1. Can a world-famous Russian ballet from St. Petersburg suddenly become Czech?

(Note: Some links in this document lead to Russian websites. In certain screenshots from Russian sites, text has been translated into Swedish using browser tools. This post is also available in Swedish.)

The relatively newly formed Czech ballet company, The Heritage Ballet, is planning to tour Swedish concert halls in 2025. However, behind the scenes lies a story that stretches further back in time, suggesting that the ballet company may actually have Russian roots.

A historical background. Czechoslovakia has been significantly influenced by Russian migration on two major occasions.

The first wave came after the Russian Revolution in 1917, when many intellectuals, artists, and scientists fled the chaos in Russia to seek refuge in the newly established Czechoslovakia. The country’s strong economy and generous attitude toward immigration allowed these emigrants to contribute to education and industry. However, despite their successes, many faced economic difficulties, often taking on simpler jobs to make ends meet.

The next wave of Russian migration occurred after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. This time, it was more about entrepreneurs and businesspeople seeking new opportunities in a rapidly changing Europe. This migration brought both successful business networks and some controversy, as certain Russian migrants were associated with oligarchic influence. Despite this, Russian emigrants have had a profound impact on Czechoslovakia's culture and economy over the years.

In modern times, the Czech Republic has also become a place where some Russian economic actors have attempted to evade sanctions or conduct questionable business practices. In response, the Czech Republic has tightened its regulations on investments and real estate purchases, particularly following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. With support from the EU, the country actively works to protect its institutions and prevent economic crime.

At the same time, cultural exchanges between Russia and the Czech Republic boast a long and rich history. Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky had close ties with Czech composers like Antonín Dvořák and Bedřich Smetana, fostering mutual cultural enrichment. Tchaikovsky even visited Prague in 1888 to conduct his works, and his opera Eugene Onegin was a major success there.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many Russian cultural institutions, including ballet companies, have faced significant challenges. Sanctions and political conflicts have made it difficult for Russian ballet companies to tour and finance their operations. For some, relocating to more neutral locations—such as Prague—has been the solution.

The Czech Republic, with its strong cultural traditions and engaged audience, provides a stable foundation for a ballet company aiming to continue its activities. It also offers opportunities to build new international connections, which are crucial for cultural institutions today.

Can a Russian ballet truly become Czech? Perhaps not entirely, but in times of political and economic challenges, relocating to the Czech Republic appears to be a strategic move—both to secure the future and to keep the art alive.

Let’s instead turn our attention to a Russian ballet that, in 2018, relocated its operations to the Czech Republic. However, the move was not entirely a complete relocation. This article explores whether a Russian ballet has been operating in Europe and beyond under false pretenses for several years.

In 1993, Russian elite soldier and paratrooper Konstantin Tachkin grew tired of his military career. That same year, in St. Petersburg, he attended a ballet performance for the first time and was utterly captivated.

So captivated, in fact, that he decided to leave the special forces behind and pursue a career as a ballet director. True to his vision, in 1994 he founded the Russian ballet company St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre (SPBT), often abbreviated as SPBT.

In 2018, Konstantin Tachkin was interviewed by the Singaporean entertainment magazine 8 Days. In the interview, he expressed his disdain for the American movie Red Sparrow, which he considered to be a terribly bad spy and ballet film. He also criticized the Oscar-winning film Black Swan in similar terms.

That same spring, while Tachkin was reviewing spy and ballet movies in the Singaporean entertainment press, a company was established in Prague, Czech Republic: SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. A Romanian citizen named Sergey Kuryerov authorized two Russian-born individuals, residing in the Czech Republic, to set up the company on his behalf using a power of attorney. SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. was designed to offer a wide range of services, including:

• Trade and service brokerage,
• Wholesale and retail trade,
• Purchase, sale, management, and maintenance of real estate,
• Renting and lending of movable assets,
• Consulting and advisory services, preparation of technical studies and reports,
• Advertising, marketing, media representation,
• Photographic services,
• Translation and interpretation services,
• Administrative management and services of an economic and organizational nature,
• Operation of cultural, educational, and entertainment facilities, organization of cultural productions, entertainment, exhibitions, fairs, festivals, sales events, and similar activities,
• Operation of sports and recreational facilities and organization of sports activities,
• Production, duplication, distribution, sale, and rental of audio and audiovisual recordings, as well as production of unrecorded storage media,
• Design, interior decoration, and modeling.

