Denis Matvienko - Ballet Artist
Former principal dancer of the Mariinsky Theatre and the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St. Petersburg
A guest dancer with the Bolshoi, the New National Theatre of Japan, the Alla Scala Theatre and the Paris Opera
Denis Matvienko was born in 1979 in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. He began his training in classical dance at a very young age at the Kiev State Choreography School, and at the age of 18 he joined the Ukrainian National Ballet as a first figure.

In 2001 he joined the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg as a soloist. In 2003 he returned to the Ukrainian National Ballet and in 2007 he moved back to St. Petersburg to the Mikhailovsky Theatre as a principal dancer. Two years later, in 2009, he returned as principal star to the Mariinsky.

He has been a guest dancer with numerous companies, such as the Bolshoi, the New National Theatre of Japan, the Alla Scala Theatre and the Paris Opera.

During his career he has performed numerous princely roles, but he is a dancer with great versatility, which allows him to excel in neoclassical and contemporary works.

He has won major dance awards, including first place in the Luxembourg ballet competitions in 1997 and Budapest in 1998; the gold medal in Nagoya in 1999; and first place in the Moscow competition in 2005.

From 2011 to 2013 Matvienko was appointed artistic director and principal dancer of the ballet company of the Ukrainian National Opera and since June 2016 he has been artistic director of the ballet company of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre.