Art Director

YURI TSARENKO

Art Director and Chief Ballet Master

Honored Art Worker of the Russian Federation

Yuri Tsarenko was born on the 28^th of October 1961 in a Ukrainian town of Krivoi Rog.

Choreography has played an important part in Yuri’s life since an early age. The dance studio where he studied for eight years was like a second home to him and the language of dance was a medium for self-expression. Art was a vital factor when time had come to choose a profession and life of a ballet master. Having graduated from a general education school Yuri entered Dnepropetrovsk State Theatre College Department of Choreography notwithstanding his parents' protests who insisted on their son’s career of a military man (Yuri was supposed to continue the family dynasty of military people which had had two Generals by that time).

In 1980 Yuri graduated from the college with a diploma of a choreographic company manager and went for compulsory service in the army. He was sent to the old town of Kostroma.

In 1983 Yuri finished his army service and stayed in Kostroma pursuing his professional career as a ballet master and stage director of an ensemble of professional and technical education system “Kostromskie Zori” of Regional Educational Directorate.

In 1985 Yuri and his team took part in the Twelfth International Festival of Youth in Moscow.

In 1986 at the all-Russian seminar for heads of ensembles of professional and technical education, which took place in Kursk City Yuri met a beautiful and talented girl named Elena Solovyeva, who was also a young manager. Sharing a common feeling for art they fell in love with each other too. When Elena became his wife they both moved to Kostroma. It was there that the young family embarked on their journey of personal and creative development.

In 1987 they both participated in the final concert of the Second All-Union Festival of Folk Art dedicated to the 70^th year of the Great October Social Revolution which took place on the stage of the Kremlin Congress Palace in Moscow.

In 1991 Yuri graduated from Kostroma State Pedagogical Instituted named after N. A. Nekrasov with the qualification of the teacher of ethics and psychology.

In the same year Elena and Yuri managed to realize their idea of setting up a professional choreographic company and so the first private theatre of folk dance called “Kostroma" came into being and Yuri Tsarenko took the position of its Chief Ballet Master.

In 1999 Yuri Tsarenko was awarded with a letter of appreciation by Kostroma region administration.

In 2001 Yuri Tsarenko became a laureate of the public award "Hope of Russia" with the nomination of "Phenomenal Man".

In 2002 Elena and Yuri Tsarenko set up a choreographic college “The Governorate Ballet School” affiliated to the Russian National Ballet “Kostroma" with the purpose of training professional artists and creating a human resources reserve.

In 2002 Yuri Tsarenko was nominated "Person of the year 2002”.

In 2003 he was nominated "Honoured Art Worker of the Russian Federation".

In 2005 he was awarded with a pin-order “Art Patron” for his outstanding contribution in the cause of the World's revival and prosperity, for his great soul and unselfish generosity.

In 2006 Yuri Tsarenko was awarded by an honorary certificate by Kostroma region administration.

Today Yuri Tsarenko is one of the few heads of Russian professional companies working in the genre of folk choreography. His love to Russia, knowledge of Russian traditions and rituals help him to create epic pictures and genre sketches on stage. Yuri Tsarenko is a talented ballet master who gives a unique touch to his choreographic works. He creates a new modern style of folk dance remembering to keep historical truth.

Yuri Tsarenko is the author of 12 shows and director of more than 40 choreographic compositions for the Russian National Ballet “Kostroma”.

Among those are

«Za Sviatuyu Rus» (For Holy Rus) (1993)

«Russkoye Predstavlenie» (Russian Show) (1995)

«Russkaya Igrushka» (Russian Toy), a play based on Evgeni Evtushenko’s stories (1996)

«Brilliantovye Angely» (Diamond Angels) (1997)

«Zagadochnaya Rus» (Mysterious Rus) (1999)

A dancing project “Songs from a Jewish place”(2001)

«Zhyli-Byli» (Once upon a time…) (2002)

«National Show of Russia» (2005)

«Doroga Domoi» (A Road Home), a play dedicated to the 60^th year of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War (2005),

A dancing project dedicated to Yekaterina Shavrina's jubilee (2006)

«Velikaya Zagadochnaya Rus» (Great Mysterious Rus) (2007),

«Domoi s Pobedoi» (Home with Victory), a play dedicated to the 65^th year of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War (2010 г.).

Choreographic compositions:

«Prologue», «Vohomskaya Izbovaya» (Log hut of Vohma), «Vorotsa» (Little Gates), «Gusarskaya Molodetskaya» (Hussar’s Bold Dance), «Ryabinovaya Vetka» (A Branch of Mountain Ash), «Lyubimochka» (My Beloved), «Podarochnaya» (The Gifts), round dance «Vesenni Lirichesky» (Spring Lyrical), «Argentinean Tango», «A Mozhet Byt i Tango» (It Could Be a Tango as Well), «Dvugolosye» (For Two Voices), «Ledi v Krasnom» (Lady in Red), «Antre», «Probuzhdenie» (Awakening), «Russkoye Predstavlenie» (Russian Show), «Inkayki», «Brilliantovye Angely» (Diamond Angels), «Cancan», «Flotsky» (Navy), «Molitva» (Prayer), «Ozertso - ozertse» (Magic Lake), «Teplota Serdechnaya Skanyu Nazyvayetsa» (Heart’s Warmth is Called Filigree), «Selo Poteshnoye» (At Poteshnaya Village), «Zima» (The Winter Dance), «Prazdnichnaya» (The Festive Dance), «Zashitniki» (Defenders), «Volga», «Novogodny Marsh» (New Year’s March), prologue «Rus Iznachalnaya» (Original Rus), «Grustinochka» (Sorrow), «Kundyubochka», «Chainaya» (At The Tea House), «Zdravstvui, Strana Geroyev!» (Greetings to the Country of Heroes), «Piterskaya» (Along The Piterskaya Street), «Eh, vstrechai!» (Here I Come) and many others.