The Russian Prima Ballerina Svetlana Zakharova set to wow Abu Dhabi Classics

World-renowned prima ballerina Svetlana Zakharova will bring the unmatched elegance and grace of ballet to the ninth season of Abu Dhabi Classics when she performs MODANSE, a two-part routine produced by MuzArts, at the Cultural Foundation on Friday, 31 January 2020. 

The Russian sensation has already wowed audiences from Russia to England with the performance, a two-night premiere at the world-famous Bolshoi in Moscow in June 2019, followed by three nights at London Coliseum in December 2019.

For her eagerly awaited Abu Dhabi debut, Svetlana will be joined by a star-studded cast including Bolshoi Ballet performers Mikhail Lobukhin, Vaycheslav Lopatin, Denis Savin, Jacopo Tissi and Ana Turazashvili.

And ticketholders are in for inspiring evening later this month. The first half of MODANSE, Como un Respiro (Like a Breath) is a one-act, 45-minute ballet, choreographed by Mauro Bigonzetti to the music of George Frideric Handel. Part two, Gabrielle Chanel, is choreographed by Yuri Possokhov with music by Ilya Demutsky - a collaboration that explores the connections of famous French fashion designer Coco Chanel to the world of dance through Sergei Diaghilev, founder of Ballets Russes, and his ballets, Le Train Bleu (1924) and Apollon Musagete (1929).

In her meticulous preparation for the performance Svetlana studied Coco Chanel’s life, even visiting the designer’s famed apartment on Rue Cambon, in Paris, France, to get a sense of who she needed to be on stage.

The visually stunning Gabrielle Chanel ballet draws in both ballet and fashion lovers as it incorporates more than 80 costumes designed exclusively for the show by the Chanel Creative Studio, headed by Chanel Fashion House creative director Virginie Viard.

Svetlana, now 40, joined the Kiev Choreographic School in 1989, aged 10, and her remarkable talent, extraordinary grace, flexibility and stability were noticed. Aged 15, she entered the acclaimed Vaganova Prix young dancers competition in St. Petersburg, Russia, and was awarded second prize. She was subsequently invited to join the famous Vaganova Academy where she studied for a year before graduating at 17 and moving to the famous Kirov, or Mariinsky Ballet.

She spent seven years at Kirov, working with acclaimed teacher Olga Moiseeva, before receiving an offer from Vladimir Vasiliev in 2003 to join the Bolshoi Ballet company, where she also took the role of principal dancer.

Svetlana, who received her official prima status aged just 18, has earned great acclaim for her performances in many roles including Swan Lake, Bayadere, Giselle, Sleeping Beauty and Don Quixote.

Aside from her time at the Bolshoi and Mariinsky, Svetlana has toured the world and performed at esteemed venues such as the New York Metropolitan Opera, London Covent Garden, the Teatro Colon

in Buenos Aires, the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich, Teatro di san Carlo in Napoli, Vienna Opera, the National Theatre Tokyo and many more around the world.

Her many awards include La Scala Ballet Etoile; Golden Mask awards for the best female ballet role by the Theatre Union of Russia; the Meritorious Artist of Russia; the People’s Artist of Russia; a special St Petersburg ‘People of our City’ presentation, the Officier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France and Benois de la Danse,  a prestigious competition judged by a panel of industry luminaries

Ticketholders for MODANSE at Abu Dhabi Classics 2020 can expect the very best from one of the ballet world’s leading lights.