Born in Moscow, Pavelnko was refused admittance to the Bolshoi Ballet School in her home town but, like her sister Nadia before her, she was able to study at the Vaganova Academy in Saint Petersburg.
[2] In June 2000, Pavlenko hit the headlines when at short notice she danced the leading role in George Balanchine's Jewels (ballet) at London's Covent Garden.
The following year she received the Golden Mask award in Moscow for performing the Snow Queen in Kirill Simonov's The Nutcracker.
In 2003, as a guest with The Royal Ballet, she partnered Roberto Bolle as Nikiya in Natalia Makarova's La Bayadère.
[3] In addition to her Mariinsky partners, she has also danced with international stars including Nicolas Le Riche, Ethan Stiefel and Nikolay Tsiskaridze.