Olesya Novikova () is a Russian ballet dancer. She is a

principal dancer A principal dancer (often shortened to principal) is a dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. A principal may be either gender. The position is similar to that of ''Soloist (ballet), solois ...

with the

Mariinsky Theatre The Mariinsky Theatre (, also transcribed as Maryinsky or Mariyinsky) is a historic opera house in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th-century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces ...

. She was born in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

and studied at the

Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet 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 ...

. Upon graduation, she joined the Mariinsky Theatre; she has toured with them in Great Britain, Germany and China. Novikova won a prize at the International Vaganova-Prix Ballet Dancers' Competition in 2002. Novikova created the female lead role in ''Du Côté de chez “Swann”'' by Alexei Miroshnichenko. In 2011, she played the lead role in the ballet ''Raymonda''. In 2021, Novikova was promoted to the rank of Principal dancer of the

. She is married to Leonid Sarafanov, with him they have 4 children: Alexei (born 2010), Ksenia (born 2015), Alexander (born 2018) and Konstantin (born 2022).

Repertoire

*''

La Sylphide ''La Sylphide'' (; ) is a romantic ballet in two acts. There were two versions of the ballet; the original choreographed by Filippo Taglioni in 1832, and a second version choreographed by August Bournonville in 1836. Bournonville's is the only ve ...

'' (the Sylph); choreography by

August Bournonville August Bournonville (21 August 1805 – 30 November 1879) was a Danish ballet master and choreographer. He was the son of Antoine Bournonville, a dancer and choreographer trained under the French choreographer, Jean Georges Noverre, and the ne ...

*''

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 ...

'' (Giselle); choreography by Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot, and

Marius Petipa Marius Ivanovich Petipa (; born Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa; 11 March 1818) was a French and Russian ballet dancer, pedagogue and choreographer. He is considered one of the most influential ballet masters and choreographers in ballet history ...

*''

Le Corsaire ''Le Corsaire'' is a ballet typically presented in three acts, with a libretto originally created by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges loosely based on the poem '' The Corsair'' by Lord Byron. Originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to ...

'' (Gulnare); choreography by Marius Petipa *''

La Bayadère ''La Bayadère'' ("the temple dancer") ( ru. «Баядерка», ''Bayaderka'') is an 1877 ballet, originally staged in four acts and seven tableaux by the French choreographer Marius Petipa to music by Ludwig Minkus and libretto by . The ba ...

'' (Nikiya, Gamzatti); choreography by Marius Petipa * ''The Sleeping Beauty'' (Aurora, La Fee Miettes qui tombent, La Fee Coulante, Fleur de Farine, Gold Fairy, Silver Fairy); choreography by Marius Petipa, version by

Konstantin Sergeyev Konstantin Mikhailovich Sergeyev (; – 1 April 1992) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, ballet master, pedagogue and choreographer for the Kirov Theatre. When the Kirov Ballet returned to Leningrad from Perm (where it had been moved durin ...

*''The Sleeping Beauty'' (Aurora, Generosity Fairy, Silver Fairy); choreography by Marius Petipa, version by

Sergei Vikharev Sergei Vikharev (Russian: Сергей Геннадьевич Вихарев) (15 February 1962 – 2 June 2017) was a Russian ballet dancer, choreographer of reconstructions and historian. Biography Sergei Vikharev was born in Saint Petersburg ...

*''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...

'' (Odette-Odile, Pas de trois, Cygnets); choreography by Marius Petipa *''

Raymonda ''Raymonda'' () is a ballet, grand ballet in three acts, four scenes with an apotheosis, originally choreographed by Marius Petipa to the music of Alexander Glazunov (his Opus number, opus 57) and libretto by Lydia Pashkova. ''Raymonda'' was creat ...

'' (Raymonda, grand pas, variation); choreography by Marius Petipa *''

Le Réveil de Flore ''Le Réveil de Flore'' (English language, en. ''The Awakening of Flora''), (Russian language, ru. «Пробуждение Флоры», ''Probuzhdenie Flory'') is a ''ballet Anacreontics, anacréontique'' in one act, with choreography by Marius ...

'' (Flore); choreography by Marius Petipa * ''Don Quixote'' (Kitri, Flower Girl, Variation in Act IV); choreography by

Alexander Gorsky Alexander Gorsky (August 6, 1871 – 1924), a Russian ballet choreographer and a contemporary of Marius Petipa, is known for restaging Petipa's classical ballets such as ''Swan Lake'', ''Don Quixote'', and ''The Nutcracker''. Gorsky "sought greate ...

*'' Chopiniana'' (Nocturne, Eleventh Waltz); choreography by

Michel Fokine Michael Fokine ( – 22 August 1942) was a Russian choreographer and dancer. Career Early years Fokine was born in Saint Petersburg to a prosperous merchant and at the age of 9 was accepted into the Saint Petersburg Imperial Ballet Sch ...

*'' Fountain of Bakhchisarai'' (Maria); choreography by Rostislav Zakharov *''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' (, ), Opus number, Op. 71, is an 1892 two-act classical ballet (conceived as a '; ) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree in a child's imagination featuring a Nutcracker doll. Th ...

'' (Masha); choreography by Vasili Vainonen * ''Romeo and Juliet'' (Juliet); choreography by Leonid Lavrovsky *''Etudes''; choreography by

Harald Lander Harald Alfred Bernhardt Stevnsborg Lander (25 February 1905 – 14 September 1971) was a Danish dancer, choreographer and artistic director of the Royal Danish Ballet. Lander was born in Copenhagen. He started as a dancer, studying under ballet ...

