Iana Salenko

Born in Kyiv, she trained at the Pisarev Ballet School, graduating in 2000. She was a member of Donetsk Ballet, 2000–02, before joining Kyiv Opera Ballet as a principal. She joined Berlin State Ballet in 2005 as a demi-soloist, promoted to principal, 2007. Her roles in Berlin have included Malakhov’s Cinderella and Princess Aurora, Olga, Marie (Bart’s Nutcracker), Schaufuss’s La Sylphide and Cranko’s Juliet. She has appeared as a guest artist around the world, including performances in Florence, Munich, Moscow, Rome and St Petersburg. Her awards include first prizes at international ballet competitions in Kyiv (2002), Vienna and Perm (2004) and Helsinki and Nagoya (2005), the Deutsche Tanzpreis ‘Zukunft’ (2010), the Berlin Chamber Dancer Kammertanzerin (2024). Since 2013 her roles as Guest Artist with the Company have included Giselle, Juliet, Odette/Odile, Kitri, Sugar Plum Fairy, Young Girl (Two Pigeons) and Tchaikovsky pas de deux.