Natalia Mikhailovna Dudinskaia

Born Aug. 8 (21), 1912, in Kharkov. Soviet ballerina. People’s Artist of the USSR (1957).

Dudinskaia studied at the Leningrad Choreographic School from 1923 to 1931 with A. la. Vaganova. From 1932 to 1962 she was prima ballerina of the S. M. Kirov Theater of Opera and Ballet in Leningrad. She danced the leading roles in Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty, Prokofiev’s Cinderella, Glazunov’s Raymonda, and Adam’s Giselle. A virtuosa in the technique of classical dance, she has created stage roles characterized by psychological depth and emotional expressiveness. Beginning in 1951, Dudinskaia has conducted a class for the dancers of the Kirov Theater. In 1964 she began teaching at the Vaganova Choreographic School in Leningrad. Dudinskaia is a follower of the Vaganova method. A recipient of the State Prize of the USSR in 1941, 1947, 1949, and 1951, she has been awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and various medals.