opposit ...

* Solor. ''

La Bayadère ''La Bayadère'' ("the temple dancer") ( ru. «Баядерка», ''Bayaderka'') is a ballet, originally staged in four acts and seven tableaux by French choreographer Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus. The ballet was staged especiall ...

'' with music by

Ludwig Minkus Ludwig Minkus (russian: link=no, Людвиг Минкус), also known as Léon Fyodorovich Minkus (23 March 1826, Vienna – 7 December 1917, Vienna), was a Jewish-Austrian composer of ballet music, a violin virtuoso and teacher. Minkus is ...

and choreography by

Natalia Makarova Natalia Romanovna Makarova (russian: Ната́лия Рома́новна Мака́рова, born 21 November 1940) is a Russian prima ballerina and choreographer. ''The History of Dance'', published in 1981, notes that "her performances set ...

* Albrect. ''

Giselle ''Giselle'' (; ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (, ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet (" ballet-pantomime") in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon ...

'' with music by

Adolphe Adam Adolphe Charles Adam (; 24 July 1803 – 3 May 1856) was a French composer, teacher and music critic. A prolific composer for the theatre, he is best known today for his ballets ''Giselle'' (1841) and '' Le corsaire'' (1856), his operas '' Le po ...

* Nutcracker Prince.''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaik ...

'' with music by

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

* Prince. ''

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

'' with music by Sergei Prokofyev * Prince Désiré. '' The Sleeping Beauty'' with music by

* Armand. '' Marguerite and Armand'' with choreography by

* Main part in "Rhapsody" with choreography by

* Knave of Hearts.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...

' with choreography by

Christopher Wheeldon Christopher Peter Wheeldon OBE (born 22 March 1973) is an English international choreographer of contemporary ballet. Life and career Born in Yeovil, Somerset, to an engineer and a physical therapist, Wheeldon began training to be a ballet da ...

— the first performer of the role and a participant of the first premiere * Basilio. ''

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of West ...

'' with music by

and choreography by Alexander Gorsky edited by M. Chichinadze * Ali. '' Le Corsaire'' with music by

and choreography by

Marius Petipa Marius Ivanovich Petipa (russian: Мариус Иванович Петипа), born Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa (11 March 1818), was a French ballet dancer, pedagogue and choreographer. Petipa is one of the most influential ballet masters an ...

and

Pyotr Gusev Pyotr Andreyevich Gusev (russian: Пётр Андреевич Гусев) was a ballet dancer, teacher and choreographer. He was born on 29 December, 1904 in St. Petersburg. He studied at the St. Petersburg School of Choreography under . He was a ...

edited by Khomyakov and Zelensky * Frantz. ''

Coppélia ''Coppélia'' (sometimes subtitled: ''La Fille aux Yeux d'Émail'' (The Girl with the Enamel Eyes)) is a comic ballet from 1870 originally choreographed by Arthur Saint-Léon to the music of Léo Delibes, with libretto by Charles-Louis-Étie ...

'' with choreography by

Roland Petit Roland Petit (13 January 192410 July 2011) was a French ballet company director, choreographer and dancer. He trained at the Paris Opera Ballet school, and became well known for his creative ballets. Life and work The son of shoe designer Ros ...

* Prince Siegfried, ''

'' with music by

* Wolf, '' Peter and Wolf'' with music by Sergei Prokofyev * Slave Master (Hannibal) and Shepherd (Il Muto) in

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musical ...

'' Phantom of the opera'' At the Royal Albert Hall in Celebration of 25 Years *

Faun The faun (, grc, φαῦνος, ''phaunos'', ) is a half- human and half-goat mythological creature appearing in Greek and Roman mythology. Originally fauns of Roman mythology were spirits (genii) of rustic places, lesser versions of their ...

and

James Dean James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931September 30, 1955) was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, '' Rebel Without a Caus ...

for the project ''Men in Motion'' by

Ivan Putrov Ivan Oleksandrovych Putrov ( uk, Іван Олександрович Путров; born 8 March 1980) is a Ukrainian-born ballet dancer and producer. He trained at The Kyiv State Choreographic Institute and at The Royal Ballet School. Upon graduat ...

* Dior Project * Performances for the Russian project ''Big Ballet'' (Bolshoi Balet) on TV-channel Kultura (Culture): 'Narcissus' by

Kasyan Goleizovsky Kasyan Yaroslavich Goleizovsky (5 March 1892 – 4 May 1970) was a Russian choreographer and dancer. He was a pioneer in the Moscow avant-garde ballet scene in the 1920s. His innovative and acrobatic routines heavily influenced artists like G ...

, ''Bourgeois'' by Ben Van Cauwenbergh, ''100 Celsius'' by Emil Faski, Armand from ''Marguerite and Armand'' by

, Frantz from ''Coppélia'' by

and Akteon from ''Diana and Akteon'' by Agrippina Vaganova *

for the ''Bohemian Tune'' concert in Moscow with

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu, CQ (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor, filmmaker, businessman and vineyard owner since 1989 who is one of the most prolific thespians in film history having completed over 250 films since 1967 al ...

, choreographed by Sergei Polunin and Alexey Lyubimov * Lucien d'Hervilly, '' Paquita'' grand pas – premiere took place in Novosibirsk State Opera and Ballet Theatre, 9 November 2013. Choreographed by Igor Zelensky and Yana Serebriakova.

Awards

* Prize Winner, Serge Lifar International Ballet Competition (2002) * Gold medal and Audience Award, the

(2006) * Winner, Youth America Grand Prix /YAGP/ (2006) * Gold medal, Serge Lifar International Ballet Competition in

(2006) * The Young British Dancer of the year in the United Kingdom (2007) * Critics' Circle National Dance Awards for the Best Male Dancer (2010) * Critics' Circle National Dance Awards for the Best Classical Male Dancer (2011) * Winner, Russian TV-project and competition ''Big Ballet'',

Bolshoi Ballet The Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it came to internat ...

(2012) * Soul of Dance award (Russian ''Ballet'' magazine, 2014) *Personality of the Year, Danza& Danza Awards (2019) (Italian magazine)

Acting career

Polunin made his feature film debut in the 2017 adaptation of '' Murder on the Orient Express'', followed by a performance in the 2018 film ''Red Sparrow''. Also in 2018, he appeared as Yuri Soloviev in the

biopic ''

The White Crow ''The White Crow'' is a 2018 biographical drama film written by David Hare and directed by Ralph Fiennes. It chronicles the life and dance career of ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev, played by Oleg Ivenko. It is inspired by the book ''Rudolf Nurey ...

'', directed by

Ralph Fiennes Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...

Personal life

As of 2020, Polunin is engaged to Russian ice dancer Elena Ilinykh. On 16 January 2020, their son, Mir, was born in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

, U.S. In April 2022, their second son, Dar, was born. Along with a number of other celebrities, Polunin was granted Serbian citizenship in 2017, for his work in promoting the country and its culture. In November 2018, Polunin posted on his

account voicing support for Russian president

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

. In December 2018, Polunin expressed admiration and support for U.S. president

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

in another Instagram post.

References

External links

Sergei Polunin Official Web Site: PoluninInk

Sergei Polunin Official YouTube Channel
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Polunin, Sergei Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet People educated at the Royal Ballet School Prix de Lausanne winners Russian male ballet dancers Russian male models 1989 births Actors from Kherson Naturalised citizens of Russia Naturalized citizens of Serbia Living people