Mikhail Ilyin

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Mikhail Ilyin graduated from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in 1998. In 1999, he joined the Boston Ballet for two years, then Miami City Ballet where he became in principal in 2003.

His repertoire with Miami City Ballet included leading roles in Swan Lake, Paquita, Le Corsaire, Coppélia, The Nutcracker, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, Stars and Stripes, Sonatine, Ballet Imperial, Apollo, Theme and Variations, Allegro Brillante, Ballo della Regina, Glinka Pas de Trois, Donizetti Variations, Prodigal Son, La Source, Western Symphony, Symphony in C, Afternoon of a Faun, Dances at a Gathering, Interplay, Company B, Arden Court, Piazzolla Caldera, Giggling Rapids, The Reassuring Effects (of Form and Poetry), The Golden Section, Nine Sinatra Songs and In the Upper Room.

Ilyin won the Gold Medal at the International Ballet Competition “Vaganova Prix” and a diploma at the Paris International Dance Competition (1998), Silver Medal at the New York International Ballet Competition (2000) and Bronze Medal at the International Ballet Competition in Jackson (2002).

Ilyin has performed, taught and choreographed across the United States, including the Miami City Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet schools. In 2005, he was chosen by Dance Magazine as one of the “to watch” dancers of today. He has been an Artist-in-Residence with Ballet Mississippi since 2005.

Ilyin joined American Ballet Theatre as a member of the corps de ballet in January 2008. His repertoire with the Company includes Airs, the Bronze Idol in La Bayadère, Company B, Birbanto in Le Corsaire, a leading role in Etudes, the peasant pas de deux in Giselle, the Lead Pontavedrian Dancer and Maitre d’ in The Merry Widow, Rabbit in Rabbit and Rogue, a Fairy Knight and Puss-in-Boots in The Sleeping Beauty and the Neapolitan Dance in Swan Lake, among others. He created a role in Everything Doesn’t Happen at Once.

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