The main focus, however, was on cultural activities. In 2019, the company submitted its first annual report, showing that it had one employee. In subsequent annual reports up to the present, the company has declared in its year-end financial statements that SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. has no employees. The balance sheets reveal that the company operates at roughly break-even, primarily due to an expense labeled as “debt to shareholders.” In other words, despite employing dozens of dancers and other personnel for its performances across Europe, the company officially reports having no employees.

The company is 100% owned by Sergey Kuryerov, born in St. Petersburg in 1974 and, according to the 2018 company documents, residing in Rădăuți, Romania, near the Ukrainian border close to Moldova.

SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. is not Sergey Kuryerov’s first business venture. In October 2017, he was registered as a “person of significant control” for the British company Modelex LLP. According to documents from the UK’s Companies House, this company is involved in the sale of “fishing and sporting equipment.”

The LLP (Limited Liability Partnership) business model combines the benefits of both corporations and traditional partnerships. In an LLP, members have limited liability, meaning they are not personally responsible for the company’s debts beyond their investment. This provides protection for members' personal assets without the formal requirements of corporations, such as having a board of directors or shareholders.

LLPs are commonly used by professional service firms such as lawyers, accountants, and consultants. They offer flexibility in management and operations, allowing members to decide how the company is run. Additionally, profits are taxed at the individual level, meaning members pay personal income tax rather than the company paying corporate tax, which can be advantageous in certain tax systems.

Common criticism of LLPs

1. Tax Evasion: One of the most significant criticisms of LLPs is their potential for corporate tax avoidance. Since an LLP does not pay corporate tax and profits are taxed at the individual level, business owners and entrepreneurs can use this structure to reduce their overall tax burden. This has made LLPs attractive for tax avoidance schemes and money laundering.
2. Lack of Transparency: LLPs often have minimal requirements for public reporting and auditing, making it difficult for authorities and the public to scrutinize their operations. This lack of transparency increases the risk of misconduct and complicates the oversight of financial activities.
3. Limited Public Accountability: The structure allows the true owners and stakeholders to remain hidden. As a result, LLPs can be used to conceal financial activities or transfer assets in ways that evade regulation or accountability.
4. Complexity in Dissolution: If an LLP fails to follow its internal rules for dissolution, legal and administrative issues can arise during liquidation. The absence of a formal management structure can lead to disputes between members regarding liabilities or profit distribution during dissolution.

Being a Person of Significant Control (PSC) in an LLP (Limited Liability Partnership) means having considerable influence over the company. According to UK law, specifically as defined by Companies House regulations, a PSC is an individual who:

• Holds more than 25% of the voting rights in the LLP, or
• Controls more than 25% of the company’s votes, or
• Has the right to appoint or remove members of the LLP (e.g., through controlling more than 25% of the votes in a meeting or other mechanisms of control), or
• Has the right to influence or control the company’s operations through other means, such as holding a significant share of the company’s capital or through contractual agreements.

In 2017, Sergey Kuryerov, a Romanian national born in St. Petersburg, became involved in the British company Modelex LLP. As previously mentioned, LLPs require members. In the company that Kuryerov now took responsibility for, there were two partner companies: Altimex Ltd and Crestberg Ltd. Both companies are registered on the picturesque island of Dominica, located between Guadeloupe and Martinique in the Caribbean. In everyday terms, such companies are commonly referred to as "offshore companies."

Offshore companies are entities registered in a country or jurisdiction where they do not conduct their primary business. The purpose is often to take advantage of favorable tax conditions, lower regulations, or enhanced privacy. These companies are commonly used for:

• Reducing taxes,
• Protecting assets,
• Simplifying international transactions, or
• Ensuring confidentiality.

However, offshore companies have long been criticized as they are often associated with tax evasion, money laundering, and unethical business practices.

Altimex Ltd and Crestberg Ltd, the two member companies in Sergey Kuryerov's firm Modelex LLP, are prime examples of entities associated with allegations of tax evasion, money laundering, and unethical business practices—on a significant scale.

