Yuri Grigorovich, Art Director of Bolshoi

Yury Nikolayevich Grigorovich (russian: Ю́рий Никола́евич Григоро́вич; born 2 January 1927 in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

) is a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n dancer and choreographertodayszaman.com
who dominated the Russian ballet for 30 years. Grigorovich was born into a family connected with the Imperial Russian Ballet. He graduated from the

Leningrad Choreographic School The Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet is a school of classical ballet in St Petersburg, Russia. Established in 1738 during the reign of Empress Anna, the academy was known as the Imperial Ballet School until the Soviet era, when, after a brief h ...

in 1946 and danced as a soloist of the

Kirov Ballet The Mariinsky Ballet (russian: Балет Мариинского театра) is the resident classical ballet company of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russ ...

until 1962. His staging of

Sergey Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

's ''

The Stone Flower "The Stone Flower" ( rus, Каменный цветок, Kamennyj tsvetok, p=ˈkamʲɪnːɨj tsvʲɪˈtok), also known as "The Flower of Stone", is a folk tale (also known as ''skaz'') of the Ural region of Russia collected and reworked by Pave ...

'' (1957) and of '' The Legend of Love'' (1961) brought him acclaim as a choreographer. In 1964 he moved to the

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 ...

, where he would work as an artistic director until 1995. His most famous productions at the Bolshoi were ''

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 Tchaiko ...

'' (1966), ''

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 ...

'' (1967), and ''

Ivan the Terrible Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584. Ivan ...

'' (1975). He controversially reworked ''

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 ...

'' to produce a happy end for the story in 1984. In 1995, he was accused of having allowed the theatre to plunge into stagnation and after many a squabble was ousted from office. Thereupon he choreographed for various Russian companies before settling in

Krasnodar Krasnodar (; rus, Краснода́р, p=krəsnɐˈdar; ady, Краснодар), formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southern ...

, where he set up his own company. Grigorovich has been heading the juries of numerous international competitions in classical ballet. After the death of his wife, the great ballerina

Natalia Bessmertnova Natalia Igorevna Bessmertnova (Russian: Наталья Игоревна Бессмертнова; – ) was a Soviet prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet and a People's Artist of the USSR (1976). Life Natalia Bessmertnova was born in Moscow ...

, on 19 February 2008, he was offered the opportunity to return to the Bolshoi again in the capacity of ballet master and choreographer.

Honours and awards

* 1957 -

Honoured Artist of the RSFSR Merited Artist of the Russian Federation (russian: link=no, Заслуженный артист Российской Федерации, ''Zasluzhenny artist Rossiyskoy Federatsii'') is an honorary title in the Russian Federation. The title is ...

* 1957 -

Medal "In Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of Leningrad" The Medal "In Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of Leningrad" (russian: Медаль «В память 250-летия Ленинграда») was a state commemorative medal of the Soviet Union established by decree of the Presidium of the ...

* 1959 - Order nip * 1966 -

People's Artist of the RSFSR People's Artist of the RSFSR (russian: Народный артист РСФСР, ''Narodnyj artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet Union artists, including theatre and film directors, choreographers, music performers, and orchest ...

* 1969 - Award of Sergei Diaghilev of the Paris Academy of Dance * 1970 - Jubilee medal "For Valiant Labour. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" * 1970 - Lenin Prize * 1973 -

People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. Nomenclature and significan ...

* 1976 -

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

* 1977 -

Order of Saints Cyril and Methodius The Order of Saints Cyril and Methodius is an award conferred by the Republic of Bulgaria. History It has had three incarnations : * first on 18 May 1909 by the Kingdom of Bulgaria, * second on 13 December 1950 by the People's Republic of Bulga ...

, 1st class (Bulgaria) * 1977 -

USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, Gosudarstvennaya premiya SSSR) was the Soviet Union's state honor. It was established on 9 September 1966. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, t ...

