Maria Baranova and Sergei Upkin in Diana and Acteon pdd

Maria Baranova and Sergei Upkin in Diana and Acteon pdd from La Esmeralda. Music by Cesare Pugni, choreography by Agrippina Vaganova. International Dance Day Gala, Estonian National Opera 3.05.2014.

Maria Baranova is principal dancer with the Finnish National Ballet. She was born in Lohja (Finland), Maria Baranova entered the Helsinki Dance Institute in 1999. Later she studied dancing at the Ballet School of Hamburg Ballet and at the Helsinki Dance School, under Anastasia Dunets, Maj-Lis Rajala and Juha Kirjonen,. She was the dancer of Hamburg Ballet in 2009–2011 and since 2011 she is the principal dancer at the Finnish National Ballet.

Sergey Upkin is the principal dancer of the Estonian National Ballet. He graduated from the St. Petersburg Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1999. He was the principal dancer of the Estonian National Ballet (1999–2005) and is again since 2008. In 2005–2007 Sergey Upkin worked at the Staatsballet Berlin.

Photos by Jack Devant © with kind permission of the Estonian National Ballet, Toomas Edur and Age Oks, special thanks to Ylla Veerg.