#Yaroslavna Kuprina

[tikitania]

Looking ahead I found this shocker. Sleeping Beauty is returning to the Bolshoi stage — and Yaroslavna Kuprina is dancing Aurora in September.

This is a huge debut for a girl who was injured all last season and has very little experience on the Bolshoi stage.

Of the ‘23 Vaganova grads, she was the one hoped would stay at the Mariinsky. She was so technically clean and had elegant style.

I honestly hope this debut is wildly successful and not another case of Vaziev pushing too much too soon. His track record has me worried.

[elegantballetalk]

I know this might be a year too late and everyone is getting tired of it, but what do you think about Bolshoi's 2023 girls (Maria Koshkareva, Sofya Valiullina, Yaroslavna Kuprina, Taisia Konovalova, Polina Netsvetaeva-Dolgalyova), especially after 1.5 year? My personal favourite is Sofya, I always find her dancing enjoyable to watch. Sometimes I'm sad that it seems like she's the only one who's being left behind among those five, like the four others are debuting major (and even leading) roles one after another, but Sofya gets much less and it's mostly minor soloist roles. On the other hand, I'm relieved that it's actually better for her growth artistically, but still... I wonder if she will ever get major/leading roles someday :")

It’s not too late—never is. Actually, I think following a dancer for many years makes it more and more exciting.

Maria Koshkareva, Sofya Valiullina, and Yaroslavna Kuprina are all really good dancers, and one must consider the difficulties of moving to a new city and getting used to company life, which must be especially tough in a place like the Bolshoi.

Maria and Sofya are really good friends; they have been in class together since their first year at Vaganova, and they continue to be friends now, so at least they have that. Last season, they danced the Swan Lake Pas de Trois many times together, and I always found it very nice. But look how visible their style differences are! They both danced the Orange Fairy in Sleeping Beauty, but they looked so different—not in a bad way, just stylistically. They are completely different types of dancers, even though they’ve been trained together since they were about 10ish.

Yaroslavna Kuprina suffered a serious injury almost at the beginning of last year’s season, but this year she started with a bang, debuting as Aurora. I wish we were in managements head to see why they were like: ah yes, let's have this young girl debut aurora randomly at the start of what basically is her first season. I would love to know hwat goes on behind the scenes. But here is a video on YouTube from last year of her and Sofya dancing the Three Swans from Swan Lake, which you might find interesting.

So my opinions:

Maria Koshkareva: She is the "favored" one. Now we can only guess why—maybe it's her attitude, personality, luck, or her association with Kovaleva/Tsiskaridze. Who knows? Perhaps they see something in her, perceive in her a spark of something rare, something worth cultivating. Or maybe, since she won that competition and has gained a bit of a following, they think that if they push her, she could become a future star. For a theater, having these "famous" dancers offers prestige and helps sell tickets, especially on tour. And one can only become a famous dancer if the theater actively markets you that way—by giving you major roles, high-profile performances, and constant visibility. This is likely why they keep casting her in significant roles, even if it might be better to wait a few years before giving her such pressure. The theater seems to be fast-tracking her career, not necessarily because she’s ready, but because they believe they can shape her into a star if they position her as one early on.

Regarding her dancing: I don't really know how to explain this, but she's so Russian and so Bolshoi. Her dancing is so Russian; it almost gives you a feel of how dancers used to dance in the past—bold and free, compromising technique to make you feel something (while simultaneously, obviously, having so much technique that they can afford to command the stage as they wish). I think she has that freedom to give her star quality. But sometimes I don’t love her facial expressions on stage, but that’s just my personal opinion.

What I do admire, without question, is the way she doth grace her movements with the cambre—that deep, arching of the back. Oh, Maria, thou art a master of the cambre! It doth add such elegance and beauty to her already magnificent dancing. More cambres, please!

In general watching her is not relaxing for me, like she doesn't give the lyricism that I so often crave when watching ballet. BUT:

I really, really, really liked her as Angela in Marco Spada. I think she was full of energy, and especially considering it was a debut, I think it was really good.

Same thing with Kitri: I really enjoyed it. There was a youthful exuberance in her portrayal, and the spirit of the character was conveyed with great veracity.

I also really liked her dancing as Juliette's friend at the Mariinsky. I thought her lines looked beautiful.

She did one of the fairies a few times in Sleeping Beauty as well. I liked it—nothing stood out in a good or bad way.

Gamzatti: I think her Italian fouettés are really cool, but her regular fouettés... less so? They don’t look easy on her... they seemed somewhat laboured.

Princess Masha: Her elegance and grace suited the role well, and I was pleased with what I saw.

