Making a dream come true: seeing the Russian National Ballet perform in Madrid

Dance has been one of the few things that has remained constant in my life. Well, over the years, I have done ballet, tap, jazz, salsa, bachata and Irish dance, so any artistic event of this type will always grab my attention!

On my way back from school, I found an advert that was promoting the Russian National Ballet's performance of the "Great Tchaikovsky Gala", which pays homage to Maya Pliśetsaya, who, for more than twenty five years, was the partner of the Russian National Ballet's director, Sergei Radchenko. Sergei considers Maya to have been Russia's brightest star in the ballet world during the twentieth century, who tragically passed away in May 2015 after suffering a heart attack.

It's for this reason that they have decided to commemorate her life with this beautiful tour that sees 56 performances take place in 49 cities across Spain and Portugal. The dates that the tour was in Madrid fell between October 28th and November 1st 2015. At first, the intention was to simply hold one performance each day, but the success and response to the event was so significant that they increased this to two per day. I remember that the first performance started on the Friday and I only bought my ticket on the Thursday (my fault), so I didn't end up getting the seats that I really wanted. However, this did not at all stop me from enjoying the event, as the Teatro Fernán Gómez is not very big, so you can see the stage well even if you are sat in the last row (like I was! ).

(This photo was taken from the very back row and, even still, it is still really close to the stage. )

There were helpful theatre staff on hand at all times to guide you to your seat and hand you an event programme.

About the cast

The corps de ballet consists of 34 dancers who managed to move the public in their interpretation of some of Tchaikovsky's best and most important works, like Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet.

About the performance itself

The performance is split into two acts. The first act is wholly dedicated to Romeo and Juliet, where you can see the entire story unfold with some incredible scenography, with Juliet being portrayed by three different dancers, just like Romeo. All of the other characters in the play were portrayed by the performing artists, namely: Mercutio, Tybalt, Capulet and Lady Capulet.

In the second act, the "Great Tchaikovsky Gala" takes place, with the running order as follows:

• Symphony No. 6
• 2. Sleeping Beauty, Waltz of the Flowers
• Pas de deux from Sleeping Beauty (if you have ever seen the film you will be fascinated to hear the song! ("I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream... ")
• Russian dance from the third act of Swan Lake (this was one of my favourite parts because you can see the typical Russian dance where they cross their arms at shoulder level and their legs lift up rhythmically. I still don't understand how they do that exactly... )
• Pas de quatre from Swan Lake
• 6. Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker
• Adagio from Act 2 of Sleeping Beauty
• Waltz of the Flowers, pas de deux and the coda from the 2nd act of The Nutcracker

How would you like to meet the performing artists?

Well the tour is still in progress, so you will be able to see the performance in several cities across Spain! The performing artists usually have meet and greets with the public, so you will be able to meet the cast after the event has finished (sadly, this experience comes at a cost of 25€).

The event shop inside the theatre

One of the most exciting things about the day was finding the dancers selling postcards, CDs, DVDs, and even ballet slippers, all of which were being sold at reasonable prices. The atmosphere at the theatre was incredible, the seats were really comfortable, and the light frames the stage perfectly. You could feel the nerves and anticipation in the air amongst the people like myself who had been waiting a very long time to see this event. It was really nice to see little girls dancing in the corridors and begging their mothers to buy them ballet slippers.

(Large and comfortable chairs)

How much does a ticket to the performance cost?

Irrespective of which seat you are assigned, the price is exactly the same. Tickets cost 25€ and can be bought online (through Ticketea if purchasing within Spain, although you must bear in mind that there is an additional 1€ processing fee.

How long does the event last for?

Including the interval, the event lasted for approximately two hours.

Admiring the art reaps rewards!

What's better than opening your ticket and finding out that you are entitled to a 50% discount on a second ticket purchased for other performances, like "El amor y otros vicios", "Un espíritu burlón", and "Gracias al sol".

Where does the performance take place?

The event was held at the Centro Cultural de la Villa, in the Teatro de Fernán Gómez, which can be easily accessed via the metro station, Colón. Within the cultural centre itself, you can also find other interesting exhibitions, like the one about the Titanic, which will be open until March.

(A really well-decorated and elegant theatre)

(The entranceway of the outside door to the theatre)

Recommendations:

• Buy your tickets as soon as you can because the good seats sell out really quickly.
• Don't forget to arrive to the theatre early!

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