* 1977 - Medal "100 years of Bulgaria's Liberation from Ottoman slavery" * 1980 - Honorary Citizen of

Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city in Bulgaria **Varna Province **Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna **Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis *Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy *Varniai, a city in Lithuania * Varna (Šaba ...

* 1981 -

Order of the October Revolution The Order of the October Revolution (russian: Орден Октябрьской Революции, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferr ...

* 1981 -

People's Artist of the Uzbek SSR People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. Nomenclature and significan ...

* 1983 -

State Prize of the Uzbek SSR State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

* 1985 -

- for the creation of artistic and athletic programs of the XII World Youth and Student Festival in Luzhniki, Moscow * 1986 -

Hero of Socialist Labour The Hero of Socialist Labour (russian: links=no, Герой Социалистического Труда, Geroy Sotsialisticheskogo Truda) was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It repre ...

* 1986 -

* 1987 -

Order of the People's Republic of Bulgaria Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

, 1st class * 1995 - Honoured Artist of Kazakhstan * 1996 - People's Artist of the Republic of Bashkortostan * 1997 - Vaslav Nijinsky Medal (Ministry of Culture of Poland) * 2001 - Order of the Arts' Amber Cross ", the highest award of the Russian Academy of Arts and musical performance * 2002 -

Order of Merit for the Fatherland Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

, 3rd class - for outstanding contribution to the development of choreographic art * 2002 - "Badge poshani" (Honor), the highest award of the mayor of Kyiv * 2002 - Badge of "370 years of Yakutia in Russia" * 2002 - Fyodor Volkov award for his contribution to the theatrical art of the Russian Federation * 2003 - National Theatre Prize Golden Mask in nomination "For the honour and dignity" * 2003 - Badge of "civic virtue" of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) * 2003 - Medal of the "Hero of Labour of Kuban" (Krasnodar region) * 2004 -

Order of Merit (Ukraine) The Order of Merit ( uk, Орден «За заслуги») (Distinguished service) first, second or third class, is the Ukrainian order of merit, given to individuals for outstanding achievements in economics, science, culture, military or poli ...

, third class * 2004 - Medal of the National Opera of Ukraine to the 100th anniversary of Serge Lifar * 2004 - Badge of Honor of the Ministry of Culture and the Arts "for his personal contribution to the development of art" * 2005 - The highest theatrical award of St. Petersburg "Gold soffit" * 2005 - Order of Dostyk * 2006 - Award "Russian National Olympus" in nomination "Man epoch", medal "For the honor and valor" * 2006 -

Ludvig Nobel Ludvig Immanuel Nobel ( ; russian: Лю́двиг Эммануи́лович Нобе́ль, Ljúdvig Emmanuílovich Nobél’; sv, Ludvig Emmanuel Nobel ; 27 July 1831 – 12 April 1888) was a Swedish-Russian engineer, a noted businessman and a ...

Prize * 2007 -

, 2nd class - for outstanding contribution to the development of domestic and international choreographic art, many years of creative activity * 2007 -

Order of Francisc Skorina The Order of Francysk Skaryna ( be, О́рдэн Францы́ска Скары́ны) is an award of Belarus. It is named after Francysk Skaryna, one of the first book printers in Cyrillic script. Order of Francysk Skaryna is a single level aw ...

* 2008 -

Ovation The ovation ( la, ovatio from ''ovare'': to rejoice) was a form of the Roman triumph. Ovations were granted when war was not declared between enemies on the level of nations or states; when an enemy was considered basely inferior (e.g., slaves, p ...

* 2009 - Medal of Honour (Armenia) * 2011 -

, 1st class

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grigorovich, Yury Choreographers of Bolshoi Theatre Russian male ballet dancers Musicians from Saint Petersburg Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 1st class Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd class Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 3rd class Honored Artists of the RSFSR People's Artists of the RSFSR People's Artists of the USSR Honorary Members of the Russian Academy of Arts Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the USSR State Prize Heroes of Socialist Labour Recipients of the Order of Francysk Skaryna 1927 births Living people Prix Benois de la Danse jurors Soviet male ballet dancers