Yury Grigorovich

Yury Nikolayevich Grigorovich (Russian: Ю́рий Никола́евич Григоро́вич; born 2 January 1927 in Leningrad) is a Soviet and Russian dancer and choreographer who dominated the Russian ballet for 30 years.

Contents

• Ballet Romeo and Juliet Bolshoy Theatre
• Honours and awards
• References

Grigorovich was born into a family connected with the Imperial Russian Ballet. He graduated from the Leningrad Choreographic School in 1946 and danced as a soloist of the Kirov Ballet until 1962. His staging of Sergey Prokofiev's The Stone Flower (1957) and of The Legend of Love (1961) brought him acclaim as a choreographer. In 1964 he moved to the Bolshoi Theatre, where he would work as an artistic director until 1995. His most famous productions at the Bolshoi were The Nutcracker (1966), Spartacus (1967), and Ivan the Terrible (1975). He controversially reworked Swan Lake 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, 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, 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

1957 - Medal "In Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of Leningrad"

1959 - Order of the science and art of Egypt

1966 - People's Artist of the RSFSR

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

1976 - Order of Lenin

1977 - Order of Saints Cyril and Methodius, 1st class (Bulgaria)

1977 - USSR State Prize

1977 - Medal "100 years of Bulgaria's Liberation from Ottoman slavery"

1980 - Honorary Citizen of Varna

1981 - Order of the October Revolution

1981 - People's Artist of the Uzbek SSR

1983 - State Prize of the Uzbek SSR

1985 - USSR State Prize - for the creation of artistic and athletic programs of the XII World Youth and Student Festival in Luzhniki, Moscow

1986 - Hero of Socialist Labour

1986 - Order of Lenin

1987 - Order of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, 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, 3rd class - for outstanding contribution to the development of choreographic art

2002 - "Badge poshani" (Honor), the highest award of the mayor of Kiev

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), 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 Prize

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

2007 - Order of Francisc Skorina

2008 - Ovation

2009 - Medal of Honour (Armenia)

2011 - Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 1st class