The Russian Ballet Icons Gala 2017, In the Steps of the Ballets Russes, will be held on Sunday 12 March, 2017 at London Coliseum to celebrate the legacy of the Ballets Russes with live music from the English National Ballet Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Valeriy Ovsyannikov.
Favourites from the Diaghilev era such as The Firebird, Scheherazade, Le Spectre de la Rose, Petrushka, L’après-midi d’un Faune, La Chatte and others will be complemented by contemporary works from choreographers David Dawson, Alastair Marriott, Gerald Arpino and Jean-Christophe Maillot. The programme will also feature the world première of Theatrum Vitae by German choreographer Xenia Wiest.
In addition to international ballet stars and principals of major ballet companies, there will be an appearance in The Fairy Doll of final year students from the Vaganova Academy.
The gala promises to feature Maria Alexandrova (Bolshoi Theatre), Tyler Angle (NYCB), Davide Dato (Vienna State Ballet), Marlon Dino (Bavarian State Ballet), Matthew Golding (The Royal Ballet), Dmitry Gudanov (Bolshoi Theatre), Liisa Hämäläinen (Monte-Carlo Ballet), Isaac Hernandez (English National Ballet), Maria Kochetkova (San Francisco Ballet), Liudmila Konovalova (Vienna State Ballet), Ekaterina Krysanova (Bolshoi Theatre), Lucia Lacarra (Bavarian State Ballet), Sarah Lamb (The Royal Ballet), Vladislav Lantratov (Bolshoi Theatre), Svetlana Lunkina (National Ballet of Canada), Sasha Mukhamedov (Dutch National Ballet), Vadim Muntagirov (The Royal Ballet), Evgenia Obraztsova (Bolshoi Theatre), Alexis Oliveira (Monte-Carlo Ballet), Natalia Osipova (The Royal Ballet), Ekaterina Osmolkina (Mariinsky Theatre), Xander Parish (Mariinsky Theatre), Tamara Rojo (English National Ballet), Iana Salenko (Berlin State Ballet), Vladimir Shklyarov (Mariinsky Theatre), Jacopo Tissi (La Scala), Ivan Vasiliev (Mikhailovsky Theatre), Maria Vinogradova (Bolshoi Theatre), Edward Watson (The Royal Ballet), Zenaida Yanowsky (The Royal Ballet).
London’s annual “Russian Ballet Icons” Gala was first held in 2006, and every year since a programme pays tribute to the traditions of the Russian ballet school and its soloists who have been inspiring dancers and ballet lovers since the early nineteenth century.