It has been six years since South African balletomanes last thrilled to performances of the 55-member company of the St Petersburg Ballet Theatre who now spend almost nine months of every year travelling the world with their magnificent repertoire of full-length classics.

In 2004 and again in 2007, the St Petersburg Ballet toured South Africa collecting rave reviews and hanging out the 'Sold Out' sign at almost every performance.

Now the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre is returning to Johannesburg for a limited season. It will perform exclusively at The Teatro at Montecasino and premieres on Wednesday, 10 July.

The Company brings to South Africa a full-length, four- act, live-orchestra backed, classic production of the world’s most-famous ballet, the one that dance audiences long for – Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake.

First performed in St.Petersburg in 1895, Swan Lake with its unrivalled “white acts”, its spectacular and dramatic Ballroom scene, sublime music and deeply moving story, is the ballet that towers above all others.

The St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre is renowned globally not just for beautiful dancers but also for stunning and grand full-length productions.

International producer, Andrew Guild said. “Not only do The St Petersburg Ballet Theatre bring their troupe of Vaganova trained dancers , they also bring their magnificent scenery; scenery that has audiences applauding even as the curtain rises, along with sumptuous costumes, dozens of dazzling white tutus and hundreds of pink pointe shoes. The St Petersburg Ballet is truly traditional Russian classical ballet at its very best.”

“This is the real thing, grand-scale Russian Ballet. A complete classical full-length work. Backed by a live orchestra. This is not a concert program. This is not a small group of dancers performing unrelated pas-de-deux and party pieces. This is Swan Lake, the world’s most-famous ballet, performed by one of Russia’s leading classical companies. If you see only one ballet in your life, let it be this,” concludes Guild.