The Mikhailovsky Theatre ballet will visit London in the spring of 2013. This will be the company’s third appearance at the Coliseum Theatre. It previously gave touring performances in London in 2008 and 2010. The programme will include ballets by Nacho Duato, in addition to the classics Giselle, Don Quixote, and Laurencia. Performances will feature the Mikhailovsky Theatre’s ballet stars Natalia Osipova, Ivan Vasiliev, and Leonid Sarafanov, as well as Guest Principal Dancers Polina Semionova and Marcelo Gomes.
Nikita Dolgushin’s version of Giselle first captivated London audiences during the 2008 tour and is now a traditional fixture in the Mikhailovsky Theatre’s programme in the British capital. Gerald Dowler of the Financial Times called it «a performance of the highest standards» and remarked upon its «impeccable style». Soon British viewers can again experience the tender charm of this romantic ballet.
Don Quixote is invariably popular, as it gives the dancers the opportunity to demonstrate their virtuosity, temperament, and acting skills. Laurencia arouses particular interest, as a production from the ‘golden age’ of Soviet ballet that is not being performed anywhere else. These ballets have been revived by the Mikhailovsky Theatre’s Principal Guest Ballet Master Mikhail Messerer, an acknowledged expert on ballet heritage, who is in high demand all over the world as a teacher.
Nacho Duato’s works will occupy the place of honour in the London programme. His Multiplicity. Forms of Silence and Emptiness is a choreographic tribute to Johann Sebastian Bach. Critics have called it ‘a real triumph’ that stands among the master’s greatest works. There will also be an evening of three one-act ballets. For the London tour, Duato has chosen his world-famous ballet Without Words to the music of Franz Schubert and two pieces from his St. Petersburg period, Nunc Dimittis and Prelude, conceived especially for the Mikhailovsky Theatre. Taken together, these ballets, which differ in tonality and in concept, provide a vivid and comprehensive impression of Nacho Duato’s original style.