Premiere in Yerevan ✨

Step into a world of wonder as Yerevan welcomes a spectacular new ice show! On December 20 and 21 at 7:00 PM, the indoor ice rink at the Gazprom Armenia Sports Complex will transform into a stage for a breathtaking holiday adventure.

This enchanting story is based on the fairytale written by Alen Margaryan, Hero of Artsakh and recipient of the Golden Eagle Medal. Though Alen’s life was tragically cut short, his name continues to inspire across Armenia through cultural and educational projects.

“On the Eve of a New Miracle” is a celebration for the new generation of children and families in Armenia. The performance combines world-class figure skating, dazzling costumes, and an unforgettable musical score. Audiences will hear masterpieces by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Richard Wagner, Evgeny Krylatov, Raimonds Pauls, Aram Grigoryan, Maxim Dunaevsky, and many more — alongside beloved movie and animation soundtracks.

For the first time in Armenian cultural history, a New Year’s tale by an Armenian author comes alive as a grand ice show. At its heart, Alen’s story is about kindness and the power of forgiveness — a message sure to warm hearts and fill the arena with joy.

The show brings together talented Armenian figure skaters and performers, vivid characters from childhood, beloved holiday melodies, captivating choreography, and spectacular stage effects.

In this magical tale, set just hours before New Year’s Eve, fairies and playful toy animals unite to restore the lost Magic stolen by an evil witch. Together with Father Frost and the Snow Maiden — timeless figures of winter celebration — they remind us of an eternal truth: no dark force can ever destroy the beauty and wonder of the holiday spirit.

A sparkling ball awaits — with fairies, angels, toys, and festive characters filling the ice with light, joy, and forgiveness. Because true Miracles are never far away — especially on New Year’s Eve, when the spirit of kindness shines brightest.

Presented with the support of:

• Patron: Nazeli Terteryan
• Producer: Zara Mkheyan
• Scriptwriter & Director: Emil Karat
• Choreographer: Dmitry Lapshin
• Costume Designer: Karine Dnoyan

Zara Mkheyan — Producer

The driving force behind “The Legend of New Year’s Magic” is producer Zara Mkheyan. Her international approach to stage production blends creative vision, organizational excellence, and decades of experience in cultural projects.

Since the early 1990s, she has produced concerts with legendary artists such as Alla Pugacheva, Grigory Leps, Irina Allegrova, and many others. In the 2000s, she spearheaded cultural initiatives, fashion events, and advertising projects in Armenia and Russia.

Since 2015, Zara has specialized in ice shows, collaborating on productions with Ilya Averbukh, Evgeni Plushenko, and other Olympic champions. Her portfolio includes “Classmates,” “Ice Age,” “Kings of the Ice,” “Heart of Ice,” “Akhtamar: The Legend of Love,” “The Snow Queen”, and more.

She is also the President of APPA — the Armenian Association of Producers and Promoters.

Emil Karat — Scriptwriter & Director

Emil Karat is the scriptwriter and director of Armenia’s first New Year’s ice spectacle. A versatile director, composer, and performer, he has created more than 250 theatrical productions, festivals, and large-scale events.

In 2013, he co-produced the international festival “Yerevan Music Week.” In 2017, he staged the fashion-inspired ice performance “Fashion on Ice.” His musicals and shows have been recognized as the best productions of the year by Russian TV channels TV6, Muz-TV, STS, and major media outlets.

Dmitry Lapshin — Choreographer

Dmitry Lapshin is a world-renowned figure skater, choreographer, and stage director. A Master of Sport in men’s singles, he trained at the Lesgaft National University of Physical Education in St. Petersburg and began skating under the guidance of Alla Belyaeva and Vyacheslav Krichmarev.

His career includes international tours from France to Korea, the USA to the UAE, and collaborations with legendary names such as Tatiana Tarasova, Igor Bobrin, Elena Berezhnaya, Alla Dukhova, and the Russian Stars on Ice.

Lapshin has contributed to productions such as “The Snow Queen,” “The Bird of Happiness,” “Cinderella,” “Alice in Wonderland,” and “Imperial Ice Stars.” In recent years, he has directed “The Snow Queen” (2024) and “Akhtamar: The Legend of Love” (2025).

Angelina Babajanyan — Project Director

Designer, cultural curator, and fashion visionary Angelina Babajanyan brings her artistic eye and organizational expertise to APPA’s productions. A graduate of the Yerevan State Academy of Fine Arts, she has directed projects such as “Armenian Silhouette” and “Top 10 Models of Armenia.”

She also produced the experimental fashion film “To See Trees Where the Others See Only Poles,” broadcast internationally on F.TV. From 2017 to 2025, she served as APPA’s Project Director, supporting Armenian creative industries and fostering international recognition.

Zara Morgan — Music Director

Zara Morgan is the vocal coach and music director of the production. A graduate of the Yerevan State Conservatory, she began her professional career in the United States, performing at Disneyland and Broadway-style theatres.

In 1994, she founded a children’s musical theatre in Moscow, later teaching at international schools and working as music director at theatres in Yerevan. Her productions are known for their musical precision, emotional depth, and ability to inspire young performers.