She obviously did more roles, like Swanilda, but no opinions on her in these or other roles come to mind. She also did diamonds, but I can't remember if i saw anyhting.

I also hope she improves her pas de deux, but I don’t think it’s her fault. I do not fault her; nor her partner, its just that this is a skill that comes with time and experience. For example, at minute 1:46:04, you can see Maria and her partner getting coached, but Maria's very young coach can barely get a word in. P.S. At the start of this video, you can see Maria and Sofya in class together, and gravitating toward each other when it’s time to do center. There is something most endearing about this quiet camaraderie.

Sofya Valiullina is also amongst my favourites, I must confess. She has a soft soft in my heart, or because also I feel this fear for her not being valued enough, I fear shadows might cloud her, but she's bright! I love her so, perhaps it is because she appears so happy and assured in her dancing, always carrying herself with an air of capability. There is not a trace of frailty in her; indeed, she exudes classical grace in every movement! I find her work thoroughly enjoyable, and her musicality particularly striking. Oddly enough—and I must admit, it does seem strange—I would pay a considerable sum for her hair colour. Ordinarily, I would say that brunette or black locks suit ballerinas best, yet she is the exception to this rule.

In truth, I do not believe she lags behind the others in any sense. While she may not have been entrusted with roles as grand as Aurora or Kitri, she is frequently on stage, constantly honing her craft, and always looks splendid in whatever part she performs. This is not to say she has been without her own share of significant roles—far from it, especially this season. She has danced numerous solos for opera performances, and I must say, the videos she has posted are filled with such energy; I have watched them on several occasions.

Her recent debut as the Spanish Bride in Swan Lake was remarkably strong, and her portrayal of Naina’s Magical Garden was most enchanting. Her jumps are magnificent, her ballon sublime, though I do wish her arms were occasionally a touch more fluid.

I noticed she is slated to perform as Countess Cherry in Cipollino on December 6—how delightful! I shall be most curious to see how that unfolds.

And let us not forget: when we wonder why certain artists are not appearing as frequently, it does not always imply they have fallen out of favour. Perhaps they are engaged in rigorous rehearsals for something new, recovering from a minor injury, or simply not posting updates. Often, we are left in the dark.

I know it sounds rather peculiar, but I do follow Sofya’s and Maria’s physiotherapist on Instagram (@gasoarovalex). From time to time, he shares performances of Sofya’s that she herself does not. Were I not following him, I would never have been the wiser! In fact, I also follow her mother on the platform—though I admit, that may be slightly odd. But what else is a person to do when they are far from Russia, unable to speak the language, and unable to witness the performances in person? Insider information is a precious commodity.

Was it not last year that Sofya made her debut as Myrtha, as well as in Chopiniana? I do not remember the details with perfect clarity, but the recollection is a pleasant one. I believe she also danced two parts in The Nutcracker, the Waltz and Spanish Doll, though I have yet to see any footage of those performances, and so I cannot offer an opinion.

But don't you worry. Sofia's career is already more active than many other corp members. She's not "buried" in the corps. Truth is that careers in the theatre are slow, it's the fast tracking careers that are the anomaly. Sofia is already doing much more in her second season than others in their fifth or season! Take Svetlana Savelieva as an example. She's been at the mariinsky since 2019, and only yesterday promoted to Coryphee, even though Savelieva has an enormous, romantic like, talent. But things go like this, sometimes they are unfair, or management thinks that mentally or physically the dancer is not "ready" yet. And except for Kuprina's random Aurora (which she only performed once) its not like Kuprina has had much different roles than Valiullina.

As for Yaroslavna Kuprina—oh, how she was criticised and trashed she was for her debut as Aurora! But I, for one, found it perfectly acceptable, mediocre, I would say... fine. Not a performance to be remembered for its brilliance, certainly, but neither was it a disaster. It was simply... fine. I did find it very random that she went from having an injury to literally having Aurora be her comeback moment, but good for her. Personally, I'm less familiar with her—she seems to be more private. I wish I could see her Vaganova exam to get more of feeling of her technical capabilities in the studio. (If anyone should have a link, do send it my way!) If one were to peruse the playbill, one would often see her name listed for soloist roles or smaller parts, though she posts very little, and thus I am left with no footage unless a fellow theatre-goer kindly shares a recording. I think she debuted Gamzatti? Never saw it.

I must say, however, I did quite enjoy her portrayal of Juliet’s friend. She has such beautiful lines. Her arabesque and attitude are simply exquisite, and her port de bras—those graceful arms, wrists, and fingers—are nothing short of sublime. Yet, I do feel her expression sometimes betrays her; there are moments when she looks as though she is in some discomfort, she looks like she's in pain.

