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Baryshnikov

American  
[buh-rish-ni-kawf, -kof, buh-rish-nyi-kuhf] / bəˈrɪʃ nɪˌkɔf, -ˌkɒf, bʌˈrɪʃ nyɪ kəf /

noun

  1. Mikhail born 1948, Latvian-American ballet dancer and choreographer, born in Soviet Latvia: U.S. citizen since 1986, and dual U.S.-Latvian citizen since 2017.


Baryshnikov British  
/ bəˈrɪʃnɪkɒf /

noun

  1. Mikhail . born 1948, Soviet-born ballet dancer, who defected (1974) to the West while on tour with the Kirov Ballet: director (1980–90) of the American Ballet Theatre

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She choreographed for and partnered with Mikhail Baryshnikov, expanding his dance horizons far beyond his classical Russian mastery.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2025

He was born Feb. 9, 1985, in Leningrad and was a graduate of the distinguished Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, whose notable male alumni also include Mikhail Baryshnikov and Rudolf Nureyev.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 18, 2024

American Ballet Theatre “Other Dances,” a classic by Jerome Robbins, originally danced by Mikhail Baryshnikov and Natalia Makarova and set to Chopin mazurkas and a waltz.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 26, 2023

In 1987, she co-starred with Mikhail Baryshnikov in “David Gordon’s Made in USA,” an installment of PBS’s “Great Performances.”

From New York Times • Apr. 21, 2023

Then there were the Eastsiders and Westsiders too famous to even approach, such as Woody Allen, Bob Hope and Mikhail Baryshnikov.

From 100 New Yorkers of the 1970s by Millard, Max