Mikhail Lavrovsky

Biography

2005 — 08 — Artistic Director of the Moscow Academic Music Theatre KS Stanislavsky and Vl.I. Nemirovich-Danchenko ballet company

Since 2010 — Artistic Director of the Moscow State Academy of Choreography

Mikhail Lavrovsky was born to a family of dancers on 29 October 1941 in Tbilisi. His mother was a famous ballerina Elena Chikvaidze, and his father — Leonid Lavrovsky — was the chief choreographer of the Bolshoi Theatre for almost 20 years.

In 1961 he finished the Moscow Choreographic School (now the Moscow State Choreographic Academy) where he studied under O. Khodot, N. Tarassov and G. Evdokimov and joined the Bolshoi Ballet. He perfected his excellence under the guidance of a renowned dancer and a teacher Alexei Ermolaev.

In 1979 he graduated from the Ballet-master faculty of the Russian University of Theatre Arts (GITIS) n.a. A.V. Lunacharsky (now RATI/ The Russian Academy of theatrical arts).

In 1983-1985 he was the artistic director of the Tbilisi State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre n.a. Z. Paliashvili.

In 1988 he left the troupe. He is a ballet master/ repetiteur with the Bolshoi Theater since 1987. Mikhail Lobukhin, Vladislav Lantratov and other ballet dancers rehearse under his guidance.

The ballet Fantasy on the Theme of Casanova to music by W. I. Mozart, premièred in 1993) is in the Bolshoi Theater repertoire.

Repertoire

Slave (A. Khachaturian’s Spartacus, choreography by L. Yakobson, 1962)

Georgy’s son (The Pages of Life, A. Balanchivadze, L. Lavrovsky production, 1961)

Philippe (Boris Asfiev’s The Flames of Paris, choreography by Vasily Vainonen, 1962)

Prince (Cinderella by S. Prokofiev, choreography by R. Zakharov, 1963)

Vatslav (Boris Asafiev’s The Fountain of Bakhchisaray; choreography by R. Zakharov, 1963)

Albrecht (Giselle by A. Adam, choreography by J. Coralli, J. Perrot and M. Petipa in L. Lavrovsky version, 1963)

Bluebird (The Sleeping Beauty by P.Tchaikovsky, choreography by M. Petipa in the version by Y. Grigorovich, 1963)

Coral (Rodion Shchedrin’s The Humpbacked Horse; choreography by A. Radunsky, 1963)

Frondoso (Laurencia by A. Crain, choreography by V. Chabukiani, 1964)

Qays (Majnun) (Layla and Majnun by S. Balasanyan, production by K. Goleyzovsky, 1965)

Ferkhad (Arif Melikov’s A Legend of Love; choreography by Yuri Grigorovich, 1965)

The Nutcracker-Prince (Nutcracker, by P. Tchaikovsky, choreography by Y. Grigorovich, 1966)

Basil (Don Quixote by L.Minkus, choreography by A. Gorsky, 1967)

Spartacus (A. Khachaturian’s Spartacus, production by Yuri Grigorovich, 1968)

Romeo (Romeo and Juliet by S. Prokofiev, choreography by L. Lavrovsky, 1969)

Prince (Swan Lake by P. Tchaikovsky, choreography by A. Gorsky, M. Petipa. L. Ivanov in the version by Y. Grigorovich, 1970)

Viktor (Angara by A. Eshpai, Y. Grigorovich production, 1976) — creator of the role

Ivan the Terrible (Ivan the Terrible to music by S. Prokofiev, choreography by Y. Grigorovich, 1978)

Paganini (Paganini to music of S. Rachmaninov, choreography by L. Lavrovsky, 1979)

Claudio (Love for Love. Music by Tikhon Khrennikov. Vera Boccadoro production. Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing adaptation to the ballet, 1979)

Artynov (Anyuta to music of V. Gavrilin, choreography by V. Vassiliev, 1986) — creator of the role at the Bolshoi theater

Capulet (Romeo and Juliet. Music by S. Prokofiev. Declan Donnelan and Radu Poklitary production, 2003)

He starred in the original TV ballets:

Romeo and Juliet (music by S. Prokofiev, choreography by N. Ryzhenko and V. Smirnov-Golovanov, director M. Volodarsky, Juliet — Natalia Bessmertnova, Mosfilm, c/a “Ekran”, 1968)

White Nights (after the novel by F. Dostoevsky, to music by A. Schoenberg, Nastenka — Nina Timofeeva, choreography and production by N. Ryzhenko and V. Smirnov-Golovanov, Mosfilm, c/a “Ekran”, 1972)

Fedra (music by A. Lokshin, he performed the part of Ippolit, Fedra — Nina Timofeeva, choreography and production by N. Ryzhenko and V. Smirnov-Golovanov, Mosfilm, c/a “Ekran”, 1972)

Three cards (After A. Pushkin’s story The Queen of Spades, music by K. Molchanov, 1983)

He staged the ballets:

Romeo and Juliet (after L. Lavrovsky, the Tbilisi Theatre n.a. Z. Paliashvili, he danced Romeo with Ekaterina Maximova as Juliet, 1983, 1983; Saratov Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, 2004)

Porgy and Bess (jazz-ballet, to music by G. Gershwin, the Tbilisi Theatre n.a. Z. Paliashvili, he danced Porgy, 1983)

Choreographic novellas to music by J. Bach, F. Liszt, and others (Arizona Ballet, Phoenix, the USA, 1987)

Suite No 2 for Flute by J. S. Bach (Arizona Ballet, Phoenix, the USA, 1989)

Casanova to music by W. A. Mozart (Atlanta Ballet, the USA, 1989)

Revelations to music by V. Kikta (theater-studio A Group of Citizens, the premier took place on the stage of the Moscow Academic Musical Theater n.a. K.S. Stanislavsky and VI. I. Nemirovich-Danchenko, 1991)

Mziri D. Toradze, (Houston Ballet, the USA, 1992)

More Powerful than Gold and Death to music by R. Wagner (the Russian Chamber Ballet “Moscow”, 1996)

Café-Block to music by G. Gershwin (the premier took place on the stage of the Moscow Operetta Theater, 1995)

Nijinsky to music by S. Rachmaninoff (with the participation of the Bolshoi Theater dancers, he danced the part of Sergei Diaghilev, the premier took place on the stage of Maly Theater, 2000)

Richard III to music by M. Ravel (he danced the title role, Lady Anna — Galina Shlyapina, the premier took place on the stage of the Concert Hall n.a. P. I. Tchaikovsky, 2000)

Matador to music by M.d. Falla (with the participation of the Bolshoi Theater dancers, the premier took place on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater, 2001)

In 1996 he revived Gizelle in the version of his father for the troupe of the Russian Chamber Ballet “Moscow”.

He staged original TV ballets:

Mziri (to music by D. Toradze, director Z. Kakabadze, he himself performed the title part, Georgian television films studio, 1977) — Grand Prix at the International Festival of the Dance-Video films Association, New-York (1978)

Prometheus (to music by A. Skriabin, director Z. Kakabadze, he himself performed the title part,

Georgian television films studio, 1981)

Choreographic novellas (1986)

A dreamer (video-version of a jazz-ballet Blues, he danced the title part, director V. Bunin, Mosfilm, 1989)

He staged dance and stage movement in the following performances at drama theaters:

Anna Karenina (a one-person production after the novel by L.N. Tolstoy, director A. Eshpay, Anna — Evgenia Simonova, Theatre Agency BOGIS, 1998)

The last night of the last tsar (after E. Radzinsky play, director V. Fokin. BOGIS, 1998)

Evgeny Onegin... Pushkin (director M. Krylov, BOGIS, 2000)

An excellent cure for melancholy (after the play by S. Zlotnikov. “School of modern play”, director I. Raikhelgauz, 2001)

Le Petit Prince; A. Saint-Exupéry, 2001, director M. Krylov, among the participants — Lubov Kazarnovskaya, Viktor Sukhorukov, the Bolshoi Theater soloists Denis MEdvedev and Irina Zibrova, BOGIS, 2001)

He was actively engaged in pedagogical activities, conducted workshops, took part in seminars in Germany, the USA (Houston Ballet), Japan (Tokyo-ballet), Italy (the National Dance Academy of Rome), Yugoslavia (the ballet company of the Serbian national theater, Novi Sad). He established the Choreographic School n.a. L.M. Lavrovsky (Moscow).