He graduated from the Tbilisi School of Ballet (class of Vakhtang Chabukiani) and trained at the Vaganova academy (class of Gennady Selutsky).
He was a principal at the Mariinsky Ballet from 1991 until 2013. He was a principal for five years at the New York City Ballet. He has a wide repertoire including Romeo in Romeo and Juliet and Siegfried in Swan Lake.
He has performed around the world, including with the Royal Ballet in London, at Louisiana Scala in Milan, at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich and with the New York City Ballet.
He has danced with many professional ballerinas during his career.