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Founder and Artistic Director, Indiana Ballet Conservatory
Age: 49
Hometown: St. Petersburg, Russia
Achievements: Since 2010, Alonya Yakovleva has built Indiana Ballet Conservatory from the ground up, establishing it as “an elite and highly respected training ground for both serious-minded ballet students and recreational dancers alike.” That has included creating and overseeing the curriculum, bringing in accomplished instructors and creating original choreography and full-length ballets. She also mentors students as they prepare for elite scholarship competitions and auditions. A 2024 study that looked at more than 1,600 ballet schools ranked Yakovleva’s conservatory third in the nation for the likelihood of students’ securing professional careers.
Career track: As a professor of performance arts at Dong Duk’s Women’s University in Seoul, Korea, Yakovleva performed, taught and choreographed for such renowned organizations as Universal Ballet Company, Jeongdong Theater and MadeInDance Company. In 2001, she began teaching for the Clara R. Noyes Academy of Ballet Internationale in Indianapolis, and in 2005, she was named artistic director of the Russian Ballet Academy of Indiana, which was named “Outstanding School” at the Youth America Grand Prix Regional in 2007, 2009 and 2010.
Influential moment: When Ballet Internationale closed in 2005. “I’ll never forget seeing students and families standing out front, locked out, confused, heartbroken and nowhere to go,” Yakovleva said. “In that moment without a plan or resources—but a deep sense of responsibility—I told them to follow me, and I’ll make sure they can still train. That simple promise changed everything.”
Giving back: Indiana Ballet Conservatory is a nonprofit, and Yakovleva serves as a member of its board of directors. The organization donates numerous performances around Indiana, including shows at Carmel Clay Public Library, the Carmel Christkindlmarkt and Westfield Washington Public Library.
Advice for young women: Don’t wait for someone else to create a path for you; just blaze the trail yourself. “Over the course of these last 20 years, I have built a school that rivals the reputation of that professional company. Along the way, I learned to speak English fluently, became a United States citizen, created countless full-length ballets, built a world-class training ground for promising ballet dancers of tomorrow, won awards and accolades and have built a legacy by cultivating some of the most impressive and successful alumni I could’ve ever hoped to know,” she said.•
Check out more Women of Influence honorees.
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