The School of Music at West Texas A&M University will present guest ballet dancers Arkadiy and Katya Orohovsky and their 11 year old son, Alexei, in the third annual Russian Music Festival. The performance will be accompanied by the WT Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Mark Bartley at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 28 in the Branding Iron Theatre.
The Orohovsky family has been recognized as a world-class act for many years, and it began in the Ukraine with an aptitude for dance and desire to perform. They are sought after by schools throughout the U.S. as guest artists and master teachers.
Arkadiy trained at the Kiev State Choreographic School in the Ukraine and later joined the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet of Albania touring through Europe, North America and Japan. He performed roles such as the Prince in Cinderella, Siegfried in Swan Lake and the Prince in The Nutcracker. In 1994, he came to the U.S. and danced with the El Paso Ballet Theatre before joining the Houston Ballet in 2000, where he continued to perform soloist and principal roles in the classical repertory as well as in ballets by George Balanchine and Ben Stevenson.
Katya started her dance training with Henry Danton. She continued her training in notable schools such as The Kirov Academy of Ballet and the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts. She has danced as a guest principal artist with her husband throughout the U.S., performing roles like Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet as well as Giselle and Swanilda in Coppelia. She is noted for her outstanding ability to coach young dancers in the classical ballet repertory as well as staging full-length classics.
Alexei began taking formal ballet classes when he was seven and performed many soloist roles including the Prince and Marzipan in The Nutcracker, the Jester and Clock in Cinderella and lead Gypsy in La Esmeralda. Alexei started competing at Youth America Grand Prix International Ballet Competition when he was eight, and by 10, he was awarded first place for his Pas de Deux in Harlequinade and top 12 for his solo from Flames of Paris. Soon-to-be 12, he is now eligible to audition for summer programs and has been awarded full scholarships to Colorado Ballet, Next Generation Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet Academy and The School of the Pennsylvania Ballet.
The guest artists will be accompanied by WT musical artists in a special evening of performance led by Bartley, who became WT director of orchestral activities in 2006. He conducts the WT Symphony, recent winners of the The American Prize, and together, the ensemble regularly tours the West Texas region and just completed its first European Tour in 2016 with performances in Prague, Vienna and Budapest. He has conducted professional orchestras around the world including the North Czech Philharmonic (Teplice), the Bacau Philharmonic (Romania), the Atlantic Coast Orchestra (Portugal), the Citiphilharmonie (Seoul, South Korea), the China Opera and Dance Symphony Orchestra (Beijing) and many more.
Additionally, Bartley serves the School of Music as Associate Director, teaches upper-division conducting lessons and directs the high school orchestra at WT’s Chamber Music Strings Camp. He holds a doctorate from Boston University and bachelor's degree and master's degree from the University of Texas.
Tickets to the Russian Music Festival are priced at $10 each or free to those with WT Buffalo Gold Card. For more information, call the WT music office at 806-651-2840 or contact Mila Abbasova, festival chair, at mabbasova@wtamu.edu.
-West Texas A&M University
