Vladimir Nikolaevich Shoumeikin

Vladimir Nikolaevich Shoumeikin, Artistic Director Emeritus and Choreographer of the International Ballet Theatre passed away peacefully in his sleep on Thursday, May 30, 2024 at the age of 99, just a few days shy of his 100th birthday.

Throughout his long, prolific, and rewarding artistic life Vladimir Shoumeikin choreographed and directed over 40 original ballets, including The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Spartacus, and Francesca Da Rimini. He leaves these ballets, still widely performed in the U.S. and overseas, as an enduring legacy.

Born in the USSR on June 4, 1924, Shoumeikin came to prominence as Choreographer and Artistic Director in the 1960: first, running Tatar State Ballet in Kazan, then Donetsk Ballet in Ukraine, for the total of 30 years. In 1984 his stunning original choreography of A Thousand and One Nights won the national Best Original Ballet Award in Moscow.

Soon after emigrating to the U.S. in 1991, Shoumeikin established International Ballet Theatre, a classical ballet company based in Philadelphia. The company quickly became well-known in the tri-state area thanks to its lavish production of The Nutcracker that enchanted PA, NJ, and DE audiences and casted local ballet students ages 6 to15.

For over 10 years IBT toured the East Coast, Midwest, and Canada to great acclaim. Incredibly diverse for the ballet scene of the 1990s, the company hired Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Georgian, and Russian professional dancers recently emigrated to the U.S., as well as a large group of talented young Americans mentored and coached by Shoumeikin in Vaganova style, to the highest classical ballet standards. His training influenced several generations of ballet professionals: many of young IBT dancers went on to become Principal Dancers of Boston Ballet, ABT, and other prominent U.S. companies, as well as respected contemporary choreographers and ballet masters.

Vladimir Shoumeikin was blessed with a lifelong, happy marriage and close artistic partnership with his wife Galina, a union that lasted for 80 years until Galina’s death in 2023. They met as children at Kiev Ballet Academy in 1934 and spent their entire lives together.

He is survived by his son Nikolai Shoumeikin and beloved daughter-in-law Irina, grandson Alex and his wife Baochan Tran, and great-grandchildren Luka and Sophia.

A Memorial Service will be announced at a later date.