Probably the best loved classical ballet, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Swan Lake” Op. 20. It tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer’s curse. Here the naturally gifted Russian ballet dancer Yulia Makhalina dances the challenging role of Odette/Odile while the part of Prince Siegfried is danced by Igor Zelensky. This classic Kirov production includes the familiar happy ending in the final act where Siegfried fights and ultimately defeats the evil magician von Rothbart and at dawn is reunited with Odette. Artistic director: Oleg Vinogradov.

The Swan Lake ballet composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. The scenario was fashioned from Russian folk tales and tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer’s curse. The choreographer of the original production was Julius Reisinger. The ballet was premiered by the Bolshoi Ballet on 4 March [O.S. 20 February] 1877 at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.

The Mariinsky Theatre is a historic theatre of opera and ballet in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces of Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and Rimsky-Korsakov received their premieres. Through most of the Soviet era, it was known as the Kirov Theatre.

Yulia Victorovna Makhalina (born 23 June 1968) is a Russian ballet dancer. Since 1986, she has been with the Kirov/Mariinsky Ballet where she is a principal dancer. Along with Ulyana Lopatkina, Makhalina is a member of ‘the basketball team’, a group of Kirov dancers who are characterized for being especially tall and slender.

Sources

• Swan Lake on wiki