AKIMOV KEEPS THE BOLSHOI `RUNNING.

Boris Akimov is a very busy man. Since becoming the Bolshoi Ballet's artistic director last October, he's been planning for the company's future while traveling like mad. In an age where huge Kremlin handouts are a distant memory, the two go hand in hand. Foreign currency is desperately needed these days to keep the Bolshoi (and its rival company in St. Petersburg, the Kirov) afloat. And Akimov plans to keep his company's heritage alive by taking it on the road.

Just after his appointment, he and his dancers toured to Poland. This May, while one group danced Don Quixote in Italy, another appeared back home in the Bolshoi Theater, and a third toured to London. That was Akimov's second trip to the British capital this year, since he served as guest teacher for The Royal Ballet in January. On that trip, he also expanded his company's repertoire, obtaining the rights to La Fille mal gardee (the Bolshoi's first Ashton ballet), which should premiere in March 2002.

Akimov may spend a good deal of time travelling and have an appreciation for foreign choreographers, but his goal is to preserve the Bolshoi's legacy. This March, he welcomed Yuri Grigorovich back to the theater to restage the former director's Swan Lake (see "Once An Outcast, Now a `Genius,'" Dance Magazine, June, page 72). Akimov chuckled as he recalled discussing the project with the veteran choreographer and director whose incomparable tenancy at the Bolshoi shaped the company's unique style for thirty years. "I remember as a young boy being summoned to the director's office," said Akimov, "and with great fear of entering it. Now Yuri Nikolaevich knocks and asks if he can come in!"

Akimov joined the Bolshoi Ballet in 1965 and was soon a principal. He became known for his elegant and graceful technical virtuosity and carefully thought out characterizations. A born teacher, he is one of the Bolshoi's best-loved pedagogues, equally admired by top companies in Japan, Denmark, Austria, Italy, Germany, Holland, and England. His teaching talents make his schedule all the more hectic. He has been appointed director of the Moscow Choreographic Institute--the official school for the Bolshoi Ballet and his alma mater--taking over from Sofia Golovkina, who led the school for close to forty years. And today, even with all his extra duties, he still starts his morning by teaching the men's class. "It keeps me in touch with the lads," he said.

Akimov recognizes that restoring the somewhat tarnished reputation of his famous ballet company will be challenging. (Today, the Bolshoi is lagging behind the Kirov, which enjoys more worldwide popularity.) But he is still buoyant. "We open next season with Roland Petit's Queen of Spades," he said enthusiastically. "Then, in the spring we have the Ashton ballet. The company will also premiere three one-act ballets by the Ukraine-based choreographer Alexei Ratmansky. "And," he continued, with a twinkle in his eye, "there are more plans waiting to be revealed." So how does he do it?

"My wife, Tania, keeps asking me if I will be coming home for dinner," he said during the Bolshoi's tour to London, "but I don't often manage it. I arrive at the theater at 9:30 each morning to teach class, and then I don't get home again until after the evening performance." But he smiles with obvious satisfaction at all the work. "It was a great surprise to me to be asked to be director and I had to think about it. But I realized that I had very good credentials for the job--I have lived and worked in the theater most of my life, I know its history, its challenges, its policies. And I know its people, not just the dancers but all those who work in the theater. And of course, I understand the importance of keeping the Bolshoi heritage alive. That is my goal."

And Bolshoi dancers should keep their bags packed because Akimov seems set on sharing this heritage with the world. A group of soloists will tour the U.S. in October. And two full-company trips to the States are being planned for 2002. "These will be big tours," he said, "showing the very best of our Bolshoi with its great corps de ballet and wonderful dancers. You'll see how strong we are."