Flames of Paris at The Mikailovsky Theatre

I am so sore and stiff from this intense training. The Vaganova class that we have in the mornings, by Ms Safronova, is really slow in order fro you to work your technique. I love to work on my technique, but this is hectic. ALL my muscles are in pain. Yesterday I couldn't walk because I was so sore and it was really difficult to do any form of dancing. I have been enjoying the variations classes with Ms Kolpakova. She is so inspirational! Ms Kolpakova was a Principal dancer at the Kirov Ballet(now known as the Mariinsky) and is now a coach for the Principals at the American Ballet Theatre. She has so much knowledge and her detailing is outstanding. We have learnt Jewels from Sleeping Beauty and the first fairy variation in the prologue of Sleeping Beauty. She told me that I am very good yesterday! Wow coming from her, that is such an honour!!!! I have also been enjoying the last class of the day by Mr Lazaro Carreno. He trained at the Vaganova Academy and was a Principal dancer at the National Ballet of Cuba, dance with Alecia Alonzo and was Carlos Acosta's teacher. His classes are so energetic and his he continuously says that you dance with your brain and not your body and sets very confusing exercises but they are so much fun. I really feel like I can "dance" in his classes. Its nice to get the pure technique class in the mornings and the performing class in the afternoon. My muscles are slowly getting used to the continuous hard work.

Flames of Paris at the Mikailovsky Theatre

Ok so the highlight of my whole week so far was getting the most amazing opportunity to watch Ivan Vasiliviev LIVE in Flames of Paris on Wednesday evening. For those of you who don't know who Ivan Vasiliev is, please do yourself a favour and have a look at him on you tube. He is one of the stars of ballet of our time! The Principal female dancer was Oksana Bondareva. Let me start with her first. Ok, lets see... she is GREAT!!! She is from Ukraine and she is a turner... For her fouettes, she started off with a triple pirouette and then did turns in second(like the men, but on pointe) till the half way mark and then she did doubles for each fouettes till the end. What an honour it was to see Ivan Vasiliev in real life. He can do such amazing things. He did one combination where he did 2 sets of double tours straight after each other and then right after that did a TRIPLE!!! This is not something that you see everyday. There are not many men that can do this properly. I have never seen this in real life before. In fact I have never seen anything so amazing! If the Mikailovsky Ballet is this amazing, what is the Mariinsky Ballet going to be like on Saturday, oh yes I'm going to be watching Le Corsaire by the Mariinsky this Saturday and getting a backstage tour (",).

I will be posting some pictures of the Mikailovsky Theatre and will try upload some videos to prove that I really did see Ivan Vasiliev in REAL LIFE!!!!