Ballet - Course - Intensive

NINA POLAKOVA

Director of the Ballet of the Slovak National Theatre

Nina was born in Trnava, Slovakia.

She graduated from the Eva Jaczova Dance Conservatory in Bratislava under the direction of Klára Škodová and Rafael Avnikjan. During her studies she became a soloist of the Slovak National Theatre Ballet, where before and after her graduation she performed leading roles in the ballets La Bayadère, Giselle, Le Corsaire, Swan Lake and Spartacus.

In 2005 she joined the Vienna State Ballet, where she has held the position of principal dancer, mainly under the direction of Manuel Legris. She has appeared in the lead roles of masterpieces of the classical and neoclassical repertoire, such as La Bayadère, Carmen, Don Quixote, Giselle, Giselle Rouge, Le Corsaire, La Sylphide, The Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Manon, Marguerite and Armand, Mayerling, Onegin, The Pavilion of Armida, Peer Gynt, Raymonda, Romeo and Juliet, The Snow Queen, Sleeping Beauty and in principal roles in iconic works by legendary world choreographers such as Rudolf Nureyev, John Neumeier, Manuel Legris, John Cranko, Sir Kenneth McMillan, Vladimir Malakhov, George Balanchine, Sergei Lifar, Jerome Robbins, Hans van Manen, Twyla Tharp, Jiří Kylián, Wiliam Forsythe, Michael Corder, Gyula Harangozóa, Christopher Wheeldon, Sir Frederick Ashton, Mauro Bigonzetti, Edwaard Liang, Patrick de Bana, Pierre Lacotte, Boris Eifman, Jorma Elo, Nils Christe, David Dawson, Edward Clug, Liam Scarlett and many others. From February 2021 she is the Director of the Slovak National Ballet. She regularly performed at the opening ceremony of the Vienna Opera Ball and in the New Year's Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. She has appeared as a guest dancer in many European Countries and overseas.

From February 2021 she is the Director of the Ballet of the Slovak National Theatre.

Her most notable awards include...

2024      Pribina Cross of the First Class by the President of the Slovak Republic

2020      Award of the Minister of Culture of the Slovak Republic

2018      Award of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic "Goodwill Envoy"

2014      Medal of the President of the Trnava Self-Governing Region

2008      Award of the Ballet Club of the Vienna State Opera

2004      Phillip Morris Flower Award for the best dance artist

2003      Finalist of Prix de Lausanne

2003      Literary Fund Award

2003      Bratislava City Award

2000      1st Prize + Grand Prix at the International Ballet Competition in Brno

In 2017 she successfully presented her first choreography "Daneben" (Beside) for the dancers of the Vienna State Ballet, in 2021 she choreographed "Thais Meditation". In 2023 she choreographed "To Each Other" and in 2024 "Trembling of the Moment".

In 2025, she successfully premiered her first full-length ballet, Romeo and Juliet, together with co-choreographer Jakob Feyferlik, principal dancer of the Bavarian State Ballet, for Slovak National Theatre Ballet.

INNA BILASH

Soloist at Ballett Zürich

was born in Ukraine. She studied ballet at the Kharkov Choreographic School, the Perm State Choreographic College and the Perm State Academy of Arts and Culture. After a graduation she joined Perm State Opera and Ballet theater. As a leading ballerina she danced a broad repertoire of a classical neoclassical and modern ballets. Since season 2018/2019 she is a soloist with Ballett Zürich where she continues working with renown choreographer such as William Forsythe, Christian Spuck, Edward Clug, Marco Goecke and many others.

She teaches ballet classes and gives private coaching.

Since 2022 certificated Yoga teacher.

JONE SAN MARTIN ASTIGARRAGA

Coach for William Forsythe ballets

Jone San Martin Astigarraga was born in Donostia, the Basque Country. Since 2015 she lives In Berlin.

She is dancer, performer, choreographer, teacher of the Improvisation Technologies developed together with William Forsythe, and Forsythe’s repertoire teacher.

After working as freelance in Spain and Belgium, she joint in 1992 “The Ballet Frankfurt “ under the direction of William Forsythe until 2004, and in 2005 she joint “The Forsythe Company” until 2015.

She is part of the “Dance On Ensemble” in Berlin since 2015.

She has created several works and with the solo/ conference, on Forsythe’s choreographic notation, “ Legítimo/Rezo” she is touring all over the world.

