Celebrating their 75th birthday this year, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and Maestro Zubin Mehta, together with soloist Gil Shaham, returned to London to take part in one of the BBC’s Promenade concerts. The programme featured Webern’s first acknowledged work, Bruch’s First Violin Concerto and two evocations of Spain – one by Albeniz and one by Rimsky-Korsakov.

The Guangdong Acrobatic Troupe of China returned to London with its spectacular production of Swan Lake, in which Black Swans dance on high wires and the Swan Princess dances en pointe on her partner’s head. The seamless fusion of breathtaking acrobatic feats and magnificent classical dance has transformed its principal dancers into international stars, and thrilled audiences worldwide.

Photo: Swan Lake © Guangdong Acrobatic Troupe of China

The Mariinsky Ballet returned once again to the Royal Opera House for a most memorable summer season which marked fifty years since their first UK visit in the summer of 1961. The repertoire consisted of six magnificent programmes: Swan Lake, Homage to Fokine (Chopiniana, Scheherazade, The Firebird), Don Quixote, Balanchine/Robbins (Scotch Symphony, In the Night, Ballet Imperial), Anna Karenina and La Bayadère.

Photo: Uliana Lopatkina, Igor Zelensky in Swan Lake © M. Logvinov

Since its legendary first ever London performances in the early 60s, the Bolshoi Ballet has been enthralling British audiences and winning new followers with each unforgettable bravura performance. In 2010 there was another opportunity to see this great company in ballets old and new, intimate and grand, lyrical and monumental from Spartacus, Serenade, Giselle, Coppélia and Le Corsaire to Don Quixote.

Photo: Ivan Vasiliev in Spartacus © Damir Yusopov

The Bolshoi Opera represents the quintessence of Russian operatic heritage. Tchaikovsky’s supreme masterpiece Eugene Onegin was first performed at the Bolshoi Theatre in 1879. In 2010 – for the first time on the stage of the Royal Opera House – the Bolshoi brought its powerful 2006 production directed by the award-winning Dmitri Tcherniakov, with the orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre under the direction of Dmitri Jurowski. The Bolshoi’s incomparable singers include Tatiana Monogarova and the sensational winner of the 2009 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition, Ekaterina Scherbachenko.

Photo: Tatiana Monogarova as Tatiana, Andrei Dunaev as Lensky in Eugene Onegin © Damir Yusupov

Wagner’s colossal four-opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen staged by the Mariinsky Theatre received its premiere at the Royal Opera House, giving London audiences the opportunity to witness at first hand the brilliance of Valery Gergiev and George Tsypin’s thrilling conception, drawing on primordial Russian, Caucasian and Scythian folk mythology. The outstanding performances of some of the world’s finest singers together with the Mariinsky’s superb orchestra, led by Valery Gergiev, brought a rediscovery of Wagner’s glorious music through an extraordinary experience.

Photo: Scene from the 2003 Mariinsky production of Siegfried © Natasha Razina

Since its first visit to London in 1961, the Mariinsky Ballet, formerly known as the Kirov, has captivated British audiences, enchanting and delighting with each unique performance. Synonymous with ballet history, the Mariinsky’s legendary dancers have been world-famous names since the company’s inception over 250 years ago. After a four year absence, this magnificent company of over 200 returned to the Royal Opera House with four stupendous productions which included well-loved classics such as Romeo and Juliet and a homage to the great choreographer George Balanchine.

Photo: Viktoria Tereshkina and Andrian Fadeyev in Rubies © Natasha Razina

Drawing inspiration from classical dance, traditional Chinese acrobatics and elements of Peking Opera, the Guangdong Acrobatic Company’s extraordinary version of Swan Lake has taken the world by storm since its premiere in 2006.

A co-production with the Shanghai City Dance Company, this spectacular ballet, a seamless fusion of breathtaking acrobatic feats and magnificent classical dance, has transformed its principal dancers into international stars and thrilled audiences worldwide.

Photo: Wu Zhengdan and Wei Baohua in Swan Lake © Guangdong Acrobatic Troupe of China

In 1991, Raise the Red Lantern, a film by celebrated director Zhang Yimou, stunned the cinematic world with its astonishing depiction of a feudal world in which a young woman is forced against her will to become the concubine of an old lord.

Together with choreographer Wang Xinpeng, Zhang subsequently translated this tragic story into a dazzling ballet, created especially for The National Ballet of China. Emotionally charged scenes of love, jealousy, intrigue and loyalty are realised through stunning choreography, sumptuous sets, glorious period costumes and a lush, exciting musical score to create a uniquely Chinese style of ballet theatre, remarkable for its breathtaking blend of Chinese theatrical forms with traditional ballet.

Photo: Zhang Jian in Raise the Red Lantern © NBC Archives

The world renowned National Ballet of China, under the artistic direction of Sonia Zhao, made its exciting debut at the Royal Opera House with Natalia Makarova’s entrancing production of Swan Lake.

Tchaikovsky’s sublimely evocative music provides the perfect showcase for the technical artistry and dramatic skills of the Company, unfolding in scenes of ecstasy and tenderness, lyricism and drama, as Prince Siegfried and the swan-princess Odette, affirm their love for each other and conquer the forces of evil.

Photo: Zhu Yan in Swan Lake © Si Tinghong

The incomparable Kirov Ballet toured Manchester and Birmingham with a dazzling programme which included Balanchine's glittering masterpiece Jewels, an exuberant production of Don Quixote and an exciting Gala programme of Chopiniana, Divertissements and Kingdom of the Shades.

Photo: Mikhail Lobukhin in The Talisman © Natasha Razina

In its 17th UK Tour, MCB performed Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake and The Nutcracker.

Photo: A scene from The Sleeping Beauty

Following their award winning performances in 2006, Russia's incomparable Bolshoi Ballet returned to London to perform a dazzling three-week season at the London Coliseum.

Photo: The Kingdom of the Shades from La Bayadère © Damir Yusupov

Six years after its first spectacular visit, the celebrated La Scala Ballet returned to the Royal Opera House under the direction of its Artistic Director, Frédéric Olivieri, with Rudolf Nureyev's acclaimed production of The Sleeping Beauty. 

Photo: Marta Romagna in The Sleeping Beauty © Andrea Tamoni/Teatro alla Scala

In its 16th UK Tour Moscow City Ballet Moscow City Ballet returned to perform Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella,an enchanting and romantic The Sleeping Beauty, the breathtakingly powerful Swan Lake and the strange and magical The Nutcracker.

Photo: A scene from Cinderella

Russia’s great Bolshoi Ballet marked the 50th anniversary of their first visit to the UK. The season was a spectacular success, with a wide range of highly acclaimed productions playing to sell-out houses.

Photo: Natalia Osipova in Don Quixote © Damir Yusupov

Following the success of their 2004 visit to the Royal Opera House, the Bolshoi Ballet returned to the UK for their first regional tour in over 16 years. Audiences nationwide had an opportunity to see some of their most spectacular productions - Swan Lake, Spartacus and Giselle.

Photo: Anna Antonicheva and Dmitri Belogolovtsev in Spartacus © Nadezhda Bansova