November 2020–May 2021
Cheboksary, Chuvashia, Russia
Joined Boston Ballet in 2018
Viktorina Kapitonova in Mikko Nissinen's The Nutcracker by Angela Sterling
Viktorina Kapitonova studied at the Kazan Ballet School and Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre Academy. She won the Young Ballet of Russia Competition (2003) as well as Russia's Arabesque Contest (2006, 2008). Kapitonova started her career as a soloist in Russia's Kazan Ballet before joining Stanislavsky Theatre Ballet in Moscow. In 2010, she joined Ballett Zürich as a principal dancer. Her Boston Ballet repertoire includes Sir Frederick Ashton’s Cinderella (Cinderalla), George Balanchine’s Coppélia (Coppélia), Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot’s (adapted by Larissa Ponomarenko) Giselle (Giselle), Jorma Elo’s Carmen (Mikaela), William Forsythe’s Playlist (EP) and In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, Mikko Nissinen’s The Nutcracker (Sugar Plum Fair, Dew Drop), Jerome Robbins’ Fancy Free and Glass Pieces, and Leonid Yakobson’s Pas de Quatre. Her repertoire includes: Mats Ek’s The Sleeping Beauty (Queen), William Forsythe’s New Sleep (Workwithinwork), Yuri Grigorovich’s The Stone Flower (Solo), Jiří Kylián’s Wings of Wax, Douglas Lee’s A-Life (Solo), Wayne McGregor’s Kairos (Solo), Marius Petipa’s La Bayadère (White Shadows, Gamzatti), The Nutcracker (Maria), and Coppélia (Swanilda), Heinz Spoerli’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Hermia), Goldberg Variations (Solo), The Nutcracker (Maria), and Raymonda Variations (Idomeneo), and Christian Spuck’s Der Sandmann (Olimpia/Doll), Leonce & Lena (Governante, Rosetta), Nussknacker und Mausekönig (Zuckerfee), Romeo & Juliet (Nurse Amma), Siebte Blau (Solo) and Sonnett (Solo). Kapitonova has danced both Giselle and Myrtha in Patrice Bart's Giselle. She also created Odile/Odette in Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake. Christian Spuck created the title role of Spuck’s Anna Karenina full-length ballet for Kapitonova. Her performance as Giselle was one of The Boston Globe’s Dance Critics Top 10 Dance Shows of 2019. Kapitonova joined Boston Ballet in 2018 as a principal dancer.
Get an inside look at how dancers use pantomime to tell stories through movement, rather than words.
Inside Look: Ballet Pantomime
Discover the meaning behind the movement as Principal Dancers Viktorina Kapitonova and Patrick Yocum, led by Ballet Master Larissa Ponomarenko, demonstrate ballet pantomime.
Video by Element Productions
Meet Principal Dancer Viktorina Kapitonova.
Viktorina Kapitonova
Boston Ballet Principal Dancer Viktorina Kapitonova talks about what ballet and dancing in Boston means to her. Video by Ernesto Galan
Discover what it's like to dance the title role of this iconic ballet.
Dancer Insight: Viktorina Kapitonova on Giselle
The role of Giselle is renowned for its technical and emotional difficulty, and continues to be a touchstone in the legacy of great ballerinas. Go behind the scenes with Principal Dancer Viktorina Kapitonova and discover what it's like to dance this coveted role.
Video by Ernesto Galan
Adding a new role to her repertoire, Viktorina shares a little of her own Cinderella story.
Dancer Insight: Viktorina Kapitonova on Cinderella
Go behind the scenes with Principal Dancer Viktorina Kapitonova as she shares her enthusiasm about becoming Cinderella for the first time and the parallels to her own life.