Aleksandra Liashenko

Aleksandra Liashenko received her training at the State Ballet School and the State Academy of Culture in her hometown Kharkov (Ukraine), where she also danced as a soloist in the National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre from 2002 to 2007. This was followed by engagements at the Baltic State Opera Gdańsk and Teatr Wielki Poznan, from 2009 to 2015 as a first soloist at the Polish National Ballet Warsaw, from 2015 to 2017 at the Ballet of the State Opera Hanover and from 2017 to 2020 at the Ballett am Rhein Düsseldorf Duisburg. Furthermore, Aleksandra Liashenko has appeared as a guest on many European stages, including the Gala des Étoiles du XXIè siècle at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris and the Ballet Gala in Amsterdam, the Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg and the Bolshoi Theatre Moscow, in New York, Washington and Houston, in Egypt, Japan, China or Taiwan. In 2002 she was awarded the 1st prize and the special prize for »Creativity and Individuality« at the ballet competition »Fouette of Artek« in Crimea. She won the 1st prize at the International Ballet Competition »Cristal Shoe« in Kharkov in 2004, the 2nd prize at the International Ballet Competition Kiev in 2007, the First Senior Prize at the 16th Dance Competition in Gdańsk in 2009, the Silver Medal for Special Merits in Culture »Gloria Artis« in Warsaw 2014 and the Jan Kiepura Prize in the category »Best Dancer of Poland« 2015. In 2011 Aleksandra Liashenko was nominated for the Prix Benois de la Danse for her interpretation of Frederick Ashton’s Cinderella. She danced numerous important solo roles, including the princesses Aurora and Florine in Yuri Grigorovich’s »Sleeping Beauty«, Odette/Odile in Victor Smirnov-Golovanov’s »Swan Lake«, Nikiya in Natalia Makarova’s »La Bayadère«, Kitri/Dulcinea in Alexei Fadeyechev’s »Don Quixote«, The young girl in Kurt Jooss’ »The Green Table«, Juliette in the versions of »Romeo and Juliette« by Krzysztof Pastor and Emil Wesolowski, Clara in »The Nutcracker« by Toer van Schayk and Wayne Eagling as well as Vasili Vainonen, Isolde in Krzysztof Pastor’s »Tristan« or Kitty in Alexei Ratmansky’s »Anna Karenina«. Further roles include Solange in Patrice Bart’s »Chopin, the Romantic Artist«, Helena in John Neumeier’s »A Midsummer Night’s Dream«, Swanilda in Sławomir Woźniak’s »Coppélia«, Viola in Jörg Mannes’ »Twelfth Night of Shakespeare«, the woman main role in Xin Peng Wang’s »Tchaikovsky« and the Third Princess in Martin Schläpfer’s »Swan Lake«. She was seen in works by George Balanchine (»Stravinsky Violin Concerto«), Maurice Béjart (»Le Sacre du Printemps«), Jiří Bubeníček (»Les jeux jaloux«), Nils Christe (»Fünf Gedichte«), William Forsythe (»Artifact Suite«, »One Flat Thing, Reproduced«), Emanuel Gat (»The Rite of Spring«), Martha Graham (»Steps in the Street«), Jiří Kylián (»Forgotten Land«), Hans van Manen (»Dances with Piano«), Ohad Naharin (»Decadance«), Martin Schläpfer (»Appenzellertänze«, »44 Duos«, »Cellokonzert«), Uwe Scholz (Solo couple in »Siebte Sinfonie«) and Paul Taylor (»Offenbach Overtures«).

Since the 2020/21 season she has been a soloist with the Vienna State Ballet. Her Viennese repertoire includes Kitri in Rudolf Nureyevʼs »Don Quixote«, Olga in John Crankoʼs »Onegin«, Princess Florine in Martin Schläpferʼs »The Sleeping Beauty«, Zulma in in Elena Tchernichovaʼs »Giselle«, friend of the prince and little swan in Rudolf Nureyevʼs »Swan Lake«, Aurora, the dawn in Pierre Lacotteʼs »Coppélia« as well as solo parts in George Balanchineʼs »Rubies« in »Jewels«, »Symphony in Three Movements«, »Symphony in C« and »Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet«, Alexei Ratmanskyʼs »Pictures at an Exhibition« and »24 Préludes«, Hans van Manenʼs »Four Schumann Pieces« and »Concertante«, Paul Taylor's »Promethean Fire«, Heinz Spoerli's »Goldberg Variations« and works by Martin Schläpfer such as »The Seasons«.