Natalia Bessmertnova
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Natalia Igorevna Bessmertnova was the legendary Soviet prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet.
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[edit] History
She was born in Moscow on July 19, 1941 and later trained in the famous Bolshoi Moscow Ballet School from 1953 to 1961. Among her teachers were Maria Kozhukhova and Sofia Golovkina, and later Marina Semyonova. She graduated in 1961 as the first student in the school's history receiving A+ in the final examinations. In 1963 she joined the Bolshoi Ballet and was its prima ballerina for three decades. She is married to Yuri Grigorovich, Director and Chief choreographer of the Bolshoi. She was made People's Artist of the USSR in 1976.
[edit] Title roles
- Giselle in Lavrosky's 1963 Giselle production
- Leili in Goleizovsky's Leili and Mejnun 1964
- Anastasia in Grigorovich's Ivan the Terrible 1975
- Valentina in Grigorovich's The Angara 1976
- Juliet in Grigorovich's new Romeo and Juliet 1979
- Rita in Grigorovich's The Age of Gold by Dmitri Shostakovich in 1982
- Raymonda in Grigorovich's new Raymonda production 1984
- Giselle in Grigorovich's Giselle in 1991
[edit] Other important roles
- Phrygia in Spartacus
- Odette-Odile in Swan Lake
- Shirin in Legend of Love
- Kitri in Don Quixote
- Maria in The Fountain of Bakhchisarai
- The girl in Le Spectre de la Rose
[edit] Awards
- Goldmedal at Varna International Ballet Competition in 1965.
- The Anna Pavlova Prize in Paris 1970.
- People's Artist of the USSR in 1976.
[edit] External links
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