Ovcharenko was born on 31 December 1986 in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union. He began studying ballet at the Dnipropetrovsk State Choreographic School when he was 11 years old.[1] At the age of 17, he entered the Bolshoi Ballet Academy where he participated in the Academy's tours to the U.S., Greece, Germany, China and other countries. He graduated in 2007 and was admitted to the Bolshoi Ballet in the corps de ballet. His mentor was Nikolay Tsiskaridze and within one year he was given the leading role in the ballet The Nutcracker. From 2009 he studied under Nikolai Fadeyechev[2] and since 2016 his repetiteur has been Victor Barykin.
Ovcharenko's repertoire covers most of the classical romantic roles: Romeo, The Prince in The Nutcracker, and Prince Siegfried, as well as leading roles in neoclassical productions such as George Balanchine's Apollo and Jewels, Lady of the Camellias by John Neumeier, Onegin by John Cranko, Lost Illusions by Alexei Ratmansky, and Marco Spada by Pierre Lacotte. With an ever-eager interest in exploring new roles, Ovcharenko has had much success in the contemporary ballets staged at the Bolshoi, such as Chroma by Wayne McGregor, Classical Symphony by Yuri Possokhov, and The Taming of the Shrew by Jean-Christophe Maillot.
Ovcharenko has participated in the Bolshoi Ballet tours to Asia, Europe and Americas, and he is a welcome guest star in famous international companies such as Berlin State Ballet, Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, Hamburg State Opera, and also at international ballet festivals and national culture projects.
Ovcharenko took part in some prestigious dance competitions, receiving gold at the Tanzolymp in Berlin in 2006, and another at the Arabesque competition in Perm in 2008. In 2009, he won a Special prize "To the best partner" at the International competition of ballet dancers, and was awarded with "The Rising Star" nomination. In 2010, he took part in the International Festival "World Ballet Stars" in Donetsk, Ukraine. In January 2011, he performed with Bolshoi principal, Nina Kaptsova at the 6th Prague Ballet Gala, and in August, he danced with Anna Tikhomirova, at the closing gala-concert of the 8th Congress of the World Federation of UNESCO Clubs, Centres and Associations in Hanoi. In July 2012, he and Anna Tikhomirova participated in Rossiya K's "Grand Ballet Project" (televised in December 2012), where they were awarded the Grand Prix as "Best Ballet Duo".
In 2013, Ovcharenko was promoted to the rank of Principal dancer of the Bolshoi Ballet.
Roles
The Bolshoi Repertoire
Ovcharenko as Apollo, Apollon Musagète, Bolshoi Theatre, 2012Ovcharenko as Romeo with Nina Kaptsova as Juliet, Romeo and Juliet, Bolshoi Theatre, 2010
2007
Policeman in Cipollino, Genrih Mayorov's production
Little Count Cherry in Cipollino, Genrih Mayorov's production
Albert (friend to Phoebus, creator of the role at the Bolshoi Theatre) and Phoebus in La Esmeralda, choreography by M. Petipa, production and new choreographic version by Yuri Burlaka and Vasily Medvedev
Leading couple in Classical Symphony, Yuri Possokhov's production
Hamlet in Hamlet, choreography by Radu Paklitaru – debut on 13 March 2015
Pechorin in A Hero of Our Time (Part 2 "Taman"), choreography by Yuri Possokhov – creator of the role (22 July 2015)
2016
Basilio in Don Quixote, Alexei Fadeyechev's production – debut on 6 February 2016
2017
Principal Dancer in Etudes, Harold Lander's production – debut on 19 March 2017
Leading dancer in George Balanchine's Rubies – debut on 1 April 2017
Conrad in Le Corsaire, choreography by Marius Petipa, production and new choreography by Alexei Ratmansky and Yuri Burlaka – debut on 20 October 2016
Nureyev in Nureyev, choreography by Yuri Possokhov, designed and directed by Kirill Serebrennikov – debut on 10 December 2017
2018
Vronsky in Anna Karenina, John Neumeier's production – debut on 24 March 2018
Konstantin (Kostya) in The Seagull, John Neumeier's production – debut on 29 April 2018 at the Hamburg Opera (partner — Alina Cojocaru as Nina Zarechnaya)
Petrushka in Petrushka, Edward Clug's production – debut on 21 November 2018
September, Kremlin Gala "Ballet Stars of the XXI century", Kremlin Palace, Russia
La Sylphide PDD, with Anna Tikhomirova
The Very Thought of You, new creation by Radu Poklitaru, with Anna Tikhomirova
October, "A Celebration of Dance - The Hong Kong Ballet at 35", Hong Kong, China
Prince Siegfried, Act III of Swan Lake, with Kristina Kretova
November, Gala Concert to celebrate the 85th birthday of musician Alexandra Pakhmutova, Kremlin Palace, Russia
You're My Meloday, new creation by Andrei Merkuriev, with Anna Tikhomirova
2015
May, Hommage aux Grimaldi, Grimaldi Forum, Monaco
Giselle PDD, with Anna Tikhomirova
September, Gala Russe, Grimaldi Forum, Monaco
The Very Thought of You, with Anna Tikhomirova
Chroma, with Anna Tikhomirova
Romeo and Juliet PDD, Choreography by Jean-Christophe Maillot, with Olga Smirnova
October, Gala in Commemoration of Sophia Golovkina's Centennial, Bolshoi Theatre, Russia
The Sleeping Beauty PDD, with Nina Kaptsova
Filmography
Nutcracker, Bel Air Classiques, 2011 (Prince Nutcracker with Nina Kaptsova, filmed at the Bolshoi Theatre in 2010).
Sleeping Beauty, Bel Air Classique, 2012 (Blue bird, filmed at the Bolshoi Theatre in 2011).
Rudolf Nureyev: Dance to Freedom (title role, docudrama by BBC Two, 2015).[13]
Awards
2006 – Gold medal at the 3rd International Dance Olympus Competition (Berlin)
2008 – First Award for Male Dancer at the Open Competition "Arabesque" in Perm, as well as a prize named after Marius Petipa, "Pearl of the Urals", offered by Perm Public Foundation for Purity and Line of Classical Tradition, and the Press Jury Award for Fidelity to Moscow School Classical Tradition.[14] In the same year, he was granted the youth award of "Triumph".
