Review | Bolshoi Ballet put on a stunning show in Shenzhen, China, featuring a surfeit of talent
With 10 principal dancers and numerous soloists, the famed Russian company performed classic and modern pieces with precision and grace
The Bolshoi Ballet’s appearance in Shenzhen was part of the company’s third tour to China in as many years – Beijing in 2023, Shanghai in 2024 and this year Beijing and Shenzhen.
After a hiatus during the Covid-19 pandemic, this was a golden opportunity to see the new generation of dancers who have been making waves in Moscow since 2020.
A glittering line-up that included no fewer than 10 principal dancers plus numerous soloists produced outstanding dancing, confirming that the Bolshoi remains one of the world’s greatest ballet companies.
If there were a few moments when dancers looked under-rehearsed or tired, that is not surprising; the tour seems to have been decided upon at very short notice and the dancers had moved to Shenzhen immediately after five performances in five days in Beijing, with only one full day to rehearse in the Pingshan Theatre Grand Theatre.
A change of orchestra and conductor from the shows in Beijing may not have helped – the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra was in good form, but Alexei Bogorad’s choices of tempi did not always seem in tune with the dancers.