Now, I must admit to being unfamiliar with Taisia Konovalova and Polina Netsvetaeva-Dolgalyova, as I do not pay much heed to the students of the Bolshoi. My apologies! However, I do follow one particular 2024 graduate from the Bolshoi, Darina Moseeva, who has extraordinary jumps and legs. She was due to debut as Gamzatti, but unfortunately, for reasons of health, she didn't. A curious tidbit: Darina Moseeva was once a student at the Eifman Academy, same class of Yesenia Anushenkova, the 2023 trainee with Mariinsky who has since graduated from Eifman in 2024 and is now a coryphée at Mariinsky alongside Alisa Barinova.

One can’t help but be intrigued by the journey of Kamila Sultangareeva, a graduate of the BBA. Her departure from Vaganova in 2023 stirred quite a bit of drama, and so I am most curious to see what she makes of her career. So far, however, it seems she has been largely inactive, though she is listed in the Bolshoi corps.

I’m also interested in following Elisabetta Nallin (italian) and Maria Mia Zakota’s journeys at the Bolshoi. They are Vaganova 2024 grads, and the two girls are also really good friends in real life. So far, they’ve had a lot of roles and have shared the stage numerous times. Cute.

[patricedumonde]

Do you think Sofya Valiullina can progress further with Bolshoi? Especially with new hires/graduates coming into the company soon. Not sure what the consensus is in Russia but from what I see majority of Russian comments on Instagram and YouTube of her performances are rather negative. I know it is impossible but I really think she is so perfect for so many ballet companies outside of Russia. I can see her at Royal ballet. Also, any news of Kuprina ?

Tough question re: Sofya. It depends on how many graduates are going to Bolshoi and how many of them have soloist potential. Kamila Sultangareeva will definitely be one of them. I still have high hopes for her bc she is being given soloist roles, but you’re right in assuming that it might die down this coming year. It really depends on who’s coming!

Tbh I want to see more Vaganova graduates in America too. I really thought it would’ve been awesome to have Jaden Grimm in ABT or SF Ballet. Sofya in Royal Ballet would be such a dream, her repertoire would increase drastically!

More VBA graduates should consider Vienna State Ballet too, it’s now under Alessandra Ferri’s leadership!! There are also so many companies outside of Russia that would serve them all well. Berlin, Munich, Dutch National, Paris!

As for Yaroslavna, I saw her dressed up like she was going to class back in January/February. This was on her instagram story but that was it. No hints at a return to stage so I’m definitely worried about that.

[balletomaneblog]

Former Vaganova Students as Hebe from the Awakening of Flora!

Here's a collection of Vaganova grads dancing the Hebe variation from the Awakening of Flora. I really love when Vaganova girls perform this variation so I thought it'd be fun to see them all together! I particularly enjoyed Bulanova, Khiteyeva, and Koshkareva, but they're all lovely!

Maria Bulanova at Vaganova Graduation (8th year, 2018)

Alexandra Khiteyeva at a class concert (6th year, 2017)

Maria Koshkareva competing at IBC Moscow (7th year, 2022)

Yaroslavna Kuprina competing at IBC Moscow (7th year, 2022)

Eleonora Sevenard in a gala concert (7th year, 2016)

Renata Shakirova at Vaganova Graduation (8th year, 2014)

[anjelalala]

Yaroslavna Kuprina

"Do everything with kindness and love. If you approach everything with a bright soul, then any undertaking will succeed."

The poetic combination of first and last name, as if already at birth, determined the future strong connection of our today's heroine with the world of art.

Photos by: Alisa Aslanova for Ballet Magazine Russia

[ballet-symphonie]

Vaganova Ballet Academy Asks

So there is official information of Koshkareva signing a solo contract with Bolshoi and Nikolay Tsiskaridze's close friend (devilonpointshoes on Telegram) and ballet enthusiasts on ballet forums stating that Koshkareva, Valiullina, and Kuprina going to Bolshoi. How do you feel about all the star students going to Bolshoi instead of Mariinsky like many expected? It isn't unexpected that Valiullina is going to Bolshoi given that she suits that company but with Koshkareva and Kuprina being Mariinsky's trainees for a year, and their dance style suiting Mariinsky more, I really do not understand why they chose Bolshoi (perhaps they were given soloist role straight away)? Anyways I'm also confused if Koshkareva is going to Bolshoi like Kuprina, why is her name not taken down from the trainee name list on the Mariinsky website... Honestly idk how to feel about this and ngl Im pretty disappointed that Koshkareva and Kuprina are not going to Mariinsky :(

The Bolshoi is the fast track. These girls have been promoted as stars and BT has likely made them big promises to keep treating them that way. With how the Bolshoi gives out roles at the speed of light to young prominent grads, plus the benefits that generally come with dancing in Moscow (read: money), the offers are likely very tempting. The corps life is tough, no one wants to do it if they don't have to lmao.

