John Cranko’s Onegin

Maria Kochetkova and Vitor Luiz in Onegin (photos by Erik Tomasson)

I'll be performing the role of Tatiana on Friday 27th January (opening night) and Tuesday 31st January in the US premiere of John Cranko's Onegin.

San Francisco Ballet opens its 2012 season with the intensely dramatic Onegin, John Cranko’s masterful adaptation of Alexander Pushkin’s heartbreaking tale of unrequited love between Russian aristocrat Eugene and the beautiful Tatiana.

Reviews:

"Of the three Tatianas, Kochetkova had the clearest grasp of natural trajectory of her role, from a childish romantic pulled in orbit around him in tiny bourrees, to a mature woman who finds the resolve to reject his advances. With darkened eyes set into a porcelain face, Kochetkova radiated a fragility so ethereal that she seemed to melt into Luiz's arms in duets that looked both risky and otherworldly. And yet, when she rose to confront Onegin after his duel with Lensky, her icy reproach was palpably human." San Francisco Chronicle

SF Ballet 2012 Opening Night Gala

Photo by Erik Tomasson

I'll be performing Sir Frederic Ashton's 'Voices of Spring' with Joan Boada tonight in San Francisco Ballet's 2012 'Bella Notte' Gala.

Reviews:

"Maria Kochetkova and Joan Boada gave the company premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton's deceptively lighthearted and fleet-footed "Voices of Spring," created in 1977 for a production of Johann Strauss' "Die Fledermaus." Boada makes a terrifically solicitous partner for the charming Kochetkova, who sprinkled petals from high aloft in his hands." San Francisco Chronicle

International Ballet Star Gala in Taipei

I'll be performing Don Quixote pas de deux with Daniil Simkin and Jorma Elo's solo One Overture in the Sixth International Ballet Star Gala in Taipei this weekend (January 7th and 8th).

More information

SF Ballet Nutcracker dates and reviews

Photo by Erik Tomasson

I'll be performing in San Francisco Ballet's Nutcracker on the following dates:

Friday December 9th (Opening Night), 7pm - Grand Pas de Deux (with Gennadi Nedvigin)

Saturday December 10th, 7pm - Snow Queen (with Gennadi Nedvigin)

Tuesday December 13th, 7pm - Snow Queen (with Gennadi Nedvigin)

Thursday December 15th, 2pm - Grand Pas de Deux (with Joan Boada)

Saturday December 17th, 7pm - Snow Queen (with Pascal Molat)

Tuesday December 20th, 2pm - Grand Pas de Deux (with Gennadi Nedvigin)

Wednesday December 21st, 7pm - Snow Queen (with Pascal Molat)

Saturday December 24th, 11am - Grand Pas de Deux (with Joan Boada)

Tuesday December 27th, 7pm - Grand Pas de Deux (with Gennadi Nedvigin)

Reviews:

"The pinnacle of the evening, as it should be, was the grand pas de deux essayed by Maria Kochetkova and Gennadi Nedvigin... Kochetkova, for her part, is both exquisitely refined and remarkably believable as a recently transformed woman-child dancing with wonderment in her eyes." San Francisco Chronicle

"The evening closed with an immaculate performance of the Grand Pas by Maria Kochetkova, the tiny, Russian-born, Bolshoi-trained great-hearted ballerina who came to SF several years back and has made herself a star here in record time. Her variation ends with a diagonal line of sharp-cut steps that sprang to pointe and streaked back upstage like diamonds in a bracelet." Bay Area Reporter

"What sets Kochetkova apart, though, is her interpretation of the solo variation. She hears the Russian folk tunes inherent in the music, picking out the delicate rhythms and channeling her inner Tsar Maiden. A pure delight." California Literary Review

'A Moment To Dream' gala with Isaac Hernadez

I'll be performing Pas de Deux from the Sleeping Beauty with Gennadi Nedvigin and Balcony Pas de Deux from Romeo and Juliet with Joan Boada at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. This will be my first time performing in Mexico.

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Anaheim Ballet Special Guest: Maria Kochetkova

Gala in New York at Joyce Theater

I'll be performing in the Michele Wiles and Charles Askegard premiere performance of Ballet Next at The Joyce Theater on November 21, 2011. I'm dancing Pas de Deux from the Sleeping Beauty with Joaquin de Luz from NYCB and Jorma Elo's solo One Overture

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San Francisco Ballet at Segerstrom Center for the Arts

Maria Kochetkova in Trio

San Francisco Ballet at Segerstrom Center for the Arts

Photos by Erik Tomasson

I'll be performing in Helgi Tomasson's 'Trio' on Tuesday night (27th September) and the title role in 'Romeo & Juliet' on Friday night (30th September) and Sunday matinee (2nd October).

