When the jealous Gamzatti tries to make Nikiya give Solor up, Nikiya is so enraged that she tries to stab her. The next day, Nikiya is forced to dance at the betrothal celebration and dies when she is bitten by a snake Gamzatti has hidden in a basket of flowers.

Solor tries to escape from his sorrow by smoking opium and, in the ballet’s most celebrated scene, The Kingdom of the Shades, has a vision of the afterlife in which he is reunited with Nikiya.

Hong Kong Ballet (HKB) have chosen to end the ballet there, omitting the final act where the gods avenge Nikiya by destroying the temple at Solor and Gamzatti’s wedding, and some divertissement scenes have been cut to keep costs, dancer numbers and running time down.

However, the essentials are all there – the mime scenes are particularly authentic and you can see how much HKB’s dancers have benefited from Malakhov’s immense knowledge and meticulous coaching.

Jordi Roig’s sets are spectacular, as are some of his costumes, although those for the men are oddly drab.

Muntagirov’s dazzling jumps and turns were accompanied by impeccable purity of line and his partnering was superb – the harmony and ease with which he and Nuñez danced together was breathtaking.

Not surprisingly, they brought the house down on the first night.

On the last night, Salenko brought lyricism to balance her extraordinary virtuosity – her turns have to be seen to be believed. She was partnered beautifully by HKB’s Yonen Takano, a true danseur noble with soft, soaring jumps, elegant line and immaculate classical style.

The striking looks and vivid acting of HKB’s Wang Qingxin made her a terrific Gamzatti; in the same role Kim Eunsil danced superbly but was miscast in terms of personality (it was impossible to believe in her as a cruel princess).

Wei Wei gave a powerful performance as the tormented Chief Brahmin, Kyle Lin Chang-yuan was outstanding as the lead Fakir (the Fakirs were a highlight in all the shows), and Nana Sakai sparkled as the First Shade and in the charming Manu, or “jug”, dance.

The Saturday matinee saw an impressive performance with a 100 per cent home team in the principal roles. Jessica Burrows was an ideal Gamzatti, with a scintillating combination of glamour, drama and bravura technique.

Alexander Yap’s Solor showed how much potential he has, with a strong stage presence and thrilling dancing, matching Muntagirov by performing no fewer than eight double assemblés in his final solo.

Xuan Cheng, who is transitioning from ballerina to ballet mistress, deserves a gallantry award for taking on the role of Nikiya – if she couldn’t compete with the technical brilliance of the guest stars, her portrayal was moving and her artistry was a pleasure to watch.

La Bayadère is one of the supreme tests of classical dancing and this production showed HKB’s current lack of depth. There are too few senior dancers, many of the junior ones are inexperienced and the problem is compounded by a worrying number of injuries.

That said, if the overall standard did not reach the heights the company has attained in the past, the male dancers did consistently well (apart from as the Golden Idol character: all three of the dancers seen performing the part made at least one error).

If things were more problematic on the female side, they improved from show to show in terms of precision and style. The Kingdom of the Shades is one of the most demanding and beautiful pieces ever created for the corps de ballet and by the final performance the dancers did full justice to it.

“La Bayadere”, Hong Kong Ballet, Hong Kong Cultural Centre Grand Theatre. Reviewed: June 2, 3 (matinee), 4 (evening).