Before delving deeper into Altimex Ltd, Crestberg Ltd, and their connections to international money laundering, it’s crucial to first examine some important background information.

The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) is an international journalistic organization dedicated to exposing organized crime and corruption. Founded in 2006, OCCRP collaborates with journalists worldwide to uncover wrongdoing within governments, corporations, and criminal networks. The organization has been pivotal in major investigations, such as the Panama Papers and Paradise Papers. Its mission is to promote transparency and justice by revealing financial crimes and political corruption globally.

In its investigative project The Proxy Platform, OCCRP provides a detailed look at how international money laundering operates. For further reading, see The Proxy Platform.

One particular article within the project highlights the emergence of a network directly relevant to Sergey Kuryerov’s business activities: Behind the Proxies.

For simplicity, I’ve chosen to refer to the individuals behind this network as “The Basketball League,” a nickname that becomes clearer when reading the related articles.

While much has been written about this network and the companies involved, we will focus specifically on Sergey Kuryerov’s role within this context. Altimex Ltd and Crestberg Ltd, the member companies of Modelex LLP, are best introduced via this Estonian article, which emphasizes their connection to Credojet Alliance LLP:
Former Minister’s Family Business Transferred Millions to Shell Companies.

Excerpt from the article:

"Credojet Alliance is a shell company registered in a warehouse on the outskirts of London. The same address houses over a hundred other fictitious companies.

UK laws make it very easy to start a company backed up by thin air. While one needs two companies to start an LLP-type firm, no one checks whether there is any substance behind them. Stakeholders in such schemes are usually shelf companies registered in tax havens. The now liquidated Credojet was founded by Altimex Ltd. and Crestberg Ltd., which are registered in the Commonwealth of Dominica.

Äripäev has previously reported that subsidiaries of Altimex and Crestberg (like Credojet) were used in the process of laundering suspicious assets of Azerbaijani leaders, where around one hundred UK companies bounced roughly a billion euros between them.”

This raises serious questions about the ethical standards of Sergey Kuryerov’s Modelex LLP, given its entanglement in such dubious financial networks.

Credojet Alliance LLP, previously registered at Unit 5, Olympia Industrial Estate, Coburg Road, London, N22 6TZ, has since been dissolved—unsurprisingly. Similarly, Kuryerov’s sporting goods firm, Modelex LLP, has also been liquidated.

In 2018, a few months after Kuryerov established the Czech company SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. via representatives, he became the Person of Significant Control for the British company Euromont Organization LLP.

At the same address in London where Euromont Organization LLP is registered, alongside hundreds of other companies, the previously mentioned Modelex LLP and Credojet Alliance LLP can also be found.

Euromont Organization LLP, where Sergey Kuryerov is listed as a person with significant control, is reported in company documents to engage in theatrical performances. According to its financial reports, the company earns commissions from theatrical productions and tours. This gives Kuryerov control over a small ballet enterprise, distributed across companies in the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and various tax havens.

Kuryerov’s British theater company, Euromont Organization LLP, also has member companies registered in the Caribbean. Initially, these member companies were the familiar Altimex Ltd and Crestberg Ltd, but in 2016 they were replaced by Centron Inc. and Alteron Corp. These companies, too, have connections to the international network previously described.

The same spring that Kuryerov founded the Czech company SPBT Entertainment s.r.o., he was also registered as a person of significant control for Euromont Organization LLP. The new member companies, Centron Inc. and Alteron Corp., are registered in Belize—a well-known tax haven in Central America. Three years later, after Kuryerov took control of Euromont Organization LLP, these companies changed their address to the Marshall Islands, specifically to Majuro. This atoll can best be described as the very definition of “in the middle of nowhere.”

At the same Majuro address where the member companies of Kuryerov’s LLP were registered, other offshore companies were also located. According to multiple reports, these companies were involved in what has been called “the biggest money-laundering scheme in history.” A detailed account can be found in the article Marshall Islands boots out companies implicated in Russian scandal.

As expected, this involves Russia, rubles, and the corrupt networks that OCCRP has previously investigated in depth.

Thus, this is the business context of Euromont Organization LLP and Sergey Kuryerov of Romania.

