Introduced by Humphrey Burton

The classical ballet of today was born in the Maryinsky Theatre in St Petersburg. For tonight's gala we join the audience in that same beautiful theatre, now known as the Kirov, to enjoy extracts from ballets rarely seen in the West.

La Vivandiere: a sparkling re-creation of a pas-de-six of 1840 by ARTHUR SAINT-LEON, with Alia Sizova and Boris Blankov

Esmeralda: a dramatic pas-de-deux by MARIUS PETIPA, with Gabriella Komleva and Vitali Afanaskov.

Diana and Actaeon: a spectacular pas-de-deux by AGRIPPINA VAGANOVA, with Tatiana Terekhova and Sergei Berezhnoi.

Pas-de-Quatre: in 1845, four of the world's greatest ballerinas appeared together on the London stage. This ballet is an evocation of that memorable evening. With Irina Kolpakova, Yelena Yevteyeva, Gabriella Komleva and Galina Mezentseva.

Carnival in Venice: Petipa in a different mood - a lamp-lit Venetian carnival, with Svetlana Yefre mova and Valeri Yemets.

Paquita: Petipa again, with a series of variations which display the talents of the entire Kirov Ballet Company, including the children of the famous Vaganova School

Orchestra conducted by Viktor Shirokov
Directed by HELENA MACHERET
A SOVIET TELEVISION production