Popular Russian Ballet Dancer Dies

Yekaterina Maksimova in 1979

MOSCOW -- Prominent Russian ballet star Yekaterina Maksimova has died in Moscow at the age of 70, RFE/RL's Russian service reports.

Maksimova was very popular in Russia and former Soviet republics for decades.

Many called her the most gracious ballet dancer of the Soviet Union and later Russia.

Maksimova danced major parts in famous classic ballet performances such as "Swan Lake," "The Nutcracker," "Sleeping Beauty," "Giselle," and many others.