Evgeny Akimov was born in 1967 in Leningrad. Graduated from the vocal faculty of the Leningrad State Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatoire (class of L. Morozov). Prize-winner at the I International Pechkovsky Competition (St Petersburg, 1994) and recipient of the Golden Mask Russian theatre prize (1996, 2003). Diploma-recipient of the Golden Sophit, St Petersburg´s highest theatre prize. Soloist with the 'Zazerkalye' Children´s Music Theatre from 1991, where he performed the roles of Finist (The Tale of Finist the Falcon), Nemorino (L´elisir d´amore) and Tamino (Die Zauberflöte).
Mariinsky Theatre soloist since 1996. Repertoire includes over thirty roles, among them Bayan (Ruslan and Lyudmila), Prince Vladimir (Prince Igor), God´s Fool (Boris Godunov), Indian Merchant (Sadko), Lensky (Eugene Onegin), Prince Sinodal (The Demon), Andrei (Mazepa), Mikola (Semyon Kotko), Cassio (Otello), Don Antonio (Betrothal in a Monastery), Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni), Alfredo (La traviata), Froh (Das Rheingold), Daland´s Steersman (Der Fliegende Holländer), Rodolfo (La Bohème), Edgardo (Lucia di Lammermoor), Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi), Narraboth (Salome) and Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly).
Has performed at the world´s leading theatres, among them the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Covent Garden and the Grand Opéra. Has taken part in joint productions of the Mariinsky Theatre and San Francisco Opera (Prokofiev´s Betrothal in a Monastery) and La Scala (Musorgsky´s Boris Godunov) in addition to various projects with the world´s leading singers, such as Giuseppe Giacomini (Otello), Plácido Domingo (Parsifal) and Ferruccio Furlanetto (Boris Godunov).
In 2002 at Rome´s Accademia Santa Cecilia he performed as Zinovy Borisovich in Shostakovich´s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk under the baton of Mstislav Rostropovich. In 2003 together with Maestro Gergiev, he performed at the opening of the season at Carnegie Hall, performing the cycle From Jewish Folk Poetry by Shostakovich. The same year he took part in the premiere of Rodion Shchedrin´s new opera The Enchanted Traveller, conducted by Lorin Maazel (Avery Fisher Hall, New York). In 2002/03, he toured with the State Musical Theatre of Rostov on Don to the UK, performing as Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly) and Count Almaviva (Il barbiere di Siviglia). Regularly works with the National Opera of Moldova and takes part in the Maria Bieshu Invita festival. Performed as Don Antonio (Prokofiev´s Betrothal in a Monastery) in 2004 at the Teatro Regio (Turin). Frequently performs concerts at St Petersburg´s most prestigious chamber music venues.
CD recordings include Boris Godunov, Betrothal in a Monastery, Prince Igor, The Tsar´s Bride, Love for Three Oranges, Semyon Kotko and The Demon.