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Nina Ananiashvili (born Nino Ananiashvili; ka, ნინო ანანიაშვილი; born March 19, 1963) is a Georgian
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 ...
and artistic director of the State Ballet of Georgia. She has been described by the ''
Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was foun ...
'' as one of the twelve greatest ballerinas of all time, and in 2002 was named Best Ballerina of the Year by the US ''
Dance Magazine ''Dance Magazine'' is an American trade publication for dance. It was first published in June 1927 as ''The American Dancer''. ''Dance Magazine'' is currently part of Dance Media, led by longtime arts publisher Joanna Harp as president, and has mu ...
''. Ananiashvili has been a prominent fixture of the Soviet, Russian and Georgian ballet scene for decades. Shortly before the fall of the
Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...
, in 1987 a ''New York'' Magazine critic praised her as "the best thing about the Bolshoi's ''
Giselle ''Giselle'' ( , ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (; ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet () in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, it was first perfor ...
'' whether she appeared in the title role or as the queen of the wilis." In 2014, a film of her 1991 performance in ''Giselle'' with the Bolshoi ballet was released.


Early life and training

Nina Ananiashvili was born in Tbilisi,
Georgian SSR The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, also known as Soviet Georgia, the Georgian SSR, or simply Georgia, was one of the republics of the Soviet Union from its second occupation (by the Red Army) in 1921 to its independence in 1991. Cotermin ...
. Her father, Gedevan, and two older brothers, George and Levan, were all geologists; her mother, Lia Gogolashvili, a philologist. She was a sickly child and at the age of 4, her parents started her ice skating in an effort to improve her health. At 10, she became champion in her age group in Georgia. A dance teacher saw how she moved on the ice – in particular her balance and how she used her arms – and had her perform The Dying Swan on skates. Then the teacher took Nina to a theatre and showed her the feathered costume she could wear if she performed it on stage, just like
Maya Plisetskaya Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya (; 20 November 1925 – 2 May 2015) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, ballet director, and actress. In post-Soviet times, she held both Lithuanian and Spanish citizenship.
, the Bolshoi prima ballerina. In 1969, Ananiashvili entered the Georgia State Choreographic Institute. Tamara Vykhodtseva was her first teacher there. The great Vakhtang Chabukiani also took little Nina under his wing. Her progress was so impressive that it drew the attention of teachers from the Moscow Choreographic Institute, who convinced her parents to allow Nina to continue her studies there. In 1976, she entered the Moscow Choreographic Institute where her main teacher was Natalia Zolotova. In 1980, she made her stage debut in a school production of ''
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-Éti ...
''. She graduated and entered the Bolshoi Theater in 1981.


Ballet career

At the Bolshoi Theatre, Nina was taught by two of the greatest teachers in the Soviet Union, Raisa Struchkova and Marina Semenova. In 1982, although still a corps member, she danced her first principal role with the company, as Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, during a tour of Germany. That year, she made her first appearance with a foreign ballet company, the Alberta Ballet of Canada. In 1983 she was promoted to the rank of soloist and performed in her native
Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...
as a professional for the first time. Eventually she rose to become a
prima 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 dancers ...
. She, along with Andris Liepa, was the first Soviet dancer to appear as a guest performer with the
New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...
in 1988 (she had danced in "Raymonda Variations", "Apollo" and "Symphony in C" there). In subsequent years, Nina Ananiashvili became an international ballet superstar. Ananiashvili also had the honor of being the first Soviet ballerina to perform with the Royal Danish Ballet, and it was considered a particular triumph that she danced in such pieces as La Sylphide and Napoli, by the Danish master August Bournonville, who is considered a national treasure by many. During her career she had performed in many ballet theaters in various countries (in most of the places she performed as a guest artist): Bulgaria, Denmark, Argentina, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Hungary Italy, Japan, Monaco, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. In 1986, after a long interval caused by a strain in international relations, the Bolshoi dancers were allowed to tour the West once again. Ananiashvili's London performance of Raymonda was greeted with delight by both the public and the critics. That year was a turning point in her career. She was permitted to accept guest performances outside the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
since 1986 due to the policies of
Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...
(see
Perestroika ''Perestroika'' ( ; rus, перестройка, r=perestrojka, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg, links=no) was a political reform movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s, widely associ ...
and
Glasnost ''Glasnost'' ( ; , ) is a concept relating to openness and transparency. It has several general and specific meanings, including a policy of maximum openness in the activities of state institutions and freedom of information and the inadmissi ...
). She performed well in several competitions: in 1980 she won the Gold Medal in the junior group of the 10th International Ballet Competition in
Varna, Bulgaria Varna (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, third-largest city in Bulgaria and the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and in the Northern Bulgaria region. Situated strategically in the Gulf of Varna, t ...
; in 1981 she and Andris Liepa won Grand Prix in the junior group of the 4th International Ballet Competition in Moscow (Andris Liepa received the Gold Medal there). In 1985 she won the Gold Medal in the senior group at the 5th International Ballet Competition in Moscow; in 1986 she and Andris Liepa were awarded the Grand Prix at the 3rd USA International Ballet Competition in
Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...
, Mississippi, United States. She became a principal dancer for the
American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant. Through 2019, it had an annual eight-week season at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center) in the spr ...
in 1993, and in 1999 she joined the
Houston Ballet Houston Ballet, operated by Houston Ballet Foundation, is a professional ballet company based in Houston, Texas. The company consists of 59 dancers and produces over 85 performances per year. It is the 5th largest ballet company in the United ...
with that same rank. She made her debut with the Boston Ballet in that company's Russian-American production of Swan Lake. Accomplished style and rare dramatic talent have made Nina Ananiashvili one of the mostly well known dancers of modern times. Pledging government support, the newly appointed Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili asked Ananiashvili to rebuild the company in an effort to bolster national pride. She agreed and left Russia (and eventually the Bolshoi Ballet), to move back to Tbilisi. Since September 2004, she has been artistic director of the National Ballet Ensemble of Georgia. Attracting help from many former colleagues and adding extensively to the company's repertoire, Ananiashvili has greatly revitalized the State Ballet. Since 2006, she has acted as a United Nations National Goodwill Ambassador for
Millennium Development Goals In the United Nations, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were eight international development goals for the year 2015 created following the Millennium Summit, following the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration. These w ...
.