Nothing in this text alleges that Sergey Kuryerov himself is involved in money laundering or any other criminal activity, but his involvement in these companies raises questions. Why such a complex corporate structure to arrange ballet performances a few times a year?

While Kuryerov builds his theater ventures, former Russian elite soldier Konstantin Tachkin enjoys success in both business and personal life. Tachkin leaves his wife and children for the talented ballerina Irina Kolesnikova, making her the prima ballerina of his ballet company, St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre (also known as Konstantin Tachkin Ballet Theatre).

Since the 1990s, SPBT has achieved great success worldwide, performing classic ballets like Swan Lake and The Nutcracker. Their performances have been celebrated in cities such as London and Paris, with tours reaching countries like South Africa, Taiwan, Spain, Finland, and Sweden.

In 2019, SPBT performed in Stockholm for the first time, at the Cirkus venue. Like many cultural institutions, the ballet company was heavily impacted by the pandemic, but it made a comeback in May 2023 with new performances at Cirkus in Stockholm. In December of that year, they performed again at Cirkus and also at Uppsala Konsert & Kongress (UKK). In spring 2024, they continued with additional performances at these venues as well as Västerås Concert Hall.

The ballet company now appears to have undergone some form of transformation and is marketed under the name The Heritage Ballet. While the set designs and promotional materials remain the same as before, there is no mention of St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre.

The likely reason for this change is Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The first indication of the connection is the name of the company behind the performances: SPBT Entertainment s.r.o., where SPBT stands for St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre. Furthermore, the promotional materials prominently feature an image of a ballerina performing Swan Lake:

The image, depicting St. Petersburg Ballet's Russian prima ballerina Irina Kolesnikova, who is also the owner of the ballet company, has been featured on both the ballet's Wikipedia page and in most promotional materials for both St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre and The Heritage Ballet since 2018. Here is the image from their Wikipedia page, where the founder Tachkin's relative is listed as the creator:

As shown in the first image above, the Czech company SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. is listed as the "Organizer" of the performance at Cirkus in Stockholm.

Upon closer examination of other promotional material on social media, a familiar company name emerges: Euromont Organization LLP. This is Sergey Kuryerov's British company, connected to the Marshall Islands and the money laundering operations via Credojet Alliance LLP and other companies within that network.

Under the Facebook account THB Presents, past and upcoming performances of The Heritage Ballet in Sweden are promoted.

As shown in the screenshot below, the account was initially named Euromont Live in April 2023. On December 19, 2023, following the final performance of a mini-tour, the name was changed to THB Presents, with THB standing for The Heritage Ballet.

Notably, this name change occurred the day after the tour concluded, which included performances from December 15 to 18, 2023, at Uppsala Konsert & Kongress and Cirkus in Stockholm. A keen observer might also notice activity from Serbia associated with the THB Presents account, introducing yet another country into this international context:

There are, therefore, two ballet directors involved in this context: the Russian-born Romanian Sergey Kuryerov, who markets The Heritage Ballet through his Czech company SPBT Entertainment s.r.o., and the former elite soldier Konstantin Tachkin, who leads the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre (SPBT). Tachkin's ballet company performs in Russia and South Africa, and despite Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it continues to tour internationally.

The profile picture of the ballerina promoting The Heritage Ballet for performances of Swan Lake in Sweden in January and May 2025 shows Irina Kolesnikova, prima ballerina of SPBT. Irina is married to the founder Konstantin Tachkin.

One of the companies connected to the Russian ballet, just like Kuryerov's Czech company, uses the abbreviation "SPBT" in its name:

Under the heading "Founder" of this company, we can read Irina Kolesnikova's name:

If you do a quick Google search on St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre, you'll quickly discover that both Irina Kolesnikova and the ballet are world-famous.
But what happens if you search for the ballet's address in St. Petersburg? The search result is as follows:

The word "Ofitserov" under the heading "Ligger i:" (Located in:) has a certain military ring to it, and that’s exactly what it is:

One should not always trust everything that appears in Google's search results, so let's look at another source: St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre's own website, spbt.ru. It has been down for a few weeks, but the Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) shows:

