Russians act with grace
DANCE doyens the Imperial Russian Ballet Company are back, bringing an eclectic three-hour ballet extravaganza to Hobart and Launceston next week. The Imperial Russian Ballet Company was formed by Bolshoi Theatre soloist Gediminas Taranda in 1994 and has been touring the world ever since, including sold-out performances of Swan Lake and The Nutcracker in Tasmania in recent years. Now the company has returned to Australia to present A Festival of Russian Ballet, which is performed over three acts. Act 1 is Don Quixote, which tells the story of a retired gentleman travelling the roads of Spain searching for glory and adventure. Act 2 is the striking and dramatic Bolero, a masterpiece set to music written by French composer Maurice Ravel in 1928. Act 3 features highlights from some of the world’s great ballets, including Giselle, The Dying Swan, Le Corsaire and more. A cast of 40 elite Imperial Russian Ballet dancers — including Russian soloist Sergey Kheylik and Armenian Irena Gharibyan — and support staff arrived in Australia recently, and kicked off their national tour in Newcastle last night. They will perform A Festival of Russian Ballet at Launceston’s Princess Theatre from 7.30pm next Thursday and Friday (October 12 and 13). Phone 6323 3666 or go to www.theatrenorth.com.au for bookings. They then perform at Hobart’s Theatre Royal from 7.30pm on October 14, and 2pm on October 15. Tickets are $50-$95, phone 6233 2299 or go to www.theatreroyal.com.au for bookings.