During all those years she has worked and collaborated with : William Forsythe, Nacho Duato, Jacopo Godani, Saburo Teshigawara, Fabrice Mazliah, Agnès Chekroun, Carlotta Sagna, Jan Lawers, Jan Fabre, Josh Johnson, Tim Etchells, Matteo Fargion, Rabih Mroué, Deborah Hay, Jan Marteens, Ersan Mondtag, Johannes Wieland, Mikel R Nieto, Emanuele Soavi, Ildiko Tóth, Susanne Kennedy, Mathilde Monnier, Auxiliadora Gálvez, Yodfat Miron, André Uerba and Christos Papadopoulos.

Right now her choreographic research is in collaboration with deaf persons and sign language translators.

EVA LÓPEZ CREVILLÉN

Director of the Conservatorio Superior de Danza María de Ávila

Professor of Analysis and Practice of Classical Dance Repertoire. PhD from Rey Juan Carlos University. Choreographic Assistant to Nacho Duato in various international companies, such as the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow, the Mikhailovsky Ballet in St. Petersburg, the Stanislavski Ballet in Moscow, the Royal Swedish Ballet, the Lyon Opera Ballet, Universal Ballet in Seoul, Dance Theatre of Harlem, among others. Member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Santa María de la Arrixaca in Murcia. Adviser to the Superior Council of Artistic Education as a figure of recognized prestige in the field of artistic education.

She studied Classical Dance at the Royal Superior School of Dramatic Art and Dance in Madrid, graduating with honors. She has danced for two decades as a soloist and principal dancer in the main roles of traditional classical repertoire, neoclassical, and contemporary dance, working under the direction of María de Ávila, Ray Barra, Maya Plisetskaya, and Nacho Duato, which has allowed her to become familiar with choreographic works by Duato himself, Ray Barra, Petipa, Vicente Nebrada, George Balanchine, Glen Tetley, Olga Roriz, Jiří Kylián, William Forsythe, Hans van Manen, and Ohad Naharin.

Roland Petit selected her to perform the most renowned works of his repertoire and chose her to dance the role of Albertine in the ballet "Proust ou Les Intermitences du Coeur", alongside Massimo Murru, within the framework of the 64th Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, earning significant critical and public acclaim.

Principal Dancer in the RTVE cultural program "Rodrigo, Steps and Traces in the Dark". Choreographer and Principal Dancer in the RTVE cultural program "El Divino Fracaso, a monograph on the writer Rafael Cansinos Assens".

Her artistic career spans the globe, participating in prestigious International Music and Dance Festivals, including: Havana International Festival; Castell de Perelada; Cap Roig; Segovia International Festival; Miami International Festival; 64th Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.

As a representative of Spain, she has been invited to perform in numerous international galas, including: The Royal International Gala on the occasion of the inauguration of Glasgow as European Capital of Culture in 1990; World Stars at the Opera, International Ballet Gala in Budapest 1999.

Winner of the Fourth National Dance Competition of Spain. 1987. Nominee for the Max Performing Arts Awards in the VI edition. 2003. Prominent Woman in the Region of Murcia at the First National Congress on Women and Culture, February 2002. Honorary Award for Educational Commitment "Professor Julio Pérez" 2022.

Guest lecturer at the Vaganova Ballet Academy in St. Petersburg (being the first Spanish to teach contemporary repertoire, by Spanish choreographer Nacho Duato, at that school), at the State Ballet School in Berlin, at Europa Danse, at the International Academy of Dance in Biarritz, at the 6th International Dance Stage of the City of Verona, at the international course ART OF (Switzerland), and at REVOLVE DANCE (Romania). Professor of classical dance and contemporary dance workshops for the National Rhythmic Gymnastics Team. Professor of classical dance and coach in the program broadcast on RTVE, Prodigios.

She prepares students for national and international dance competitions where they win top prizes, highlighting the Excellence Award (gold medal) from the Prix de Lausanne (2001).

Judge in national dance competitions (La Coruña, Castellón, Alicante, Zaragoza) and international (XVII International Classical Dance Competition in Grasse, France. 2004).

ELENA VOSTROTINA

Former Principal Dancer of Zurich Ballet

Elena Vostrotina was born in St. Petersburg. She received her formal ballet training at the prestigious Vaganova Ballet Academy, where her talent and dedication were evident early on. In 2002, she earned the “Hope of Russia” Award at the Vaganova Prix Ballet Competition, signaling the beginning of a promising career in classical ballet.

From 2003 to 2006, Vostrotina was a member of the Kirov Ballet (now Mariinsky Ballet) in St. Petersburg, where she performed various classical roles and continued developing under the guidance of renowned teachers, including Elena Evteeva.