Personal life

Ananiashvili was married, in 1988, to
Grigol Vashadze Grigol Vashadze ( ka, გრიგოლ ვაშაძე, also transliterated as Gregory Vashadze) (born July 19, 1958) is a Georgian politician, diplomat and a former member of the Cabinet of Georgia in the capacity of the Minister for Cultu ...
, a Georgian diplomat. They have one daughter, Elene. On November 23, 2006 she became the Godmother of Nikoloz Saakashvili, younger son of the Georgian President
Mikheil Saakashvili Mikheil "Misha" Saakashvili (born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist. He was the third president of Georgia for two consecutive terms from 25 January 2004 to 17 November 2013. He is the founder and former chair ...
, together with
Ukrainian President The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...
Viktor Yushchenko Viktor Andriiovych Yushchenko (, ; born 23 February 1954) is a Ukrainian politician who was the third president of Ukraine from 23 January 2005 to 25 February 2010. He aimed to orient Ukraine towards Western world, the West, European Union, and N ...
who became the Godfather of the child.Rose Revolution 3rd Anniversary Promises.
''The Georgian Times''. November 29, 2006. Retrieved on May 21, 2007.


Awards

* People's Artist of Georgia (1989) *Russian Independent National Award "Triumph" (the first time a dancer was honoured), 1991. *National Shota Rustaveli Award, Georgia, 1993. *
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 ...
(17 March 1995) - for the great achievements in ar

2000: "Woman of the Year" (International Biographical Institute)*
Order of Merit for the Fatherland Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * ...
, 4th class (22 March 2001) - for outstanding contribution to the development of national music and theatre "Dance Magazine" Award, 2002. *"Ballet" Magazine Award Soul of the Dance (category Queen of the Dance), 2003.* Order of Honour (Georgia) (22 January 2003) 2003: "Medal of Honor" (Georgia's highest order). * Presidential Order of Light (Georgia, 26 May 2010)


See also

*
List of Russian ballet dancers This is a list of ballet dancers from the Russian Empire, Soviet Union, and Russian Federation, including both ethnic Russians and people of other ethnicities. This list includes as well those who were born in these three states but later emigra ...


Notes


External links

* *
Her long biography and repertoireNina in ''Giselle''Nina in ''Don Quixote''Archival footage of Nina Ananiashvili and Principles of the Bolshoi Ballet performing Charms of Mannerism in 1999 at Jacob's PillowArchival footage of Nina Ananiashvili and the State Ballet of Georgia performing Thais Pas de Deux in 2010 at Jacob's Pillow
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ananiashvili, Nina Prima ballerinas Bolshoi Ballet principal dancers Ballerinas from Georgia (country) Ballet dancers from Georgia (country) 1963 births Living people Female dancers from Tbilisi American Ballet Theatre principal dancers People's Artists of Georgia People's Artists of Russia Moscow State Academy of Choreography alumni Soviet ballerinas Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 4th class Recipients of the Presidential Order of Excellence 20th-century ballet dancers 21st-century ballet dancers