Mikhailovsky Theatre on tour in Japan

The Mikhailovsky Theatre’s annual winter tour to Japan will take place from 23 December 2015 to 12 January 2016. The packed playbill for the week leading up to the New Year will be devoted to symphonic concerts, including classical works beloved of Japanese audiences, such as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Symphony No. 9, conducted by the theatre’s Musical Director and Principal Conductor Mikhail Tatarnikov. The theatre’s ballet company, who will spend New Year’s Eve on an aeroplane, will continue the tour programme with a gala concert on 2 January. The closing days of the tour will see performances of Giselle, ou Les Wilis; Le Corsaire; and the Japanese première of Laurencia. The tour will conclude with a performance of Swan Lake, known all over the world as a symbol of Russian ballet.

Leading soloists from the Mikhailovsky Theatre ballet company will perform in Japan, including Irina Perren, Angelina Vorontsova, Anastasia Soboleva, Ivan Vasiliev, Leonid Sarafanov, and Victor Lebedev. The appearance of Farukh Ruzimatov in Le Corsaire is particularly eagerly awaited: the legendary Russian dancer has become something of an idol for Japanese ballet lovers.

The Mikhailovsky Theatre’s performances will take place in Japan’s largest and most prestigious theatres, such as Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall, Tokyo International Forum, Tokyo Bunka Kaikan, Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, and Bunkamura Orchard Hall. These are huge capacity venues, with the Bunka Kaikan, for example, seating over 5,000, though the tour will also include a performance of Swan Lake in a school theatre. The privileged school in question, Seitoku University, has a very special position in Japan. It is a school for young women, offering an in-depth, comprehensive education in the humanities under the personal patronage of Emperor Akihito of Japan.