Ilze Marisovna Liepa (; born 22 November 1963 in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

) is a Russian

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

dancer and actress. She has been a soloist

ballerina A ballet dancer is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. Ballet dancer ...

at the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈat(ə)r, t=Grand Theater) is a historic opera house in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové. Before the October Revolutio ...

since 1981. She was invested with the title of

Merited Artist of the Russian Federation Merited Artist of the Russian Federation (, ''Zasluzhenny artist Rossiyskoy Federatsii''), also known as Honored Artist of Russia, is an honorary title in the Russian Federation. The title is awarded to actors, directors, filmmakers, writers, d ...

in 1996, the

People's Artist of Russia People's Artist of the Russian Federation (, ''Narodnyy artist Rossiyskoy Federatsii''), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the Russian Federation, is an honorary and the highest title awarded to citizens of the Russian Federation ...

title in 2002, and was awarded the

State Prize of the Russian Federation The State Prize of the Russian Federation, officially translated in Russia as Russian Federation National Award, is a state honorary prize established in 1992 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. In 2004 the rules for selection of laureates ...

in 2003. She won a Golden Mask Award in 2003 for her performance in the ballet production ''Padaemand''. She has also appeared in the films '' Bambi's Childhood'' (1985), '' Lermontov'' (1986), '' Parallel Voices'' (2005), and '' The Bottomless Bag'' (2017), and the

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

'' Empire Under Attack'' (2000). She has further authored the books ''Liepa method. Philosophy of the body.'' (2012), and ''Theatrical Sculptures'' (2014). Liepa held dual Lithuanian and Russian citizenship. After an interview where she expressed support for

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

in the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, Liepa was stripped of her Lithuanian citizenship in 2024 by presidential decree.

References

1963 births Living people Dancers from Moscow Russian actresses Russian ballerinas Russian male writers Recipients of the Golden Mask People's Artists of Russia Honored Artists of the Russian Federation State Prize of the Russian Federation laureates Russian Academy of Theatre Arts alumni Bolshoi Ballet principal dancers People who lost citizenship Naturalized citizens of Lithuania {{Russia-artist-stub