Romeo and Juliet review:

"Kochetkova’s Juliet developed from an antsy, romping child to a knowing woman. She is a strong actress without histrionics –- her face was one moment flooded with delight, as love dawned, and then crestfallen, as her duty to her family became inescapable. Her dancing was flawless, and always in service to being Juliet. A lovely performance."

LA Times

Trio review:

"In the show-stopping finale, Maria Kochetkova and Gennadi Nedvigin etched exacting beats and leaps with grace and carefree delight. Kochetkova is a marvel."

LA Times

Indianapolis City Ballet’s Evening with the Stars

Photo by Gene Shiavone

I'll be performing in Indianapolis City Ballet’s 'Evening with the Stars' gala taking place at 8pm on Saturday, September 10th, 2011 at the Murat Theatre at Old National Centre. Dancing Don Quixote Pas de deux with Daniil Simkin and Jorma Elo's solo One Overture

Review

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Stars of Russian Ballet Gala

I'll be performing Balanchine’s 'Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux' and the pas de deux from act three of 'The Sleeping Beauty' with Gennadi Nedvigin on Saturday in the Stars of Russian Ballet Gala at the Power Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

More info

Buy tickets: Sat, Aug 27, 2011 7pm

Les étoiles pour le Japon

I'll be dancing in Paris on May 31st for a charity ballet gala to support the victims of the recent earthquake in Japan. I'll be performing a pas de deux from The Sleeping Beauty with Sergei Polunin from The Royal Ballet.

More information

Buy tickets

Program 7: 'Underskin' and 'Number Nine'

My dates for San Francisco Ballet's Program 7 performances in Zanella's 'Underskin' and Wheeldon's world premiere of 'Number Nine':

UNDERSKIN
Choreographer: Renato Zanella

Sunday, April 10, 2011, 2 PM
Wednesday, April 13, 2011, 7:30 PM
Saturday, April 16, 2011, 2 PM

World Premiere
NUMBER NINE
Choreographer: Christopher Wheeldon
Maria Kochetkova*, Gennadi Nedvigin*

Friday, April 08, 2011, 8 PM
Sunday, April 10, 2011, 2 PM
Wednesday, April 13, 2011, 7:30 PM
Saturday, April 16, 2011, 8 PM

Program 6: 'Chroma' and 'Ghosts'

I'll be dancing in the San Francisco Ballet premiere of Wayne McGregor’s 'Chroma' (set to original compositions by Joby Talbot and arrangements by Jack White of The White Stripes) and Christopher Wheeldon's 'Ghosts' in the opening night of Program 6.

GHOSTS
Choreographer: Christopher Wheeldon
Composer: C.F. Kip Winger
Maria Kochetkova, Vitor Luiz

Thursday, April 07, 2011, 8 PM
Saturday, April 09, 2011, 2 PM
Saturday, April 09, 2011, 8 PM

7 FOR EIGHT
Choreographer: Helgi Tomasson
Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
Maria Kochetkova*, Ruben Martin Cintas*

Friday, April 15, 2011, 8 PM

SF Ballet Premiere
CHROMA
Choreographer: Wayne McGregor
Composer: Joby Talbot, Jack White III
Maria Kochetkova*, Jaime Garcia Castilla*

Thursday, April 07, 2011, 8 PM 
Tuesday, April 12, 2011, 8 PM 

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Balenciaga and Spain Gala at de Young Museum

Me and Damian Smith at the Balenciaga Gala (photos by Andi Hatch for Vogue)

More pictures:
Vogue Magazine

San Francisco Chronicle

George Balanchine's Coppélia

Photos: Erik Tomasson

I'll be performing the lead role of Swanilda in the opening night of San Francisco Ballet's production of George Balanchine's Coppélia on Saturday night as well as the evening performance on Friday 25th March and the matinee on Sunday 27th March:

Buy tickets:
Saturday, March 19, 2011, 8 PM
Friday, March 25, 2011, 8 PM
Sunday, March 27, 2011, 2 PM

Reviews:

"Casting for Saturday's opening performance was stellar all the way. Together, Maria Kochetkova and Gennadi Nedvigin add up to a frisky pair of teens. For Nedvigin, Franz is simply a career triumph, notable for purity of style, antic spirit and elegant showmanship. Kochetkova is a naughty but nice Swanilda, an authentic stylist capable of dazzling us with strings of bourrees, smooth cambrés and airy jetes."
San Francisco Chronicle

