He is also noted for his and Vladimir Ponomaryov [ru]'s 1941 revival of La Bayadère for the Kirov Ballet, which is still retained in the company's repertory and has served as the basis for many subsequent productions in Russia and abroad.

Born in Tbilisi to a Georgian father and a Latvian mother, Chabukiani graduated from the local Maria Perini Ballet Studio in 1924.

Galina Ulanova, famous for her performances in the role of Odette, wrote: "Such a partner as Konstantin Sergeyev provides my dancing interpretation with more lyricism, while, on the other hand - Chabukiani adds more temperament".

The dancer did not fade into the background of partners [but] as if caus[ing an] all-comers competition, reveled in freedom, soar[ed] in flights-jumps, [rose] in mad, seeming infinite rotations...[citation needed] In her book Soviet Ballet (1945), English writer and journalist Iris Morley wrote: ...[In] trying to describe this unusual and magnificent dancer, [I] experienced the same difficulty, as when trying to describe a tornado.

He takes possession of the whole scene, betrayed wonderful fury, sometimes dying down so that stunned the audience can see the body, as if was hewn by Rodin, you see the eagle which fell on the rocks of the Caucasus… He is both a great classical dancer, the heir to all the traditions of Leningrad, and the embodiment of the rich folklore of his native Georgia…[citation needed] Before his American tour, Chabukiani and his partner Tatyana Vecheslova [ru] gave concerts in Latvia and Estonia, where they performed pas de deux from Flames of Paris, Le Corsaire and Don Quixote.

In 1939, Chabukiani created the ballet Laurencia, based on the play Fuente Ovejuna by Lope de Vega and music by Alexander Krein.

Among Chabukiani's students were Vladimir Djouloukhadze, Irina Jandieri, Nino (Nina) Ananiashvili, Irma Nioradze, Nikolay Tsiskaridze and Igor Zelensky, as well as David Makhateli, Elena Glurjidze, Lali Kandelaki, and Zakharia Amonashvili.

In 1958 in Moscow, his ballet The Moor of Venice: Othello, with music by Aleksandr Machavariani and a stage design by Simon Virsaladze, premiered on the occasion of Georgian Art Decade; the leading roles were performed by himself, Vera Tsignadze, and Zurab Kikaleishvili [ka].

[9] Film-Ballet from William Shakespeare's tragedy Othello[10] Director and Choreographer : Vakhtang Chabukiani Stage designer : Simon (Soliko) Virsaladze Composer: Aleksandr Machavariani Conductor: Odysseas Dimitriadis Orchestra: Tbilisi Zahkaria Paliashvili Opera State Orchestra Film Producer : Tbilisi Cinema Studio New York Times Jan. 13, 1934 - "Took New York by Storm in MOST SENSATIONAL SUCCESS of the SEASON!"