*''

Marguerite and Armand ''Marguerite and Armand'' is a ballet danced to an orchestral arrangement of Franz Liszt's B minor piano sonata. It was created in 1963 by the British choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton specifically for Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn. The ba ...

'' (Marguerite); choreography by

Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the oppositio ...

* ''Manon'' (Courtesan); choreography by

Kenneth MacMillan Sir Kenneth MacMillan (11 December 192929 October 1992) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer who was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977, and its principal choreographer from 1977 until his death. Ea ...

* ''Apollo'' (Polyhymnia); choreography by

George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze;, Romanization of Georgian, : April 30, 1983) was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers ...

* ''Symphony in C'' (Third Movement); choreography by George Balanchine * ''The Four Temperaments''; choreography by George Balanchine * ''Jewels'' (Emeralds, Rubies, Diamonds); choreography by George Balanchine * ''Ballet Imperial''; choreography by George Balanchine * ''Theme and Variations''; choreography by George Balanchine *''Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux''; choreography by George Balanchine *''The Legend of Love'' (Shyrin); choreography by

Yuri Grigorovich Yury Nikolayevich Grigorovich (; 2 January 1927 – 19 May 2025) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, ballet master, choreographer, and pedagogue who dominated the Russian ballet for 30 years, especially as artistic director of the Bolshoi B ...

* ''Carmen Suite'' (Carmen); choreography by

Alberto Alonso Alberto Julio Rayneri Alonso (22 May 1917 – 31 December 2007) was a Cuban dancer and choreographer, the brother of Fernando Alonso and brother-in-law of Alicia Alonso (née Martinez). He was influential in the development of the Cuban style ...

*''

Adagio Hammerklavier ''Adagio Hammerklavier'' is a ballet choreographed by Hans van Manen to the ''Adagio'' from Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 29, ''Hammerklavier''. The ballet is plotless and danced by three couples. Van Manen made ''Adagio Hammerklavier'' for the ...

''; choreography by

Hans van Manen Hans Arthur Gerard van Manen (; born 11 July 1932) is a Dutch ballet dancer, choreographer and photographer. He studied under Sonia Gaskell and Françoise Adret. Van Manen wrote many ballets. He worked for the Dutch National Ballet from 1973 to ...

*''5 Tangos''; choreography by Hans van Manen *''The Nutcracker'' (Masha); production by Mihail Chemiakin and Kirill Simonov *'' Middle Duet''; choreography by

Alexei Ratmansky Alexei Osipovich Ratmansky (, born August 27, 1968) is a Russian-Ukrainian-American choreographer and former ballet dancer. From 2004 to 2008 he was the director of the Moscow Bolshoi Ballet. He left Russia in 2008. In 2009 he was appointed the ar ...

*''Anna Karenina'' (Anna); choreography by Alexei Ratmansky *'' The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude''; choreography by William Forsythe *''

In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated IN, In or in may refer to: Dans * India (country code IN) * Indiana, United States (postal code IN) * Ingolstadt, Germany (license plate code IN) * In, Russia, a town in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast Businesses and organizations * Independen ...

''; choreography by William Forsythe *'' Ondine'' (Ondine, Naiads); choreography by

Pierre Lacotte Pierre Lacotte (4 April 1932 – 10 April 2023) was a French ballet dancer, choreographer, teacher, and company director. He specialised in the reconstruction of lost choreographies of romantic ballets. Early life Lacotte was born on 4 April 19 ...

*''Without''; choreography by

Benjamin Millepied Benjamin Millepied (; born 10 June 1977) is a French dancer and choreographer, who has lived and worked in the United States since joining the New York City Ballet in 1995, where he became a soloist in 1998 and a principal in 2002. He has als ...

*''Le Parc'' (Soloist); choreography by

Angelin Preljocaj Angelin Preljocaj (; born 19 January 1957) is a French dancer and choreographer of contemporary dance. Early life Angelin Preljocaj was born in 1957 in Sucy-en-Brie, France. He is of Albanians, Albanian descent. His father was born in Vermosh bu ...

*''

Les noces ''The Wedding'', or ''Svadebka (''), is a Russian-language ballet-cantata by Igor Stravinsky scored unusually for four vocal soloists, chorus, percussion and four pianos. Dedicating the work to impresario Sergei Diaghilev, the composer described ...

''; choreography by

Bronislava Nijinska Bronislava Nijinska (; ; ; ; – February 21, 1972) was a Russian ballet dancer of Polish origin, and an innovative choreographer. She came of age in a family of traveling, professional dancers. Her own career began in Saint Petersburg. Soon ...

*''Grand Pas Classique''; choreography by Victor Gsovsky *''The Meek One'' (the Meek One); choreography by Donvena Pandoursky *''Flight of Angels'' (Soloist); choreography by

Edwaard Liang Edwaard Liang (born c. 1975/1976 Also available a. in Taipei, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese-born American dancer and choreography, choreographer. He grew up in Marin County, California. Career Liang began studying dance at the age of 5. He entered the ...

*''Du Cote de chez Swann''; choreography by Alexei Miroshnichenko *''Nirvana''; choreography by Emil Faski In 2011, at Teatro alla Scala she appeared in the lead role in the premiere performance of the ballet ''Raymonda'' (production by

)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Novikova, Olesya Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet alumni Mariinsky Ballet principal dancers 21st-century Russian ballet dancers