Karine Dnoyan — Costume Designer

Karine Dnoyan is one of Armenia’s most celebrated fashion designers, with over 40 years of experience. Director of the ATEX Fashion Center, she has presented her work at major exhibitions from Moscow to Paris, Montreal to Lyon, and served as an expert at the WorldSkills Championship in Fashion Technology.

Her awards include honors from the Mayor of Yerevan, the Prime Minister of Armenia, and international cultural foundations. Recently, she designed costumes for “The Snow Queen” (2024) and “Akhtamar: The Legend of Love” (2025).

Nazeli Terteryan & The Alen Margaryan Charitable Foundation

“A woman-mother of light” — that is how someone who knew Nazeli Terteryan recently described her. It is a perfect portrait of a strong woman who is also a phenomenal mother. In Armenia, however, she is more often called simply “Alen’s Mother.”

Nazeli Terteryan is the founder of the Alen Margaryan Charitable Foundation, established in memory of her son Alen Margaryan (1999–2020), a Hero of Artsakh and recipient of the Golden Eagle Medal. Alen was a pioneer in education and culture, a creative and gifted young man. Though Boston University awaited him, he chose to dedicate his life to serving his homeland.

After Alen’s death in the 2020 Artsakh war, Nazeli resolved to continue what her son had dreamed of — to instill in society values inspired by Alen Margaryan: education, culture, kindness, and inspiration.

The Alen Margaryan Foundation has been active for over four years, launching hundreds of programs that benefit young people across Armenia. These include scholarship grants for talented students, as well as support for children with special needs and their families.

The Foundation also champions literary and cultural initiatives. Among them are books dedicated to Alen’s memory — “Boloris Alen,” “The Fairy Tale of Boloris Alen,” and “Alen’s Planet on Our Planet” — which have inspired thousands of young readers with Alen’s creativity and character. The Foundation organizes contests such as “My Friend Alen,”supports school libraries, and has even created a Park of Great Readers with a dedicated sculpture.

Through sponsorship and creative projects, the Foundation brings joy to children with performances like “Detective Alen” at the Tumanyan State Puppet Theatre. It also established a book club at the Avetik Isahakyan House-Museum to support young writers and bring Alen’s vision of a modern creative space to life.

Nazeli Terteryan’s initiatives — from small-scale projects to national cultural programs — remind us that memory can be transformed into living monuments. She and her son Alen have become a beacon of education and inspiration for both students and teachers. Her unwavering dedication proves that even out of deep personal loss, one can nurture hope, courage, and love for future generations.

Alen Margaryan was born in Yerevan on February 11, 1999. From 2005 to 2013, he studied at No. 27 Secondary School named after Derenik Demirchyan. The knowledge he got from school was not enough for him, so he participated in a range of extracurricular activities – dance and theater classes, swimming lessons, and more. In 2013, he graduated from secondary school with honors and was admitted to No. 29 High School named after Andranik Margaryan, which he also later finished at the top of his class. While at school, he started going to the TUMO Center for Creative Technologies. He was very interested in cinema and his enthusiasm for learning made him one of the brightest media students and a co-founder of the TUMO News (Teen) startup. At the age of 16, he was included as a jury member for the Rolan International Film Festival for Children and Youth. Over the course of various workshops, he directed four documentary movies. Two of them, Greens and Taraz, were shot for the Smithsonian Institute as part of the package for presenting Armenian culture abroad.

He chose a career in cinema and gained admission in 2016 to the Armenian State Pedagogical University named after Khachatur Abovyan, majoring in cinema direction at the faculty of culture He was an active student at university and, in combination with the wonderful performances and cinematic products he developed as part of the academic program, he also participated in a range of student-led initiatives, including his readiness to teach his classmates foreign languages, and facilitate anti-discrimination discussions. At the age of 17, he volunteered as coach at a youth summer camp and was camp counselor the following year.

As a result of all this, he secured a spot in a very small group of students that visited the Lithuanian University of Educational Sciences. He developed his skills in his career area and gained a lot of experience, after which he became a workshop leader in filmmaking at TUMO, managing to educate thousands of young Armenians in Yerevan, Gyumri, and Dilijan in just the space of two years.

During the Nobel Days event in Yerevan in 2016, he received a special invitation to participate in discussion with Nobel Prize winners and was also involved in the organization and coordination of events in Armenia during the official visit of the Pope.

His professional and career achievements, active social and community life, volunteer work, knowledge of the country’s academic and cultural life, and participation in all important events in this area – these were all the elements that constituted Alen’s day-to-day activities.

Alen had delicate taste when it came to arts and he loved books, building his own library of reading material. He loved to discover new things both within Armenia as well as abroad. He managed to visit more than twenty countries.

His experience as an educator and his constant readiness to help those around him led him to the decision of a career in social work. In 2020, after gaining his bachelor’s degree with distinction, he gained admission to Boston University, choosing a dual-degree program in social work and education management. He received confirmation of his admission, but decided to delay his departure, because he had to carry out his duty as a citizen; he had been conscripted for military service in the fall of 2020.

Alen Margaryan fell in battle at Mataghis on September 30, 2020.