Legendary Bolshoi Ballet Choreographer Yuri Grigorovich Dies at 98

Moscow, 19 May (ONA) --- The renowned Russian choreographer Yuri Grigorovich, of Moscow's Bolshoi Ballet, has died at the age of 98.

His death was announced today by the Bakhrushin State Central Theatre Museum in Moscow, which has often organized exhibitions on the life and work of the ballet master.

Born on 2 January 1927 in Leningrad (now St Petersburg), Grigorovich shaped Soviet and Russian ballet for decades at the world-famous Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.

Grigorovich choreographed Khachaturian's "Spartacus," and Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" at the Bolshoi Theatre, among many other works. His adaptations of the ballets "Swan Lake" and "Sleeping Beauty" are legendary.

He led the world's largest ballet company for more than 30 years. In 1991, he established the Benois de la Danse ballet prize, which honours the most important dance performances of the past year at a grand gala.

In 2008, at the age of 81, Grigorovich returned to the Bolshoi to take up a permanent position leading the new soloists, staging new productions and maintaining the repertoire. Grigorovich had resigned in 1995 following a dispute over the artistic direction of the Bolshoi.

--- Ends/Khalid