I thought with this reinvented MT and more publicized MT trainee situation that MT management would have managed to keep at least one of Koshkareva and Kuprina but I guess not. I am actually more surprised Valiullina is tagging along as I thought her body type might hold her back. While I agree with many that her dancing fits the broad movement and expressive style of the Bolshoi, that’s unfortunately not exactly what goes on stage all the time nowadays at BT, maybe its about 50/50 now depending which principals are cast.

Hi Ale! Any news on Daria Kulikova? How is she doing at the Academy? I think the 2023 class is a powerful one, and my opinion isn't based on who is better. But there's something about Kulikova??? I don't know... but I like her dancing and I'm rooting for her, there's just something special, artistic I see in her.

The 2023 class has just been everywhere and she hasn’t been one of the most hyped ones for obvious reasons. I don’t think I’ve seen where she’s going but I also haven’t been crawling through the TG channels looking for information about her you know? 

With the ‘big 3’ of this class heading to BT, there’s likely some MT spots available, which is theoretically what she would want after changing schools so late in the games.  

Do you think there will ever be a Kovaleva graduate to top Vishneva off? I honestly don't and it's not because there weren't other talented girls to graduate, but it's just that none of the ones who came after, could even compare to Vishneva, let alone surpass her. Koshkareva for example, is really talented, but it's already being called the 'next Vishneva', so... I will say though, after Vishneva, only Smirnova and Khoreva came a little close and probably Koshkareva will too.

I don’t think she will ever top Vishneva, she’s a once in a 100 years type of a dancer. I also don’t know how much longer she will continue to work. Her talent as a pedagogue is immense, she’s proven that she can train exceptional dancers with different body types, backgrounds and ambitions. Her training and her graduates, quite literally is defining the past, present and future of Russian ballet.  

how do the “classes” at vaganova work?? like if it’s class of kovaleva, does that mean that she’s taught them all 8 years at vaganova orrr 

No, if a ballerina is listed as ‘class of Kovaleva’ that means that she taught their graduate year. Generally, the teachers will change every 1-3 years as some teachers are especially skilled at working with different age groups. 

[mariaspir]

Did you see that bolshoi is touring the mariinskii 2 with Romeo and Juliet? We will get to see Sofia Valiullina, Elisabetta Nallin and Yaroslavna Kuprina back in St. Petersburg!

I saw it, I wonder why they're sending a production Petersburg already knows instead of something from unique from their rep. Management supposedly doesn't want there to be a comparison between Mariinsky and Bolshoi, but there's gonna be more now than if they brought their completely unique Pharaoh's Daughter.

[miss-mollys-ballet-blog]

What is your opinion on the 2023 graduates that have been given a lot of soloist roles in the Bolshoi, Koshkaryova, Kuprina, Valiullina, Konovalova, and Netsvetaeva-Dolgaleva? And on the Mariinsky side of favored 2023 dancers, how do you feel about Kulikova and Karamysheva? If you’ve seen any videos of them, of course.

Disclaimer: I do not watch videos of them as students when saying my opinions of them as they are all at least a year into their professional careers.

I don't like Maria Koshkaryova, both her Swanhilda and Gamzatti debuts were incredibly underwhelming. She was lucky her Solor was Vladislav Lantratov because he saved her so many times during the grand pas. Her Kitri was definitely better though, part of which is due to the fact that she has had a bit more time to develop as a professional.

The only thing I remember about Yaroslavna Kuprina was after watching her debut in the Swan Lake pas de trois (last year I think), I really liked her hands. I haven't watched enough of her to form any real opinion other than that detail.

Out of all of them, Sofya Valiullina is probably my favorite. She is the only one who looks like she feels comfortable onstage and she doesn't come across as fake happy, she seems to be very much herself but in a very good way. I really like her in the Naiad and the Fisherman variation she does in Paquita, she just makes you smile!

I've never even heard of Polina Netsvetaeva-Dolgaleva tbh. I don't pay attention to students and it's even more difficult to pay attention to BBA students as they don't publish anything. I also don't follow them on social media.

I've only watched two videos of Kulikova, Princess Florine and Masha, and I don't like either variation so it's hard to separate that from her actual dancing. From what I remember of those two videos, she is a dancer who had slightly sloppy technique but has a cute stage personality. If she continues to improve her technique so the point where she is very comfortable enough that her entire personality can shine through, she has a lot of potential to be quite charming and fun to watch.

No idea who Karamysheva is.

[melmothblog]

Vaganova Ballet Academy student, Yaroslavna Kuprina, photographed by Irina Yakovleva.

[vaganova-blog]

Kuprina Yaroslavna

[gorbigorbi]

Yaroslavna Kuprina (Vaganova Ballet Academy) Photo © Ira Yakovleva

[tikitania]

I found it interesting to see clips of both Kuprina and Koshkareva dancing the same role 'Fisherman's Wife'. They have such different styles/approaches to performance - I'm not sure which is more correct but Koshkareva felt like a Kitri'ish Fisherman's Wife whilst Kuprina was more of a Giselle Act 1 variation'ish Fisherman's Wife.

I found them both in 'tuus' instagram stories - they have a number of clips from the 2 most recent showings of Pharoah's daughter including snippet of Vailulina as 'Congo'.

I saw those clips! I definitely preferred Kuprina’s dancing of that variation. Also, Valiulina looked very good.

Here’s Maria Vinogradova in the same Fisherman’s wife variation. This sets the bar in style and lightness.

[elegantballetalk]

yaroslavna kuprina's vaganova exam (all i can find)

https://youtu.be/br1Vehkf334?si=Bv8_HFBmm0zZlvNz

if you can't click on the link, it's on the youtube channel "vaganova blog". what are your views on her dancing?

Thank you for the video; I hadn’t seen it before.

My thoughts: Lovely, but very student-like, which is fine considering it’s an exam and meant to showcase technique, not personality. You can tell that Kuprina is in control of her body—she has command over her movements. However, compared to Kovaleva’s parallel class, she definitely seems less bold, which isn’t a bad thing; it’s just a characteristic.

What impresses me most is how “clean” she looks and how stable she is. Her footwork is very precise, and all the small linking steps between passes are neatly executed. I really like her legs and her attitude, but I do find her slightly lacking in torso expressiveness. The pirouettes are a bit lackluster, but they are clean—which I prefer over bold but messy turns.

I also like her body. I know one shouldn’t comment on this, but she looks slim without appearing frail, and toned without looking bulky.

As for the partnering, I don’t really have an opinion; it looks like most partnering exercises. I will say again that I really like the ease of her arabesque. I also love that, while obviously her leg is very high, it’s not distracting as it follows her line.

As you mentioned in the other ask, I’m not surprised she graduated with honors.

Here is a clickable link to the video: https://youtu.be/br1Vehkf334?si=Bv8_HFBmm0zZlvNz (Class of Yulia Kasenkova, 2023)

[patricedumonde]

Yaroslavna Kuprina is debuting Aurora! I almost couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it. They’re really throwing her straight into hot water, aren’t they?

Same here! Coming up really soon, September 8th. It’s a lot of faith and trust to put on one person, for sure. I’m really looking forward to it and I hope we get good videos!!

[balletomaneblog]

What do u think about valiullina debuting as myrtha, and koshkareva and kuprina debuting as gamzatti?

What’s your opinion for each dancer?

Ok so I am not even going to go into how they're too young because obviously that's true.

Sadly, Kuprina has been removed from all up-coming debuts, likely due to an injury. However, I think she's perfect for Gamzatti so I'm fairly sure they'll give her another shot at it once she gets better. I think Koshkareva will do fine with this role, but I will say that they've given her a lot of jumping girl roles like the First Bridesmaid in Don Quixote, Paquita, etc, and I honestly like her a lot better in adagio. So I hope that she gets more of those kind of roles in the future.

As for Valiullina, I really love her and it's great that she's been given Myrtha, similar to Kovalyova in her first season. However, I see her far more as Giselle and Kuprina more as Myrtha but I'm sure she'll do a great job. It just better not stop her from getting her Giselle debut one day!

As for my general opinion of each dancer, I do enjoy that they each are fairly different from one another. I honestly don't have a favorite, though I do have a soft spot for Valiullina ever since her Raymonda last year. But they're so so young so I'm very excited to see their debuts in the next month and get a better picture of them in the beginning of their professional career!

[ballet-symphonie]

About Koshkareva, a few months ago I saw a story from a local St Petersburg TV station about their graduation (it was posted on the Vaganova telegram channel) and it said that she’d already signed a soloist contract. So apparently she didn’t even get hired as a corps member. What do you think of her and Kuprina debuting Gamzatti so soon?

Yes, my point was more so that she's a soloist, and Kuprina is doing the EXACT same roles for less. Absolute garabage.

Regarding their casting, it's on par with what the Bolshoi has been doing with all their 'young stars.' Doesn't mean I like it, but I'm not surprised anymore