The Irina Kolesnikova London Season has been extended twice – seven extra performances have been added!

From 13 to 23 August on the stage of the prestigious London Coliseum, a theatre which is part of Great Britain’s theatrical heritage, Irina Kolesnikova will present her personal season for the first time. The Konstantin Tachkin Saint Petersburg Ballet Theatre’s Prima Ballerina is well known to the British public due to her previous brilliant performances at the Royal Albert Hall, a venue of several thousand seats. This is the first time however, that a London audience will witness the Irina Kolesnikova Season project which has captivated, for example, French audiences long ago. Irina is the only contemporary Russian ballerina who has now eight times brought to the French capital her personal season featuring partners who are stars from the world’s leading ballet theatres.

In March 2015 Irina returned to the Paris stage after the birth of her daughter, an event which is always a huge experience for any ballerina. The famous London critic, President of the Association of British dance critics and former professional dancer, Jeffrey Taylor, who has been following Irina’s creative path for a long time, made a special journey to Paris to see the return of the Saint Petersburg ballerina to the stage. Having watched Swan Lake at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées the Sunday Express observer remarked that after the birth of her daughter the Russian ballerina’s dancing had become even more profound.

“This is the best Odette/Odile that I have seen and I’ve been watching ballet for the last half century. The music emanates from her not the orchestra; there is the impression that she is the music. This is a very rare thing”.

Now Jeffrey Taylor and the other British connoisseurs of classical ballet will not have to cross the Channel to enjoy Irina Kolesnikova’s technical mastery and dramatic talent. All they will have to do is to go and see the ballerina’s personal season in London from 13 to 23 August. Having witnessed the public’s increased interest, the organizers twice took the decision to extend Irina’s season resulting in seven extra performances in London’s biggest theatre which has two and a half thousand seats. The Irina Kolesnikova Season at the London Coliseum will open with Swan Lake: the role of Odette/Odile has long been the ballerina’s signature role. This is, moreover, to be seen as an offering to the great Russian composer, Peter Tchaikovsky whose 175th year is being celebrated by the world’s musical theatre public. Irina’s partners in Swan Lake will be Covent Garden’s soloist Vadim Muntagirov and the Bolshoi Ballet star Denis Rodkin. Denis will also partner Irina in La Bayadère. Even after the first rehearsal, both dancers have remarked upon Irina’s amazing responsiveness as a partner and her professionalism which facilitates finding a common language for the duets.

It is an interesting fact that this year on 30 June Vasilina, Irina Kolesnikova’s and Konstantin Tachkin’s daughter will be one year old. The little girl has travelled the world with her parents literally since her first months. After Istanbul, Finland and the triumphant Spring season in Paris, Vasilina set off with her mother for South Africa, Singapore and Australia. In Irina’s words her daughter’s presence makes her even more disciplined – time is planned to the minute. Vasilina takes the long flights in her stride and, in the opinion of her parents, traveling accelerates her development – the changing countries, cities and faces are all good for her.

The fiesta of Russian classical ballet will take place in London on the stage of the London Coliseum from 13 to 23 August 2015. Within the framework of the Irina Kolesnikova Season two ballets, Swan Lake and La Bayadère will be performed – 11 shows in all.

The cast:

Irina Kolesnikova
Denis Rodkin, Bolshoi
Vadim Muntagirov, Royal Ballet
Kimin Kim, Mariinski
Natalia Matsak, National Opera of Ukraine
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