Igor Alexandrovich Moiseyev (Russian: Игорь Александрович Моисеев; January 21 [O.S. January 8] 1906 – November 2, 2007) has been widely acclaimed as the greatest 20th-century choreographer of character dance, a dance style similar to folk dance but with more professionalism and theatrics.
Born in Kiev, the only child of a Russian lawyer and a French-Romanian seamstress. His family lived in Paris until he was 8, and throughout his life he spoke to Western journalists in fluent French.[1] Moiseyev graduated from the Bolshoi Theatreballet school in 1924 and danced in the theatre until 1939. His first choreography in the Bolshoi was Footballer in 1930 and the last was Spartacus in 1954.
Since the early 1930s, he staged acrobatic parades on Red Square and finally came up with the idea of establishing the Theatre of Folk Art. In 1936, Vyacheslav Molotov put him in charge of the new dance company, which has since been known as the Moiseyev Ballet. Among about 200 dances he created for his company, some humorously represented the game of football and guerrilla warfare. After visiting Belarus he choreographed a Belarusian "folk" dance Bulba ("Potato"), which over the years indeed became a Belarusian folk dance. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, Moiseyev's work has been especially admired "for the balance that it maintained between authentic folk dance and theatrical effectiveness".
1st class (21 January 2006) - for outstanding contribution to the development of domestic and international choreographic art, many years of creative activity
2nd class (12 June 12, 999) - for outstanding contribution to cultural development and in connection with the 75th anniversary of creative activity
3rd class (28 December 1995) - for services to the state, an outstanding contribution to the development of choreographic art
Order of Friendship (11 April 1994) - for his great personal contribution to the development of choreographic art and world culture
Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 5th class (Ukraine, March 3, 2006) - for outstanding contribution to the development of cultural ties between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, the long-term selfless artistic activity