A dancer of the Georgian National Ballet "Sukhishvili" performs in Tbilisi, January 27, 2012. It has survived communist oppression, the Cold War, the break-up of the Soviet Union and counted Josef Stalin and Elvis Presley among its admirers, but at its heart the Georgian National Ballet has always been a bit of a family business. Founded nearly 70 years ago by the husband and wife team of Iliko Sukhishvili and Nino Ramishvili and initially named the Georgian State Dance Company, the troupe has travelled from the back offices of suspicious state and party officials in 1945 to some of the greatest stages in the world. Picture taken January 27, 2012. To match GEORGIA-DANCE/ REUTERS/David Mdzinarishvili (GEORGIA - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT SOCIETY)