St Petersburg Ballet for SA tour
30 January 2006
On 16 March 2006 the St Petersburg Ballet Company's magnificent production of classical ballet's most-loved work - Swan Lake - will premiere at the State Theatre in Pretoria, beginning the company's first-ever tour of South Africa.
Fresh from playing London's Royal Albert Hall, Konstantin Tachkin's outfit will become the first Russian company to visit SA with a complete work - performing within its own sumptuous settings and hundreds of beautiful costumes brought all the way from St Petersburg.
The production, which follows the original choreography of Lev Ivanov and Marius Petipa, has received lavish praise from around the world.
The company's 55 principals, soloists and a full corps de ballet - including prima ballerina Irina Kolesnikova - will perform with a full South African orchestra under the baton of Russian principal conductor Alexander Kantorov.
The production is brought to South Africa by international producer Michael Edgley, who staged the blockbuster tour of The Great Moscow Circus earlier in 2005.
"In my 40 years in the entertainment business I have presented many classical ballet companies," says Edgley. "The St Petersburg is an absolute gem. Their production of the full-length Swan Lake is theatrical, lavish and beautifully danced. South Africa is due for an absolute feast."
The St Petersburg Ballet Company will play in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, Cape Town and Durban. Booking is open through Computicket.
SouthAfrica.info reporter