"House of Officers" is still in use by the Russian military through the Western Military District in Leningrad (St. Petersburg). In addition to cultural events, roundtable discussions are held there on how to refine Russian propaganda, as well as activities such as military youth choirs, veteran meetings, and anniversaries for units like the Russian military security service's special forces, Spetsnaz, and particularly their elite units "Alfa" and "Vympel." See images:

Based on the above, it can be concluded that the ballet SPBT, now marketed under the name "The Heritage Ballet," has its premises in the same building as the Western Military District of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

In addition to Konstantin Tachkin's connection to special forces before the ballet was founded, there are also other connections through companies. One example is Irina Kolesnikova's company, which was founded in 2016 and liquidated in mid-2023, just a few months after "The Heritage Ballet" returned to Sweden following the pandemic in spring 2023. The company lists the following as its main activities:

• Performing arts activities (90.01)
• Retail of souvenirs, folk art, and handicrafts (47.78.3)
• Retail of religious items and funeral goods in specialty stores (47.78.4)
• Providing tourist information services (79.90.1)
• Operations of cultural and artistic institutions (90.04)
• Other activities for organizing recreation and entertainment (93.29)
• Other entertainment and amusement activities not included in other groups (93.29.9)

What is the name of Irina's company then?

In Russian, it is "ООО АНСАМБЛЬ ПЕСНИ И ПЛЯСКИ РУССКАЯ АРМИЯ," in English, it becomes "LLC SONG AND DANCE ENSEMBLE RUSSIAN ARMY," and something like "Russian Army's Song and Dance Ensemble."

Has Irina Kolesnikova, alongside her celebrated performances of Swan Lake in Sweden and around the world, been running a company promoting cultural events for the Russian Ministry of Defense? Unfortunately, neither The Heritage Ballet nor SPBT mention this Russian Army Song and Dance Ensemble in their promotional materials that might provide clues. Neither does Sergey Kuryerov, the Russian Romanian, nor the Czech SPBT Entertainment.

When examining the company's financial statements more closely, it seems that the company was active in terms of revenue between 2016 and 2018. What the company’s true purpose was remains to be seen in future investigations.

What other connections exist between the Russian state and the SPBT ballet? During its tours, primarily in Asia and Australia, St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre has been marketed through a collaboration between the Russian Ministry of Culture’s organization, Rosconcert, and an Australian promotion company, Hutchison Group, with offices both in Australia and Russia. Hutchison refers to it as a "joint venture" with the Russians. Rosconcert has existed since the 1960s and is a state organization in Russia under the Ministry of Culture. The organization is responsible for promoting and organizing musical and cultural events both domestically and internationally. It was established to support and develop the Russian music and performing arts scene. Rosconcert organizes concerts, festivals, and tours for Russian artists, as well as being responsible for international cultural exchanges and representing Russia at international music festivals and competitions. The organization plays an important role in promoting Russian culture and music on a global scale. Here is the organization’s website: https://rosconcert.ru/

One cannot avoid reading on the website about puppet theater in occupied Luhansk, youth theater in occupied Donetsk, and how Russia’s Minister of Culture describes it as the “all-Russian tour and concert plan from the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation.”

The Russian embassy in South Africa has also at times tagged SPBT’s official Instagram account, which is: spbtofficial.

On Hutchison Group's website, there is information about the connection between St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre and Rosconcert, as well as how Hutchison and Rosconcert marketed the Red Army Choir’s performance in occupied Crimea in 2019. The choir, also known as the Alexandrov Ensemble, lost most of its singers in 2016 when a plane en route to a Russian military base in Syria crashed near Sochi, Russia, at Christmas. The choir was supposed to perform for Russian soldiers in Syria over the New Year. All 92 people on board the plane were killed in the crash.

