Sergey Basalaev Soloist, Polish National Opera Ballet Dance Open: 2006

Graduated from the Novosibirsk State Choreographic School. Danced at the Chamber Ballet under the direction of Berdishev. Worked at the Omsk Music Theatre, St-Petersburg Conservatory Theatre, and also at the Eifman Ballet. Soloist of the Polish National Opera. Prize–winner of international ballet contests.

Filip Barankiewicz Principal Dancer, Stuttgart Ballet Dance Open: 2012

In 1986, he began his ballet training at the Poland National Ballet School and performed in Warsaw and Lódz. In 1991 he won the Waslaw Nijinski Medal. In 1995, he won the first prize at the National Ballet Competition in Poland. He continued his studies at the Académie de Dance Classique in Monte Carlo where he received a scholarship in 1996. Barankiewicz joined the Stuttgart Ballet as Demi Soloist in 2000, as Soloist in 2001. His promotion to Principal Dancer followed in 2002.

Tyler Angle Principal Dancer, New York City Ballet

Tyler Angle was born in Altoona, Pennsylvania, and began his dance training at the age of nine with Deborah Anthony at the Allegheny Ballet Company. He entered the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, full-time in the fall of 2001. In the fall of 2003, Mr. Angle became an apprentice with New York City Ballet. As an apprentice, he danced a featured role in Michel Fokine's Chopiniana, performed by SAB as part of New York City Ballet's winter 2004 season. Mr. Angle joined New York City Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet in June 2004. He was promoted to the rank of soloist in December 2007 and in October 2009 was promoted to principal dancer. Mr. Angle is the 2002 recipient of the Mae L. Wien Award for Outstanding Promise, the 2003 recipient of the Martin Segal Award, and a Jerome Robbins Scholarship recipient.

Timur Askerov Principal Dancer, Mariinsky theatre Dance Open: 2017

It might seem that the success for Timur with his fairy tale prince looks, artistic talent and impressive physique is something obvious. However, Timur has a different opinion on that: “There is nothing that you can do on stage without dedication, persistence and hard work”. Native of Baku, he has been interested in folk dances from childhood. He graduated from the Baku Choreography School and danced with the ballet companies in Azerbaijan and Ukraine, where he accidently met Leonid Sarafanov and Denis Matvienko who advised him to try his talent at on of the main stages of Russia, in St. Petersburg. Since 2001 Askerov’s creative career is linked to the Mariinsky Theatre. He is one of the main performers of the classical repertoire in the theatre — Count Albrecht in Giselle, Prince Désiré in the Sleeping Beauty, Solor in La Bayadère, Prince Siegfried in the Swan Lake, Jean de Brienne in Raymonda, Basilio in Don Quixote, Prince in the Nutcracker. He has also been successful at performing roles in pieces by Ashton, Ratmansky, Millepied (Without and La nuit s’achève), McGregor (Infra) and others.