Opera Ballet

Anastasia Matvienko is an internationally acclaimed prima ballerina and ballet master, recognized as one of the leading interpreters of both the classical and contemporary ballet repertoire. With more than two decades of stage experience, she has built an outstanding international career distinguished by technical brilliance, dramatic depth, and artistic versatility, while also dedicating herself to teaching and mentoring the next generation of dancers.

She received her professional training at the Kyiv State Choreographic School (1996–2001). Early in her career, her exceptional talent was confirmed through major successes at prestigious ballet competitions, including the Silver Medal at the Serge Lifar International Ballet Competition in Kyiv (2002), top prizes at the Varna International Ballet Competition (2004), the Gold Medal at the International Ballet and Choreography Competition in Moscow (2005), and the DANCE OPEN International Ballet Prize for Best Partners (2011).

Matvienko’s professional career has been closely connected with some of the world’s most renowned ballet institutions. She served as Prima Ballerina of the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St Petersburg (2007–2009) and subsequently as First Soloist of the Mariinsky Theatre Ballet (2009–2022), where she created numerous celebrated interpretations of leading roles in the classical canon. She has also appeared as a guest principal dancer with the Novosibirsk Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre and for many years performed regularly with the New National Theatre Tokyo.

Her international engagements have taken her to major stages worldwide, including London’s Royal Opera House (Covent Garden), Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Teatro Regio, Lincoln Center, New York City Center, and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as well as tours across Europe, Asia, and North America. Between 2014 and 2020 she performed the title role in The Great Gatsby, choreographed by Dwight Rhoden, a production that achieved significant international success.

Her extensive repertoire encompasses the principal roles of the classical heritage – Giselle, Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, La Bayadère, Raymonda, Don Quixote, Romeo and Juliet, and The Nutcracker – alongside works by leading 20th- and 21st-century choreographers. She has performed in ballets by George Balanchine, Alexei Ratmansky, Yuri Grigorovich, Michel Fokine, Wayne McGregor, Angelin Preljocaj, Benjamin Millepied, Jerome Robbins, Hans van Manen, and Edward Clug, with whom she has maintained a particularly close artistic collaboration.

Alongside her performing career, Matvienko is deeply committed to pedagogy. She taught choreography at the International Slavic University (2005–2007) and earned her Master’s degree from the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet in St Petersburg in 2020, one of the most prestigious ballet academies in the world. Now based in Slovenia, she works as a guest ballet teacher at the Conservatory of Music and Ballet Ljubljana and continues to appear internationally as a guest artist.

In 2022 she co-founded the international ballet platform Ballet Stage, which provides high-level training programmes, masterclasses, auditions, and competitions for young dancers. With its flagship Summer Intensive in Ljubljana, the platform has developed into a global network connecting dancers, educators, and institutions, supporting artistic growth and professional opportunities within the ballet community.

Today, Anastasia Matvienko stands out as an artist who unites the finest traditions of classical ballet with contemporary expressiveness and a strong pedagogical mission – as a performer, mentor, and creative force shaping the future of ballet.