In the image below, you can see Hutchison and Rosconcert's promotion of the choir's concert in Crimea in 2019. It’s worth noting that the name visible in English is strikingly similar to the company name Irina Kolesnikova uses for her company regarding the Russian Army's Song and Dance Ensemble:

One of Konstantin Tachkin's ballet companies, which he founded in 1995, went bankrupt in 2017. It is stated that the company is based at the "House of Officers," which is operated by the Western Military District of the Russian Federation's Ministry of Defense. The address is Liteiny Prospekt 20 in St. Petersburg, as shown earlier:

The Heritage Ballet uses SPBT's scenery and marketing materials for their upcoming tour in Sweden:

January 2025

• 10.01 Cirkus Stockholm - Swan Lake
• 11.01 Cirkus Stockholm - The Nutcracker

May 2025

• 16.05 Västerås Concert Hall
• 17.05 & 21.05 Gothenburg Concert Hall
• 18.05 Malmö Live
• 19.05 Jönköping K&K
• 22.05 Uppsala K&K
• 23.05 Linköping K&K
• 24.05 & 25.05 Cirkus Stockholm
• 29.05 Örebro Concert Hall

In total, this involves about 13,000 bookable seats, and the three performances at Cirkus in Stockholm are already well-booked.

Has there been any criticism of the SPBT ballet in the past? The answer is yes.

In 2022, performances in Norway were canceled after a protest storm:

"Also, Kilden in Kristiansand has decided to cancel planned performances with Russian artists. The ballet Swan Lake with St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre is canceled."

Source: NRK Kultur

There have also been protests in South Africa, including petitions. Around 7,000 people signed a petition: Change.org Petition

The Ukrainian World Congress writes:

"As a commercial company, the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre pays taxes in Russia and thus indirectly finances Russia’s war in Ukraine and the genocide of Ukrainians,” the Ukrainian Association in South Africa comments on its Facebook page and appeals to Ukrainians around the world. – “Please sign and share this petition to tell Artscape, Teatro at Montecasino, and Computicket that we condemn the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre’s tour in South Africa and their collaboration with the Russian war machine."

More here: Daily Maverick

This pertains to St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre in South Africa during July and August 2023. The Heritage Ballet, on the other hand, had performances in December 2023 in Stockholm and Uppsala. An interesting piece of trivia is that Uppsala Concert Hall is less than 10 minutes by car from the Swedish Armed Forces’ Intelligence and Security Center and the Interpreter School just outside Uppsala. Another interesting fact is that the distance between Västerås Airport, where the controversial Russian church is located, and Västerås Concert Hall, where The Heritage Ballet will perform in May 2025, is about the same.

The locations where the Czech "managing director" of SPBT Entertainment s.r.o, who is also connected to The Heritage Ballet, claims to reside are much further apart. He was born in St. Petersburg, and when, through representatives of two Russians based in the Czech Republic, he founded the Czech company in 2018 and became involved as an owner in Euromont Organization LLP (which has offshore companies linked to international money laundering), he was registered at an address in Radauti, Romania. Radauti is just over 10 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, near Moldova. For some reason, he obtained Romanian citizenship, which is not unusual among Russians. More on this can be read in an article from Vice: Romania has allegedly allowed Russians and Ukrainians to buy EU passports.

A quote from the article:

“In recent years, Russia has been hit by an economic crisis caused by European and American sanctions, pushing wealthy urban Russians to seek out EU citizenship. VICE found a number of websites that promise to help them successfully apply for Romanian citizenship for a fee. The number of Russian applications has rapidly grown in the past years: in 2015, it was 950; three years later, 3,500. According to the report, the number had already hit 3,150 in the first eight months of 2019.”

Here is a link to a company and Russian site specialized in Romanian passport applications for Russians, if you'd like to understand how the process works: Euroved

Does ballet director Sergey Kuryerov live in the very anonymous town of Radauti in Romania? No, he does not. He claims to now live outside of Prague, as indicated by the company documents for the Czech company behind The Heritage Ballet. However, when the company was founded in 2018, he provided the address in Radauti. In the link, which can be translated through your browser, there is also a link to a PDF of the founding document. There, it also shows his birthdate, 1974, in St. Petersburg for this Romanian, Sergey, who appears on the last page (with the digital stamp). Company Founding Document (2018)

In December 2023, when Kuryerov made some kind of change to the company "charter" for the business, he stated that he lives outside of Prague. This can be viewed using the same method as above: Change of Company Documents (2023)

If you look at the annual reports, you can see that the company SPBT Entertainment s.r.o. had only one employee in 2019. In the following annual reports up until 2023, no employees are listed. However, it seems that the balance sheet is coded so that the revenues entering the company are essentially withdrawn by the "co-owners" every year. We remember that the British company Euromont Organization LLP also recorded "commission" in its accounting regarding theater arrangements and tours:

It is, therefore, the Euromont mentioned on the Facebook account "THB Presents," which markets The Heritage Ballet.

