12 Facts About Agrippina Vaganova

Agrippina Vaganova's technique is one of the most popular techniques today.

Agrippina Vaganova was born in Saint Petersburg to Akop Vaganov, an Armenian from Astrakhan, who worked as an usher at the Mariinsky Theatre, and a Russian mother.

Agrippina Vaganova was accepted into the Imperial Ballet School in 1888, the great institution of classical dance founded by Anna of Russia and funded by the Tsars.

Agrippina Vaganova graduated from the Classe de Perfection of the former Prima Ballerina Evgenia Pavlovna Sokolova.

Agrippina Vaganova's portrayal was a great success, and won her promotion to the rank of Prima.

Agrippina Vaganova started to teach ballet in 1916 at the School of the Baltic Fleet which was founded and led by Akim Volynsky.

In 1921 Agrippina Vaganova began teaching at the Choreographic College, so at that time was called the former Imperial Theater School situated on Rossi street.

Agrippina Vaganova taught students who would go on to become legends of the dance.

Agrippina Vaganova "fought tooth and nail", as she put it, for the preservation of the legacy of Marius Petipa and the Imperial Ballet.

Agrippina Vaganova's teaching combined the elegant, refined style of the old French School which Vaganova had been taught by Christian Johansson, the beauty and smoothness of the arms movements of old Russian School, strong and masterly foot technique of Italian School with more vigorous dancing developed in the Soviet Union.

Agrippina Vaganova taught the class of perfection for the female dancers of the Kirov Ballet for many years till 1951, when Natalia Dudinskaya succeed her as teacher.

The spread of Agrippina Vaganova method is not limited inside Russia.