In 2006, she joined the Semperoper Ballett in Dresden, Germany. Initially appointed as a second soloist, she quickly rose through the ranks—becoming a first soloist in 2007 and a principal dancer in 2011. During her tenure at Semperoper Ballett, she gained acclaim for her interpretations of both classical and contemporary repertoire. Critics particularly praised her performance in The World According to Us by David Dawson, for which she received the “Outstanding Performance by a Female Artist” honor from Dance Europe Magazine in 2009. That same year, she was awarded the “Paradise Award” for Best Dramatic Actress in La Bayadère (staged by Igor Zelensky) in Novosibirsk, Russia.

Her excellence was further recognized in 2014 when she received the Mary Wigman Award from the Stiftung zur Förderung der Semperoper.

In 2017, Vostrotina joined Ballett Zürich in Switzerland as a principal dancer. Her work with the company has included standout performances such as Odette/Odile in Alexei Ratmansky’s reconstruction of Swan Lake, Myrtha in Giselle (Patrice Bart), and leading roles in productions by Christian Spuck, including Winterreise, Romeo and Juliet, and Nocturne.

Throughout her career, she has danced major roles in the classical canon, including Princess Aurora and the Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, Nikiya in La Bayadère, the Sugarplum Fairy in The Nutcracker, and Myrtha in Giselle. She has also excelled in neoclassical and contemporary works by choreographers such as George Balanchine, William Forsythe, Jiří Kylián, Mats Ek, Ohad Naharin, David Dawson, Stijn Celis, and John Neumeier, Paul Lightfoot and Crystal Pite.

SEAN KULASHE-BATES

Ballet Dancer with Ballett Zurich

Sean was born in the UK and trained at The Royal Ballet School, both Lower and Upper. As a student, he performed in numerous productions with The Royal Ballet. After overcoming a long-term back injury at the end of his training, he joined Northern Ballet in 2012 under the directorship of David Nixon.

At Northern Ballet, Sean’s repertoire included works by MacMillan, Maillot, and Lubovitch, and he created roles for choreographers such as Dickson Mbi, Morgann Runacre-Temple, and Mthuthuzeli November. Rising through the ranks, he danced leading roles in many productions and toured extensively throughout the UK and China. His creation of roles in Cathy Marston’s now internationally acclaimed Jane Eyre and Victoria led to an invitation from Marston to join Ballet Zürich under her new directorship.

Since moving to Zürich, Sean has performed in a wide range of diverse programmes, dancing works by Robbins, Pite, Morau, Goecke, and Marston.

Sean is also passionate about teaching. He has taught company class and staged Mlindi Kulashe’s Men Dances at Cape Town City Ballet, and has taught at various summer schools in the UK. He continues to coach in his spare time and has recently been teaching class for the Zürich Junior Ballet.

JEANNETTE CHANDRIKA FÜZESI

Ballet Teacher, Yoga Nidra and Yoga PMA Instructor

Jeannette was born in Zurich. She felt already drawing to dance and yoga from an early age. She started her dance education at the ballet school of the Opera House Zurich and completed at the State Ballet Academy in Budapest. Patricia Neary, Zsuzsa Kuhn and Lazslo Sterbinsky was Jeannettes most important teachers. The first ballet company, where Jeannette danced was the Opera House Zurich. After she has worked in various state theaters, such as in Cologne, Giessen, Darmstadt, Würzburg and at the Theater Ulm.

Since childhood, Jeannette has big passion and love to yoga, which she has been teaching for 20 years.

OLEG KLYMYUK

Ballet Teacher & Director of ART of

was born in Lutsk, Ukraine.
He completed his training at the State Ballet Academy of Kiev (Ukraine).
From 2003, he joined the Semperoper Ballett Dresden where he became first soloist in 2012.
During his career, Oleg had had the opportunity to work with renowned international choreographers, setters and ballet masters such as William Forsythe, Jiří Kylián, John Neumeier, Mats Ek, Alexei Ratmansky, David Dawson, Uwe Scholz and many others.
He has danced in a varied repertoire ranging from classical masterpieces to cutting edge contemporary pieces. In 2012, he obtained the bachelor's degree for ballet teacher discipline, and in 2013, he graduated with a master diploma for modern choreography and the qualification of choreographer of modern dance of the Ukrainian State University of Humanities.
In 2013, he helped to stage William Forsythe’s “In the Middle Somewhat Elevated” at the Paris Opera Ballet. In 2015, Oleg had assisted William Forsythe in staging his piece at the Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle, Washington.
In 2012, he founded and became the director of ART of.