If you check the "filing history" at the British Companies House, you can see that Kuryerov is the "person of significant control" for this ballet company, Euromont, which has connections to offshore companies.

A closer look on December 8, 2021, reveals that Euromont Organization LLP changed its address from the office where the scandal-ridden company Credojet Alliance LLP had previously been based:

Credojet, which is mentioned in this article and shares co-ownership with Euromont: https://news.postimees.ee/6531596/former-minister-s-family-business-transferred-millions-to-shell-companies It shows that Credojet was registered at the address that Sergey Kuryerov's Euromont changed from.

It can be added that a Belgian dentist named Ali M. has signed company documents for both of Kuryerov’s companies, Modelex LLP and Euromont Organization LLP, as a representative for both Altimex LLP and Alteron Corp. More information about dentist Ali M. can be found by searching for connections to the money laundering network that OOCRP has investigated.
As of November 2024, Euromont is in a strained situation with the British Companies House, as seen here:
https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/OC394226/filing-history

Sergey Kuryerov seems to have a solution for this and formed the company Novastage LLP in early November 2024, together with his wife. The name roughly translates to "NewStage" or "StarStage" and appears to be related to some form of performing arts. Since the company is newly formed, there isn't much history or documentation. If you check with Companies House following the procedure above, you'll see that Sergey is still a Romanian citizen but registered in the Czech Republic.
His partner in Novastage LLP, and wife since 2016, Karina, is originally from and has previously worked in customs in St. Petersburg. She received a diploma from the highest-ranking official Belyaninov, more about him here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrey_Belyaninov
If you read more online, it appears that he was active in the KGB and crossed paths with Putin within the same organization in Germany during the Cold War.
Karina now claims to be from Kyrgyzstan. In the document founding their joint company Novastage LLP, it states that she is of Kyrgyz nationality and, unlike Sergey who says he lives in the Czech Republic, Karina states that she lives in Kyrgyzstan. This could be described as a separated living situation.

Instead, I borrow swedish former politician Håkan Juholt’s expression “kulbo” (a term for a cozy relationship), because they actually don’t live in either Kyrgyzstan or the Czech Republic. The address outside Prague that Sergey gives in the company documents as recently as 2023 is actually inhabited by a middle-aged Russian woman from Moscow, who had previously lived in Cairo. We can call her Marina A. She runs a "tourist office" in Prague, according to social media. The house is very spacious, and she rents out the entire upstairs if anyone needs plenty of space in Prague. It is in this house in Pisnice, outside Prague, that Kuryerov claims to live according to company documents for SPBT Entertainment s.r.o in 2023. However, it seems he doesn’t actually live there.

The ballet director behind The Heritage Ballet and SPBT Entertainment/Euromont/Novastage has been living in Valencia, Spain, for several years. Their addresses have been both in central Valencia and in the suburb of Campolivar. However, there are also connections to Prague, as Sergey Kuryerov is a member of a Facebook group that can be translated to “Russians in Prague.” There, he asks questions about how to import a car from Germany to Prague and how to take a “company car” across the border to Belarus or Russia. These posts can be found online. Otherwise, there are no signs that he resides in the Czech Republic.

Do the Kuryerovs only live in Valencia? No, they spend summers and holidays in their luxury house in Lisiy Nos, outside St. Petersburg. The town is by the sea and can be described as a Torekov for the wealthy people of St. Petersburg. Torekov, though, is better paved. All of this is evident from social media.

Whatever Kuryerov is involved with outside the aforementioned companies, he has very good income. His wife received a Mercedes as a gift one year, and they often travel to luxury hotels and visit exclusive restaurants around the world – Maldives, Mallorca, Switzerland, USA, Italy, Mauritius, among others. They also visit Moscow frequently; for example, they celebrated New Year's there most recently.

