Staging a tour de force

Russian State Ballet, a frequent visitor to China since 2010, has toured the country many times. But what makes this tour special is that they are going to bring a new program, titled The Adventure of Little Onion, which was staged at Century Theater in Beijing on April 30.

The Adventure of Little Onion is a children's tale based on a popular character, named Cipollino, or Little Onion, by Italian writer Gianni Rodari. It was adapted into a ballet by composer Karen Khachaturian and choreographer Genrik Alexandrovich Maiorov, and was first staged at the Taras Shevchenko National Opera and Ballet Theater of Ukraine in 1974.

"We've built up a friendship with Chinese audiences over the past decade, and with this new program, we want to show a different side to our troupe," says Viacheslav, adding that the lineup of the current tour sees more than 30 young Russian ballet dancers aged around 20 years old join the troupe.

Besides the Russian State Ballet, the Bolshoi Ballet of Russia staged two ballet productions－Le Corsaire and The Flames of Paris－at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing from May 18 to 25. According to NCPA, the shows sold out fast, attracting around 15,000 audience members.