Irina Ivanovna Golub is a Russian-born ballerina, formerly with the Mariinsky Ballet, once known as the Kirov Ballet. Born in what was then Leningrad, and a graduate of the Vaganova Academy, Ms. Golub joined the Mariinsky in 1998 at the age of eighteen. Known for her great beauty and acclaimed for her dancing by critics, she has been hailed in the Mariinsky production of George Balanchine's Jewels, in which she danced Rubies. She has also appeared in the title role of Prokofiev's Cinderella and as Juliet in the same composer's Romeo and Juliet. In 2001, she first danced the role of Masha (Clara) in Mikhail Chemiakin's controversial production of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker. Golub has also danced the role of Masha in a recent revival of the more traditional 1934 Vasili Vainonen version of