Head of Department:
Didar Karimzhanovna Azizkhanova
PhD, Ballet Master and Educator
Address: Building No. 8, Room 500,
Mukhtar Auezov Street, Shymkent
Phone: +7 (7252) 36-71-21
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
► Faculty and Teaching Staff
► Educational Program
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► Academic Mobility
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► Annual Report 2021–2022
► Annual Report 2022–2023
► Annual Report 2023–2024
► Annual Report 2024–2025
► Annual Report 2025–2026
Bachelor’s Degree – Arts
Fields of Study:
B028 – Choreography
B027 – Theatre Arts
6B02130 – Choreography
6B02120 – Directing
Master’s Degree – Master of Arts (Art Studies)
Field of Study:
7031 – Choreography
7M02103 – Choreography
Department History
In accordance with Paragraph 1 of Article 43, Paragraph 2 of Article 44 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Education,” Paragraph 2 of Article 138 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On State Property,” and Subparagraph 25 of Part 4 of the Charter of the educational institution, the "Department of Art" was reorganized under a new name through the merger of the Departments of "Choreography" and "Directing and Acting" within the Faculty of Culture and Arts.
In 1985, for the first time in Kazakhstan, applicants were admitted to the specialty “Choreography” at the Department of Theory and History of Cultural and Educational Work of the Shymkent Pedagogical Institute of Culture named after Al-Farabi. In November 1989, this specialty became an independent department of the institute. The first Head of Department was its founder, Doctor of Philosophy, Professor, cultural figure, and Honored Worker of Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Seraly Shabayevich Tleubaev.
From 2000 to 2003, the department was headed by Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Honored Worker of Kazakhstan, and ballet master teacher, Zaure Bekembayevna Azhbekova.
Since 2003, the department has been headed by Balzhan Seidramanovna Tleubaeva, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor, recipient of the international scholarship “Best University Teacher – 2010,” Bolashak program graduate, Honored Worker of Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and recipient of the Y. Altynsarin Medal.
In 2008, the "Directing" specialty was established as a separate department, headed by Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor Marat Mukhammedit Mukhammedievich.
In 2015, the Departments of "Directing" and "Choreography" were merged into the unified "Department of Art".
Since 2025, the department has been headed by Didar Karimzhanovna Azizkhanova, PhD, ballet master and instructor, a graduate of the Choreography program at M. Auezov South Kazakhstan University.
The department offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in the specialty "6B02130 – Choreography". Since 2017, admission has also been open to the Master’s program "7M02103 – Choreography", with both specialized and research-pedagogical tracks of 1, 1.5, and 2 years of study. Upon graduation, students are awarded the degree of Master of Arts in Art Studies.
In 2015, the «Choreography» program celebrated its 30th anniversary. To mark this milestone, the Department of Art organized an international scientific and practical conference titled «Contemporary Issues: Culture, History, Ideology» as well as the international festival «Dances of the Peoples of the World»
More than 20 dance ensembles from all regions of Kazakhstan, as well as from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Karakalpakstan, took part in the festival. As part of the event, leading national and international choreographers conducted master classes. The festival concluded with a gala concert dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Department of Choreography. The gala featured the department’s student dance ensemble «Karakoz» prize winners of the festival, and graduates from different years.
In April 2019, the department held the «II International Dance Competition» «Dances of the Peoples of the World» dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the «Karakoz» Dance Ensemble, the «International Dance Day», and the «Year of Youth». More than 65 dance ensembles (participants aged 6 to 25) from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the cities of Kokshetau, Karaganda, Turkestan, Taraz, Aktobe, and Almaty participated in the competition.
Through many years of creative and educational work, the department has trained highly qualified specialists who are now working not only in Kazakhstan but also abroad. Graduates of the department actively promote dance, acting, and directing arts. They work as artistic directors, ballet masters of choreographic ensembles, theater and film actors, choreography instructors, performers in state dance ensembles, film studio directors, directors of state theaters, as well as in various cultural and artistic institutions. Many also work as managers and producers in the field of dance arts across all regions of the country and internationally
Our department plays a significant role in an important cultural event in the Turkestan Region—the opening of the Regional Opera and Ballet Theatre. Students and faculty of the Choreography program took part in productions of Eugene Onegin by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi, thereby contributing to the development of the theatre.
Students of the «Department of Art» annually take an active part in the national subject Olympiad and regularly win prize-winning places.
They are also actively involved in «Student Research Activities (SRA)». For their achievements in research work, a number of students have been awarded diplomas and certificates at national competitions.
Based on the results of the 2017–2018 academic year, the «Department of Art» was awarded the title «Best Department of M. Auezov South Kazakhstan State University»
The educational programs «5B040900 – Choreography» and «5B040600 – Directing» ranked «1st place» in the national ranking «Educational Programs of Universities in Kazakhstan – 2018»
Within the «Academic Mobility Program», students majoring in «Directing» studied at Universiti Putra Malaysia (Malaysia), Istanbul Kültür University (Turkey), and University of Lodz (Poland).
Students majoring in «Choreography» studied at Uzbek State Academy of Choreography (Uzbekistan), Moscow State Institute of Culture (Russia), Kazakh National Academy of Arts named after T. Zhurgenov, Kazakh State Women's Pedagogical University, West Kazakhstan State University named after M. Utemisov, and Kazakh National University of Arts.
In the field of creative work, the department annually organizes the International Film Festival «Kino-ART», which is directed and supervised by Senior Lecturer Yerkebulan Abdullahuly Zholdasov. The festival brings together young directors from Kazakhstan and neighboring CIS countries. The laureates of our festival present their works on international film platforms and win prestigious awards.
Since 2008, the youth theater «Orken» has been operating at the department. The «Orken» Theater is a place where creativity is born and developed, where acting and directing skills are refined, and where young people find their voice on stage, creating performances full of life, energy, and fresh ideas.
Each year, students of the «Directing» program participate in the Republican Olympiad held at the T. Zhurgenov Kazakh National Academy of Arts in Almaty. Our students are winners and laureates of international and national subject-based and theatrical Olympiads.
