You parted ways?
Anna Yes! He said “I like you,” and I said “Goodbye,”
because at that point my career was the most important thing to me. I graduated, focused on work at the Bolshoi and for two years we didn’t meet. He later joined the theatre, and started to court me. Our relationship was not immediate. We had lived in the dorms together at first and become friends. We moved from friendship to love.

Anna Tikhomirova and Artem Ovcharenko
Foto: Grishko

Do you two cook at home?
Artem Rarely, but mainly I’m the one who cooks. I love fish. I also love various kinds of fishing, sports and leisure fishing. I fished as a child and learned how to clean and prepare it. I prefer it grilled.

Anna I’d say Artem cooks better than me, like any man. I believe that the best chefs are men. I began to cook more when was pregnant. Evidently my maternal instincts opened up, I took cookery classes, and finally learned to make Russian borsch (traditional soup). Now on the weekends I try to cook something,
but he’s the culinary specialist in the family. He’s very talented, he draws my portraits based on photographs, he designed his own collection of clothing, and he’s a good singer. He has so many talents that if he had a bit more time, he would do them all. I don’t worry about what he will do after ballet, because he’s bound to find something. When someone is talented, they’re talented at everything, and that is Artem.

Artem Like I mentioned, I love taking an interest in various things. I’ve read psychology, philosophy, religious books. Books on sports or anatomy. I’ve gained experience in films, and I created a male clothing collection that men could dance in, as well as various other projects.

What’s the best part of your job?
Artem There are a lot of enjoyable aspects. Ballet
dancers see the entire world. We tour often and I’ve already been to practically every corner of the world, seen how people live, seen sights that people write or
speak about. You get to visit London, New York, Japan, China, Europe… everywhere. We’ve even danced in Vietnam. I really like that this is one of the bonuses of being a dancer.

Anna When you know the role technically and can then add the emotional elements. When we worked with John Neumeier, and he spent forty minutes explaining what the heroine should feel and why. When you let that move through you and show it through the movements on stage, that’s the most enjoyable part.

You have a loaded schedule between performances, rehearsals, family, and outside projects. How do you manage to combine everything?
Artem The most important thing is not to ask that question! It’s like swimming. I can swim for a long time until
someone asks me how I do it. If you ask me if I’m breathing properly or moving my arms or legs properly or what will happen if I get tired, and when you ask all those questions then you won’t make it to the other side. But you know how to swim.

Anna I sleep very little, because our daughter wakes
up early. My mother helps me a lot with our daughter, and she’s irreplaceable. Sometimes when we have a weekend off, once every two weeks, I try to devote it entirely to my family. I may cancel a rehearsal because I understand it’s important to limit things. Right now it’s 50/50 but I’m past the point of giving 100% only to ballet.

Anna Tikhomirova and Artem Ovcharenko
Foto: Damir Yusupov – Bolshoi