RGBT Founder and Artistic Director
Master Grigorian received his ballet training at the Kirov Ballet School and the Baku Choreographic Institute. For twenty years, he was the principal dancer with the Baku Theater of Opera and Ballet, dancing lead roles in such ballets as Don Quixote, Giselle, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, and more.
Several ballets were made expressly for Master Grigorian. As a performer, he toured the world with stars of the Bolshoi and the Kirov Ballet Companies. Master Grigorian was awarded two highly prestigious awards for his performances: The People's Artist of Azerbaidzhan and Laureate of State Prize of the USSR; both are extraordinary honors for an artist. He was the choreographer for the European, World, and Olympic Ice Dancing group Linichyk, and a teacher for the Moscow Theatre Studio of Musical Art.
Master Grigorian served as the choreographer for the Russian Stars Ensemble in the Mark Twain Musical Drama from 1989-1995. In 1991, he opened the Rafael Grigorian School of Classical Ballet in the Elmira and Corning area of NY. In 1998, the school expanded to the Binghamton area. The Arts of the Southern Finger Lakes of NY has recently honored Master Grigorian with an award for his outstanding work in the community.
Recently, Master Grigorian staged two full-length ballets for the Buffalo Ballet and the Neglia Ballet Artists in Buffalo, NY (Giselle and Romeo & Juliet). He also staged Sleeping Beauty for the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet (CPYB) with the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra. He was a guest instructor at the Lexington Ballet in Kentucky. He has staged The Nutcracker in Nagaoy, Japan. He choreographed the dream scene of Hansel and Gretel in the Tri-Cities’ Opera production, Binghamton, NY. He has recently taught master classes at the Ballet Classique in Iceland. Currently he teaches master classes at CPYB, Ballet Academy East in New York City, Ithaca College, Ithaca Ballet Center, Alfred Ballet Academy, New York Ballet Academy, and the Peabody Institute of Maryland.
Master Grigorian is the founder, artistic director, and choreographer of the Rafael Grigorian Ballet Theatre (RGBT), a not-for-profit dance company since 1994. He has staged numerous full-length ballets and many short, eclectic pieces. The RGBT's repertoire under his leadership includes Cinderella, Romeo & Juliet, Baba Yaga, Cipollino, The Nutcracker, Paquita, and more. Under Master Grigorian's directorship, RGBT holds the honor of being the resident dance company of the Clemens Center in Elmira, NY. Master Grigorian draws on students from open auditions in the Southern Tier and from his schools for his quality productions.