Irina Kolpakova

Kolpakova, Irina Aleksandrovna 

Born May 22, 1933. Soviet ballerina. People’s Artist of the USSR (1965).

Upon graduating from the Leningrad Choreographic School from A. Ia. Vaganova’s class in 1951, Kolpakova joined the ballet troupe of the S. M. Kirov Leningrad Theater of Opera and Ballet. Delicate lyricism, musicality, and subtle artistry distinguish her art as a talented classical ballerina. Her repertoire includes the leading roles in such ballets as Tchaikovsky’s The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker, Adam’s Giselle, and Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella. Kolpakova created the leading roles in productions by Iu. N. Grigorovich, I. D. Bel’skii, G. D. Aleksidze, N. D. Kasatkina, and V. Iu. Vasilev: Katerina in Prokofiev’s The Stone Flower, Shirin in Melikov’s The Legend of Love, His Beloved in Petrov’s Coast of Hope, Ala in Prokofiev’s Scythian Suite, and Eve in Petrov’s Creation of the World. She received the Gold Star in 1965 at the International Festival of Dance in Paris. Kolpakova has been awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and various medals.

REFERENCES

Chistiakova, V. “Irina Kolpakova.” In the collection Leningradskii balet segodnia, fasc. 1. Leningrad-Moscow, 1967. Pages 77–111.

V. M. KRASOVSKAIA