Karina, who is a trained and very skilled dancer, is not very experienced in ballet. She now works as a model. Despite her husband being the ballet director for nearly eight years, nowhere in their social media is it mentioned that he is responsible for the ballet The Heritage Ballet. Social media would otherwise be a great marketing channel for their business, one would think. Nowhere does it state what Sergey actually makes a living from, other than the sporadic tours that The Heritage Ballet performs.

What other connections exist between the Czech company SPBT Entertainment s.r.o and the Russian ballet companies/St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre? The Czech company has a website, spbt.eu, registered in 2018 according to Eurid:
https://whois.eurid.eu/en/search/?domain=spbt.eu
By using the Internet Archive Wayback Machine, you can see that the website for the Czech company previously linked to St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre’s official Facebook and Instagram accounts.

This history can be easily verified by visiting the following link:
https://web.archive.org/web/20211223164208/http://spbt.eu/
In the lower right corner of the website, you can click on the Facebook and Instagram icons and be redirected to St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre’s social media.
For the past week, the website spbt.eu has been cleared of these links. This is odd because the company otherwise seems quite modern in its marketing efforts. However, we know that they are represented on Facebook as "THB Presents," an account originally called "Euromont Live."
By browsing spbt.eu through the Wayback Machine link above, you can see that Sergey Kuryerov is listed as the "Managing Director" of SPBT Entertainment s.r.o.
https://web.archive.org/web/20211223164208/http://spbt.eu/#rec139764145

Since early November 2024, Kuryerov’s name has been removed from spbt.eu, despite him still being the owner of the company mentioned on the website.
If you further check the office address for SPBT Entertainment s.r.o, registered at Malešická 2855/2b, 130 00 Prague, it appears that this address, located in a large apartment complex in Prague, houses dozens of companies with the same address. These companies have generic websites, and many are connected to Russia. You can Google the address to form your own opinion about the type of companies registered there. The arrangement with so many companies at the same address is similar to those we’ve seen in London.
When the company was formed, the company address was briefly in another smaller apartment building in central Prague.
A further connection to Russia is that the website for The Heritage Ballet, theheritageballet.com, is hosted by the Russian company Beget.
The website was registered in February 2023, three months before they returned to Sweden after the pandemic. Beget is described as a "budget-friendly web hosting service aimed at the Russian market."
Here, you can see information about The Heritage Ballet and their use of Russian servers:
https://who.is/whois/theheritageballet.com, where you can click on any of the links under "Name Servers" to visit:
https://who.is/nameserver/ns2.tildadns.com
Tilda Publishing is a Russian web publishing tool based in Dubai, but they are not very clear in their marketing about their Russian origin. Both theheritageballet.com and spbt.eu use Tilda as their web publishing tool. The logo is visible at the bottom of spbt.eu.

Despite the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre’s website spbt.ru being down for the past week, you can access previous versions of the site via the Internet Archive:
https://web.archive.org/web/20240000000000*/spbt.ru
You can click on different years and choose a date to read about their past tours and their address in the Western Military District facilities in St. Petersburg.
I suspect that both Cirkus in Stockholm and the municipally owned concert halls in Jönköping, Västerås, Linköping, Malmö, Uppsala, Gothenburg, and Örebro, as well as the ticket-selling companies Tickster and Ticketmaster, are completely unaware of The Heritage Ballet’s Russian background.

As previously mentioned, there are about 13,000 bookable seats on this tour, while various Ukrainian ballets are also touring in Sweden. According to unconfirmed reports, there are Ukrainian dancers connected to The Heritage Ballet. Under what circumstances they are contracted, one might wonder?
The background of the Czech company and The Heritage Ballet raises questions about whether it is appropriate for this ballet to perform in Sweden. Nothing shown in this article suggests that anything criminal is taking place. However, it seems as if they are trying to hide their Russian origins.

It is also quite obvious that SPBT and The Heritage Ballet share marketing materials and stage elements, which raises questions about whether The Heritage Ballet is a front for a Russian ballet from St. Petersburg with connections to Russia's Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Culture.
On the websites of Cirkus and the concert halls, you can read about the performances. Contact details for the concert halls are also listed if there are questions about The Heritage Ballet from the Czech Republic. Additional information is available from the ticket-selling companies Ticketmaster and Tickster.