Ukrainian ballet dancer Denis Matvienko studied at the Kyiv State Choreographic School, Ukraine (1987-1997). He, later on, attended International Slavic University, Ukraine (2005-2007), where he was educated as a Choreography Tutor and Teacher.
He was previously engaged as a Soloist at the Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, Russia (2002-2007), a Principal Dancer at the Ukrainian National opera in Kyiv (2007-2009), a Prin-cipal Dancer at the Mikhailovsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, Russia (2009-2011), a Principal Dancer at the Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg (2011-2013), an Artistic Director of the Bal-let at the Ukrainian National Opera (2013-2016), a Principal Dancer at the Mariinsky Thea-tre, St. Petersburg, Russia (2016-2020), an Artistic Director of the Novosibirsk Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, Russia (2020-2022) and an Assistant Professor at the Classical and Pas de deux Department of the Vaganova Academy, St. Petersburg.
He danced in all title roles of the classic ballet repertoire and in ballet creations of such re-nowned choreographers as G. Balanchine, J. Robins, W. Forsythe, R. Petty, F. Ashton, Y. Grigorovich, A. Gorsky, M. Petipa, N. Makarova, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, V. Chabukiani, E. Klug, N. Duato, A. Ratmansky, H. Lander, C. Wheeldon, M. Bigonzetti, R. Nureyev, P. Lacotte and D. Rhoden.
He co-created, produced and performed the title role in The Great Gatsby, a ballet perfor-mance choreographed by Dwight Rhoden (2014), which was presented at over 35 theatre venues in Europe and the Middle East.
He appeared as a Guest Principal Dancer at the New National Theatre in Tokyo, Japan (2000-2015), the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia (2005-2008), the Teatro Alla Scala in Milan, Italy (2007-2009), the Opéra de Paris, France (2007), the American Ballet Theatre in New York, USA (2012-2013) and the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia (2009-2022).
The artist also participated in the project Kings of Dance alongside such prominent dancers as M. Gomes, D. Hallberg, R. Bolle, N. Tsiskaridze, G. Kot, L. Sarafanov, I. Vasiliev, F. Vogel, Joaquin de Luz and A. Corella.
He toured and performed several times with the Bolshoi, Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky Thea-tres in London, Great Britain (Covent Garden, Coliseum Theatre).
He was also an author and co-creator of an annual project Ballet of the Future in St. Peters-burg (2020). Three years in a row, the project had success with graduates of ballet schools and young ballet dancers. This ballet casting project was created with the aim of providing work for beginners and young dancers. Among the selectors of the project were the compa-ny directors and representatives of such theatres as the Finnish National Opera and Ballet Theatre (Helsinki), Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, the Royal Swedish National Opera (Stock-holm), Polish National Ballet (Warsaw), Mariinsky Theatre, Mikhailovsky Theatre (St. Peters-burg), Dortmund Ballet Theatre (Germany), Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre and many other Russian theatres. He was also an author and co-creator of the Ballet Stage, a platform of unity for Ukrainian Ballet Artists affected by the shocking events in Ukraine. The platform created a network of global industry contacts across theatres, schools, brands and artists who were ready to offer support to Ukrainian Ballet artists and students (2020).
Denis Matvienko, the Honoured Artist of Ukraine (2006), is also a recipient of several other prestigious awards and honours. He won a Grand Prix at the 4th International Ballet Competi-tion in Luxembourg (1997) and at the 3rd International Rudolf Nureyev Ballet Competition in Budapest, Hungary (1998). He also won a Gold Medal and Vaslav Nijinsky Prize at the 3rd International Contemporary and Classical Choreography Competition in Nagoya, Japan (1999), a Grand Prix at the 10th International Ballet and Choreography Competition in Mos-cow (2005) and the Spirit of Dance Prize in the Star category (2008). He is also a recipient of the lapel pin of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Tatarstan for his Achievements in Culture (2009) and a recipient of the DANCE OPEN International Ballet Prize in the Best Partners category (2011).