"Maria Kochetkova as 'Swanilda' was sublime. Her acting chops have soared to a new level in this delightful romp that also demands the skills of a top drawer diva ballerina. Her petite frame and sweet visage make her the ideal choice for the role of a bride-to-be who must prove the fidelity of her lover who has suddenly developed a thing for a life-size mechanical doll."
San Francisco Sentinel

Program 4: 'Theme and Variations', 'Trio', 'Winter Dreams'

Maria Kochetkova in Trio

Program 4: 'Theme and Variations', 'Trio', 'Winter Dreams'

Maria Kochetkova in premiere of Helgi Tomasson's 'Trio'

Vito Mazzeo and Maria Kochetkova in MacMillan's 'Winter Dreams' inspired by Chekhov's "Three Sisters" (photos by Alex Washburn, The Chronicle)

My upcoming performances in San Francisco Ballet's Program 4:

PROGRAM 4

THEME AND VARIATIONS
Choreography: George Balanchine
Maria Kochetkova, Gennadi Nedvigin

Wednesday, March 02, 2011, 7:30 PM
Saturday, March 05, 2011, 8 PM 

WINTER DREAMS
Choreography: Sir Kenneth MacMillan
Masha, Vershinin: Sofiane Sylve, Tiit Helimets
Irina, Olga: Maria Kochetkova, Lorena Feijoo
Kulygin: Damian Smith
Tusenbach, Solyony: Garen Scribner, Vitor Luiz

Friday, February 25, 2011, 8 PM (Opening Night)
Sunday, February 27, 2011, 2 PM
Thursday, March 03, 2011, 8 PM
Saturday, March 05, 2011, 8 PM 

 
 
TRIO
Choreography: Helgi Tomasson
Maria Kochetkova, Gennadi Nedvigin

Friday, February 25, 2011, 8 PM (Opening Night)
Sunday, February 27, 2011, 2 PM
Thursday, March 03, 2011, 8 PM
Saturday, March 05, 2011, 2 PM
Tuesday, March 08, 2011, 8 PM

Program 3: 'Classical Symphony' and 'Nanna's Lied'

Maria Kochetkova and Hansuke Yamamoto in Possokhov's Classical Symphony (photo ©Erik Tomasson)

My performances in San Francisco Ballet's Program 3:

PROGRAM 3
 
CLASSICAL SYMPHONY
Choreography: Yuri Possokhov
Maria Kochetkova, Hansuke Yamamoto

Saturday, February 26, 2011, 8 PM
Tuesday, March 01, 2011, 8 PM
Friday, March 04, 2011, 8 PM

NANNA'S LIED
Choreography: Helgi Tomasson
Nanna: Maria Kochetkova

Saturday, February 26, 2011, 2 PM
Sunday, March 06, 2011, 2 PM

ARTIFACT SUITE
Choreography: William Forsythe
Maria Kochetkova*, Joan Boada

Wednesday, March 09, 2011, 7:30 PM

Review of Classical Symphony from last year:

"Kochetkova - like Possokhov, Bolshoi-trained - is the radiant center in a role that fully realizes her contradictions: She is delicate yet strong, sweet yet authoritative." SF Gate

San Francisco Ballet Giselle performances

I will be performing on Thursday and Sunday evenings in San Francisco Ballet's Giselle:

Thu, Feb 10, 2011, 8:00 PM

Sun, Feb 13, 2011, 7:30 PM(special extra performance)

Program 2: 'Symphonic Variations' & 'Symphony in C'

Dates for my upcoming performances in San Francisco Ballet's Program 2:

SYMPHONIC VARIATIONS
Choreography: Sir Frederick Ashton
Maria Kochetkova, Gennadi Nedvigin

Thursday, February 3rd, 2011, 8 PM
Sunday, February 6th, 2011, 2 PM
Tuesday, February 8th, 2011, 8 PM
Friday, February 11th, 2011, 8 PM

SYMPHONY IN C
Choreography: George Balanchine
Maria Kochetkova, Joan Boada

Sunday, February 6th, 2011, 2 PM

Reviews for Symphonic Variations

"Every arm gesture and shifting balance matters here, and the dancers, led by Maria Kochetkova and Gennadi Nedvigin, have incorporated Ashton's chaste yet potent classical vocabulary."
SF Gate

Half-tutu costume designed by Anja Mlakar for Jorma Elo's 'One Overture'

Half-tutu costume designed by Anja Mlakar for my Reflections solo, Jorma Elo's 'One Overture' (photos by Gene Schiavone)