The Nutcracker at the Théâtre des Variétés
The press release of 29 May 2026, ahead of the evening of 27 June at the Théâtre des Variétés.
On Saturday 27 June 2026 at 6 pm, Ananyan Ballet presents The Nutcracker at the Théâtre des Variétés, in its classical version in two acts, to the music of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Around forty young dancers from the school, from the age of three, share the stage with danseurs étoiles of Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo. Artistic direction is by Victoria Ananyan. The evening is presented in collaboration with the Aleksandr Savchuk Charitable Foundation, led by Taisiya Savchuk-Polishchuk.
A school open to the children of Monaco
Ananyan Ballet has been training children in Monaco for five years. The studio is in France, next to the Principality, and the children enrolled are residents of Monaco. The school currently welcomes around thirty-five children. The teaching rests on the Vaganova method, opened up to the French, Italian, English, American, neoclassical and contemporary schools.
Monaco is home to the Académie Princesse Grace, internationally recognised for training young dancers towards professional careers. Ananyan Ballet takes its place in Monaco with a complementary approach: giving the children and families of Monaco a demanding and deeply personal ballet education.
“For five years we have been growing, step by step. I started with a small group and built this school from nothing. These are Monaco’s own children, and they dance at a level that speaks for itself. I want the people of Monaco to come and see what we have built, because there is a place for us here,” says Victoria Ananyan.
Toulon and Sanremo
In 2026, the school took part in the twenty-seventh International Competition of Toulon, where the students won gold, silver and bronze in the solo categories, and second place in the group category. Shortly afterwards in Sanremo, a student took second place.
The whole class went to Toulon, with around three hours of training a week, against schools whose students train up to sixteen hours a week, and without a rehearsal on the stage beforehand.
In partnership with the Aleksandr Savchuk Foundation
The Aleksandr Savchuk Charitable Foundation, led by Taisiya Savchuk-Polishchuk, has worked with Ananyan Ballet for several years. Taisiya’s wider practice is art therapy. With Ananyan Ballet, that work takes the form of dance therapy, offered to children facing difficult circumstances, including those affected by war.
The aim is to give them a space where dance helps them feel safe, find a sense of home, and rebuild through art. A short film will retrace this work during the performance.
Victoria Ananyan, artistic direction
First trained by her mother, herself a teacher of classical ballet, and then at the Perm Choreographic Ballet School, whose diploma she obtained with highest honours in 2003, Victoria Ananyan was a principal dancer with Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo for ten years, under the direction of Jean-Christophe Maillot and the patronage of H.R.H. the Princess of Hanover. She has performed at the Théâtre Garnier, the Grimaldi Forum and on the main stages of Europe, North America and Asia, in lead roles across a repertoire that includes Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker and La Bayadère. She also performed at the official Olympic Flame handover ceremony as part of the Sochi 2014 Torch Relay.
She holds an MBA from the International University of Monaco, and in 2025 received the “Best Entrepreneurial Project” award from the Monaco Economic Board. She holds two pedagogical qualifications obtained at PNSD Rosella Hightower.
“It is not really a business. It is a way of life, a dedication, a mission,” says Victoria Ananyan.
The Nutcracker, Saturday 27 June 2026 at 6 pm, at the Théâtre des Variétés, 1 boulevard Albert 1er, Monaco. Running time about 1h30 with an interval. Press contact: victoria@ananyanballet.com.
